About 13% of young people have been harmed by sharing intimate videos

About 13% of young Portuguese have been harmed by the publication of intimate photos or videos of themselves, and 15.7% of this age group like it when intimate content is published with permission, according to a study by the University of Coimbra.

These results come from a survey of 1,500 young people (a representative sample of the Portuguese population aged 18 to 30) included in the research project MyGender – a mediated practice of young adults of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Coimbra (FLUC). ).

According to the data, while the majority of young Portuguese (61.1%) block people on social media who send sexually suggestive messages, 15.5% feel comfortable sharing their sex life on some apps, and 18.1% send sexually suggestive messages to other people in the digital environment. to the project results to which Lusa’s agency had access.

“This is a very significant percentage” of young people who agree to share intimate content, Ines Amaral, who is coordinating the project along with Rita Basilio Simões, told the Lusa agency, given that the prospect is that this percentage will continue to grow throughout the years.

Young people’s exposure to this type of content is happening earlier and earlier, according to the researcher and FLUC professor. Also according to the study, 28% of young people say they follow people who share their intimate lives online.

While only 31% of respondents have already used or are using dating apps, the digital environment is also becoming a space for starting relationships, with more than a third (36.4%) saying they have already been in relationships with people who met “online.” .

“Few people said they use Tinder, especially girls who are afraid of receiving unwanted sexual content or being harassed in any way and therefore do not want to use these applications,” explained Ines Amaral, noting that in interviews with young people this It was also clear that there was some anxiety associated with using these dating apps.

The study also says that about a quarter of respondents say they have been harassed because of their gender, just over 10% because of their sexual orientation and about 8% because of their ethnicity.

Nearly 10% of young people also admit to experiencing harassment outside the digital world due to their online involvement.

More than half of young people do not insist on confirming their gender and/or sexual identity in mobile applications, despite the fact that the majority (66.2%) indicate their gender in the applications in which they have an account.

The research project, which ends in August, aimed to study issues “related to gender and sexuality” among young Portuguese aged 18 to 30, and to study apps and their use by this age group, Lusa explained. Agency Ines Amaral.

In addition to the survey, the project included interviews with young people, focus groups, diaries and analysis of the applications themselves.

According to Ines Amaral, the project team sought to understand how the use of applications affects people’s lives.

According to the researcher, the vast majority of platforms continue to promote the so-called “gender script”, ignoring the characteristics of the people using the applications.

“If a person identifies as a woman, the algorithm provides them with a certain type of content. As long as he identifies as a man, the algorithm will identify another type of content,” he noted, also noting that in many cases the only options for identification are man, woman or someone else.

From Ines Amaral’s perspective, platforms ultimately try to homogenize their users, and young people are well aware of this.

“Most of the participants [nos grupos focais] they say that actually, unintentionally, they ended up reinforcing these culturally ingrained standards,” he said.