Youth 'at risk'? Young people, sexual health and social inequality
Anastasia Powell
School of Political Science, Criminology and Sociology, The University of Melbourne
Contact Email:   ajpowellunimelb.edu.au

Much of the focus on youth sexual health focuses on young people in general as 'at risk' of sexual ill-health, unwanted pregnancy, and sexual coercion. In Australia, there is a growing emphasis on sexuality education to reduce the risk of disease by providing young people with knowledge about STIs. However, it is important to acknowledge that these risks are not experienced in the same way by all young people. Inequalities across gender, race, class, rurality and sexuality shape young people’s experiences of sex and sexual health, such that knowledge alone may be insufficient to facilitate young people to make choices which support their sexual safety and autonomy. Drawing on interview and focus group data with young people aged 14 to 24, this paper provides a window into the sexual lives of a small number of youth in urban and rural Victoria, and explores their varying opportunity to actively negotiate and promote their sexual health. Implications for sexuality education and broader social policy interventions are then considered.

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