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Papers by Joni Meenagh

This review set out to examine the evidence base for respectful relationship resources targeting ... more This review set out to examine the evidence base for respectful relationship resources targeting children and young people aged seven to seventeen years and/or their carers and available in non-school, non-curriculum formats and media that are designed to promote and build knowledge and skills in respectful, healthy intimate relationships.

While government funded transitioning programs have been offered in some of the states and territ... more While government funded transitioning programs have been offered in some of the states and territories in Australia since the early 2000s, there is little publicly available information about these programs and evidence of best practice. This report aims to fill a gap in literature on transitioning programs in Australia as part of an evidence review of transitioning programs, nationally and internationally. The report is based on an evidence review of transitioning programs and stakeholder interviews with organisations providing transitioning services for sex workers across Australia and New Zealand. In light of recent local and state government funding in this area, the research was conducted by RMIT University with the aim of building the evidence base and informing the development of transitioning programs across Australia and the region.1 Despite this state and local government funding, the vast majority of program development and activities undertaken regarding transitioning fo...

Feminism & Psychology, 2017

With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and “hookup culture,” young women face both challeng... more With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and “hookup culture,” young women face both challenges and opportunities when constructing themselves as sexual subjects. This paper explores the experiences of a young woman who sought to have sex with someone new in order to move on from the breakup of a long-term relationship. This case study is part of a larger project which explored how young people (aged 18–25) negotiate their love/sex relationships within the context of new media environments. While this young woman described her experience of having sex with someone new as “empowering,” within a neoliberal, postfeminist context the concept of empowerment may not be a useful theoretical tool for understanding young women’s sexuality. Situating her story within its broader sociocultural context, this paper explores how structural factors shape this young woman’s ability to navigate normative discourses about sexual empowerment and construct herself as a sexual subject.

The rapid development of new media technologies has changed the ways in which we live our lives. ... more The rapid development of new media technologies has changed the ways in which we live our lives. As these technologies emerged, there has been concern over how they have affected young people’s negotiation of their romantic and sexual relationships. The study discussed in this methods case explored this phenomenon through the lens of Michel Foucault’s work on ethics of the self. It challenged assumptions that social media places young people “at risk” by examining the creative ways in which these technologies are used in the negotiation of various stages of love/sex relationships. Undertaken as a PhD project in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, this research utilized an online discussion board, individual in-person interviews, and developmental vignettes to engage young people in discussions about their use of new media technologies, negotiation of love/sex relationships, and aspects of “ethics of the self.” The online discussion board consisted of 28 young people (aged 18-25 years) from around Australia, and interviews were conducted with an additional 12 young people living in and around Melbourne. Both methods made use of developmental vignettes to facilitate discussion about a young couple negotiating casual sex. Here, I describe the methods used and discuss how this project design was overly complicated and strived to accomplish too much.

Sexualities

Dominant understandings of men’s sexuality claim that men are always up for sex; as such, researc... more Dominant understandings of men’s sexuality claim that men are always up for sex; as such, research on heterosexual men’s sexual refusals is sparse. Drawing on interviews conducted with young people (aged 18–23) living in and around Melbourne, Australia, this article explores three young people’s experiences of men saying ‘no’ to a woman’s request for sex within an ongoing relationship. In each of these instances the refusal was, to some extent, not respected. This presents a challenge to men’s masculinity which then needs to be redressed through compensatory manhood acts. This article explores how the truth claims of hegemonic masculinity and the male sexual drive discourse are reproduced through men and women’s social interactions, and unpacks the implications of men’s sexual refusals not being heard for sexual ethics education programmes.

Culture, Health & Sexuality, 2016

ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, i... more ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, including results of on-line profiles of male escorts.

ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, i... more ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, including results of on-line profiles of male escorts.

With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and ''hookup culture,'' young women face both challe... more With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and ''hookup culture,'' young women face both challenges and opportunities when constructing themselves as sexual subjects. This paper explores the experiences of a young woman who sought to have sex with someone new in order to move on from the breakup of a long-term relationship. This case study is part of a larger project which explored how young people (aged 18–25) negotiate their love/sex relationships within the context of new media environments. While this young woman described her experience of having sex with someone new as ''empowering,'' within a neoliberal, postfeminist context the concept of empowerment may not be a useful theoretical tool for understanding young women's sexuality. Situating her story within its broader sociocultural context, this paper explores how structural factors shape this young woman's ability to navigate normative discourses about sexual empowerment and construct herself as a sexual subject.

Faculty of Law School of Justice, 2015

Culture, Health & Sexuality, 2011

Sex, Power and Consent: Youth Culture and the Unwritten Rules draws on the real world stories and... more Sex, Power and Consent: Youth Culture and the Unwritten Rules draws on the real world stories and experiences of young women and young men-as told in their own words-regarding love, sex, relationships and negotiating consent. Judicious reference to feminist and sociological theory underpins explicit connections between young people's lived experience and current international debates. Issues surrounding youth sex within popular culture, sexuality education and sexual violence prevention are thoroughly explored. In a ...

Although romantic and sexual relationships are an important aspect of young people’s lives, resea... more Although romantic and sexual relationships are an important aspect of young people’s lives, research on how young people negotiate their love/sex relationships is lacking. New media environments provide a new context within which young people negotiate their love/sex relationships; however, what is negotiated is often not all that different from what was negotiated before the advent of new media technologies. Using an online discussion board and individual in-person interviews, this paper explores how young Australians, aged 18–25 years, engage with dominant gendered discourses to negotiate their love/sex relationships within the context of new media environments. Previous research suggests that young people make use of new media technologies to flirt with one another, to initiate new relationships, to maintain their relationships, and to fight and end their relationships. This paper focuses on young people’s practices of mediated flirting, surveillance, and breaking up. It considers the creative and agentic ways young people use new media technologies in the negotiation of their love/sex relationships.

Conference Presentations by Joni Meenagh

For decades now when we talk about sexual negotiation the trope has been women as gatekeepers, me... more For decades now when we talk about sexual negotiation the trope has been women as gatekeepers, men as gatecrashers. Despite feminist advancements in educating about sexual negotiation and sexual violence, this remains: women say no, men push them to say yes. This is because men are still expected to always want sex; a discourse that is well past its use-by date. When interviewing young people about the impact new media technologies have had on the negotiation of their love/sex relationships, I began to hear about something else: within heterosexual relationships, men saying ‘no’ to women’s requests for sex and not being heard. This paper explores three such stories. I posit that our understanding of men as ‘always up for sex’ is so entrenched that their sexual refusals are, at least momentarily, rendered unintelligible. That this discourse remains a central part of our understanding of masculinity limits our ability to develop more ethical sexual subject positions for both women and men.

This review set out to examine the evidence base for respectful relationship resources targeting ... more This review set out to examine the evidence base for respectful relationship resources targeting children and young people aged seven to seventeen years and/or their carers and available in non-school, non-curriculum formats and media that are designed to promote and build knowledge and skills in respectful, healthy intimate relationships.

While government funded transitioning programs have been offered in some of the states and territ... more While government funded transitioning programs have been offered in some of the states and territories in Australia since the early 2000s, there is little publicly available information about these programs and evidence of best practice. This report aims to fill a gap in literature on transitioning programs in Australia as part of an evidence review of transitioning programs, nationally and internationally. The report is based on an evidence review of transitioning programs and stakeholder interviews with organisations providing transitioning services for sex workers across Australia and New Zealand. In light of recent local and state government funding in this area, the research was conducted by RMIT University with the aim of building the evidence base and informing the development of transitioning programs across Australia and the region.1 Despite this state and local government funding, the vast majority of program development and activities undertaken regarding transitioning fo...

Feminism & Psychology, 2017

With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and “hookup culture,” young women face both challeng... more With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and “hookup culture,” young women face both challenges and opportunities when constructing themselves as sexual subjects. This paper explores the experiences of a young woman who sought to have sex with someone new in order to move on from the breakup of a long-term relationship. This case study is part of a larger project which explored how young people (aged 18–25) negotiate their love/sex relationships within the context of new media environments. While this young woman described her experience of having sex with someone new as “empowering,” within a neoliberal, postfeminist context the concept of empowerment may not be a useful theoretical tool for understanding young women’s sexuality. Situating her story within its broader sociocultural context, this paper explores how structural factors shape this young woman’s ability to navigate normative discourses about sexual empowerment and construct herself as a sexual subject.

The rapid development of new media technologies has changed the ways in which we live our lives. ... more The rapid development of new media technologies has changed the ways in which we live our lives. As these technologies emerged, there has been concern over how they have affected young people’s negotiation of their romantic and sexual relationships. The study discussed in this methods case explored this phenomenon through the lens of Michel Foucault’s work on ethics of the self. It challenged assumptions that social media places young people “at risk” by examining the creative ways in which these technologies are used in the negotiation of various stages of love/sex relationships. Undertaken as a PhD project in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, this research utilized an online discussion board, individual in-person interviews, and developmental vignettes to engage young people in discussions about their use of new media technologies, negotiation of love/sex relationships, and aspects of “ethics of the self.” The online discussion board consisted of 28 young people (aged 18-25 years) from around Australia, and interviews were conducted with an additional 12 young people living in and around Melbourne. Both methods made use of developmental vignettes to facilitate discussion about a young couple negotiating casual sex. Here, I describe the methods used and discuss how this project design was overly complicated and strived to accomplish too much.

Sexualities

Dominant understandings of men’s sexuality claim that men are always up for sex; as such, researc... more Dominant understandings of men’s sexuality claim that men are always up for sex; as such, research on heterosexual men’s sexual refusals is sparse. Drawing on interviews conducted with young people (aged 18–23) living in and around Melbourne, Australia, this article explores three young people’s experiences of men saying ‘no’ to a woman’s request for sex within an ongoing relationship. In each of these instances the refusal was, to some extent, not respected. This presents a challenge to men’s masculinity which then needs to be redressed through compensatory manhood acts. This article explores how the truth claims of hegemonic masculinity and the male sexual drive discourse are reproduced through men and women’s social interactions, and unpacks the implications of men’s sexual refusals not being heard for sexual ethics education programmes.

Culture, Health & Sexuality, 2016

ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, i... more ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, including results of on-line profiles of male escorts.

ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, i... more ABSTRACT This chapter provides an overview of issues associated with male escorts in Australia, including results of on-line profiles of male escorts.

With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and ''hookup culture,'' young women face both challe... more With the rise of neoliberalism, postfeminism and ''hookup culture,'' young women face both challenges and opportunities when constructing themselves as sexual subjects. This paper explores the experiences of a young woman who sought to have sex with someone new in order to move on from the breakup of a long-term relationship. This case study is part of a larger project which explored how young people (aged 18–25) negotiate their love/sex relationships within the context of new media environments. While this young woman described her experience of having sex with someone new as ''empowering,'' within a neoliberal, postfeminist context the concept of empowerment may not be a useful theoretical tool for understanding young women's sexuality. Situating her story within its broader sociocultural context, this paper explores how structural factors shape this young woman's ability to navigate normative discourses about sexual empowerment and construct herself as a sexual subject.

Faculty of Law School of Justice, 2015

Culture, Health & Sexuality, 2011

Sex, Power and Consent: Youth Culture and the Unwritten Rules draws on the real world stories and... more Sex, Power and Consent: Youth Culture and the Unwritten Rules draws on the real world stories and experiences of young women and young men-as told in their own words-regarding love, sex, relationships and negotiating consent. Judicious reference to feminist and sociological theory underpins explicit connections between young people's lived experience and current international debates. Issues surrounding youth sex within popular culture, sexuality education and sexual violence prevention are thoroughly explored. In a ...

Although romantic and sexual relationships are an important aspect of young people’s lives, resea... more Although romantic and sexual relationships are an important aspect of young people’s lives, research on how young people negotiate their love/sex relationships is lacking. New media environments provide a new context within which young people negotiate their love/sex relationships; however, what is negotiated is often not all that different from what was negotiated before the advent of new media technologies. Using an online discussion board and individual in-person interviews, this paper explores how young Australians, aged 18–25 years, engage with dominant gendered discourses to negotiate their love/sex relationships within the context of new media environments. Previous research suggests that young people make use of new media technologies to flirt with one another, to initiate new relationships, to maintain their relationships, and to fight and end their relationships. This paper focuses on young people’s practices of mediated flirting, surveillance, and breaking up. It considers the creative and agentic ways young people use new media technologies in the negotiation of their love/sex relationships.

For decades now when we talk about sexual negotiation the trope has been women as gatekeepers, me... more For decades now when we talk about sexual negotiation the trope has been women as gatekeepers, men as gatecrashers. Despite feminist advancements in educating about sexual negotiation and sexual violence, this remains: women say no, men push them to say yes. This is because men are still expected to always want sex; a discourse that is well past its use-by date. When interviewing young people about the impact new media technologies have had on the negotiation of their love/sex relationships, I began to hear about something else: within heterosexual relationships, men saying ‘no’ to women’s requests for sex and not being heard. This paper explores three such stories. I posit that our understanding of men as ‘always up for sex’ is so entrenched that their sexual refusals are, at least momentarily, rendered unintelligible. That this discourse remains a central part of our understanding of masculinity limits our ability to develop more ethical sexual subject positions for both women and men.