ABSTRACT
Objective:
to understand the early sexual initiation process among male adolescents attending school in the context of gender diversity, in the light of Madeleine Leininger's Theory.
Method:
a descriptive and exploratory research study with a qualitative approach, conducted with 18 adolescents attending school in the city of Recife-Pernambuco, Brazil. The individual interviews were conducted from June to December 2018 and a semi-structured interview script was used to produce the empirical material. As analytical resource, the IRAMuTeQ® software was resorted to in order to categorize the data in the thematic modality.
Results:
four thematic axes emerged from the interviews, namely: Influencing factors in early sexual initiation; Experience in early sexual initiation; Gender identity in the context of multiple masculinities; and Cultural aspects related to early sexual initiation. Sexual initiation emerges as a requirement for male adolescents to be respected and accepted in a group. It is understood that early sexual initiation is mainly characterized by emotional immaturity and by lack of knowledge, exposing adolescents to situations of vulnerabilities.
Conclusion:
taboos inhibit the establishment of dialogical relations in the family context and in the school setting, configuring situations of vulnerability for early sexual initiation, given the findings of sexuality in the context of gender diversity. Interdisciplinary and intersectoral actions, with emphasis on nurses' articulating role, become essential to foster dialogical spaces of congruent care for adolescents aiming at constructing knowledge about gender diversity and safe sexual initiation.
DESCRIPTORS:
Adolescent; Sexuality; Sexual behavior; Gender diversity; Masculinity; Education in health
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