Strategies of sexual refusal in effervescent nightlife settings: A study of Spanish university students

Abstract

A growing body of studies focuses on sexual harassment and violence in nightlife venues, primarily as it affects adolescent and adult women. In these settings, the boundary between flirtation and unwanted sexual attention easily blurs. This study examines how young women reject such attention. It draws on in-depth interviews with 53 Spanish undergraduates aged 18 to 25 from a Madrid public university. The findings unveil both individual strategies for sexual refusal (e.g., ignoring, distancing, lying) as well as collective strategies (e.g., using friends as mediators or protectors). The interviewed women perceived these actions as emotionally and practically challenging. These results advance the understanding of interactions in situations of collective effervescence, which may be conducive of transgression and sexual violence.