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The “Be All and End All”? Young People, Online Sexual Health Information, Science and Skepticism
journal contribution
posted on 2021-09-01, 00:00 authored by A Farrugia, A Waling, Kiran PienaarKiran Pienaar, S FraserIn this article, we investigate young people’s trust in online sexual health resources. Analyzing interviews with 37 young people in Australia using Irwin and Michael’s account of science–society relations and Warner’s conceptualization of “publics,” we explore the processes by which they assess the credibility of online sexual health information. We suggest that when seeking medical information, young people opt for traditionally authoritative online sources that purport to offer “facts.” By contrast, when seeking information about relationships or sexual practices, participants indicated a preference for websites presenting “experiences” rather than or as well as “facts.” Regardless of content, however, our participants approached online sexual health information skeptically and used various techniques to appraise its quality and trustworthiness. We argue that these young people are productively understood as a skeptical public of sexual health. We conclude by exploring the implications of our analysis for the provision of online sexual health information.
History
Journal
Qualitative Health ResearchVolume
31Issue
11Article number
ARTN 10497323211003543Pagination
2097 - 2110Publisher
SAGE PUBLICATIONS INCLocation
United StatesPublisher DOI
ISSN
1049-7323eISSN
1552-7557Language
EnglishPublication classification
C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journalUsage metrics
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No categories selectedKeywords
Science & TechnologySocial SciencesLife Sciences & BiomedicineTechnologyPublic, Environmental & Occupational HealthInformation Science & Library ScienceSocial Sciences, InterdisciplinarySocial Sciences, BiomedicalSocial Sciences - Other TopicsBiomedical Social Sciencessexual healthqualitative analysisrelationships and sexuality educationyoung peopleonline informationqualitative interviewsAustralia
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