Violence in sexual-affective relationships among teens and young people is recognized as a social, educational, and health problem that has increased worldwide in recent years. Educational institutions, as central developmental contexts in adolescence, are key in preventing and responding to gender violence through implementing successful actions. In order to scientifically support that task, the research reported in this article presents and discusses a psycho-educational intervention focused on autobiographical memory reconstruction that proved to be successful in raising young women’s critical consciousness (...) about the force of the coercive dominant discourse upon sexual-affective experiences and memories. We examined among a sample of young women (n = 32, age range 17-30) whether reading a scientific text about love, the Radical Love book, modified autobiographical memories of violent sexual-affective relationships in line with preventing future victimization. This group was compared with a control group (n = 31, age range 17-30). Memory reports were collected before and after the reading and coded to analyze their content, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Memory quality features were assessed with the Memory Quality Questionnaire. A focus group was also conducted to examine the personal impact of the intervention on participants. Compared with controls, the experimental group had stronger critical memories (of episodes involving violence), an average decrease in positive emotions induced by recall, and an average increase in negative emotions. The results show the effectiveness of the reading intervention designed in relation to gender violence prevention, as they indicate the ability of the psycho-educational action to debilitate the force of the coercive dominant discourse in young women’s memories. The findings both advance knowledge on the reconstructive nature of autobiographical memories of violent sexual-affective relationships in female youth and indicate the potential of memory-based interventions as an instrument to prevent and reduce gender violence in school contexts. Teachers and teaching staff, and educational psychologists, among others, can benefit from these results by expanding the tools they have to address gender violence among female adolescents and youth. (shrink)

The COVID-19 pandemic and the accompanying safety measures, including confinement, has meant an unprecedented challenge for the world population today. However, it has entailed additional difficulties for specific populations, including children and people with disabilities. Being out of school for months has reduced the learning opportunities for many children, such as those with less academic resources at home or with poorer technological connectivity. For students with disabilities, it has entailed losing the quality of the special attention they often need, in (...) addition to a more limited understanding of the situation. In this context, a case study was conducted in a special education classroom of a secondary education school. This class started implementing Dialogic Literary Gatherings with their special education students before the COVID-19 confinement and continued online during the confinement. Qualitative data was collected after a period of implementation of the gatherings showing positive impacts on the participants. The case study shows that interactive learning environments such as the Dialogic Literary Gatherings can provide quality distance learning for students with disabilities, contributing to overcome some of the barriers that the pandemic context creates for the education of these students. (shrink)

Social struggles have led to the legal recognition of the rights of LGTBI+ people in some countries. Even so, violence against LGTBI+ people is a social problem throughout the world, and has resulted in the vulnerability and victimization of the members of this group. In Spain, no research has been published to date that analyzes this problem in the university context. Considering the scarcity of studies on the identification of this type of violence in Spain, the main objective of this (...) study was to identify violence against LGBTI+ people in Catalan universities. We administered a battery of questions to a sample of 571 university students from six universities in Catalonia (77.8% women) between 17 and 55 years old (M = 21.0; SD = 3.96). Of the 12 situations of violence presented, psychological violence was identified as the most common type. Within our sample, 61.0% reported either being aware of or having experienced some type of violence related to the university context and motivated by the sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression of the victim. The results also show that these types of violence in the university context are rarely reported, especially when they do not include physical violence. This study highlights a previously unreported problem and identifies future research avenues in university contexts. (shrink)