Sexual Consent in a South African Higher Education Sample: An Examination of Differences in Conceptualisation and Communication

Abstract

South African higher education institutions continue to experience alarmingly high levels of sexual abuse and gender-based violence, underscoring the urgency of understanding how sexual consent is conceptualised and communicated among young adults. Poor understanding of consent is widely linked to sexual exploitation, coercion, manipulation, and abuse. Despite its critical importance, the communicative dimensions of sexual consent in South African higher education remain substantially under-researched. This study aimed to examine how university students at a South African higher education institution conceptualise and communicate sexual consent based on their own sexual encounters. A qualitative descriptive design was employed, with data generated through semi-structured interviews with 20 purposively selected university students at a historically disadvantaged institution in the Western Cape province. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Participants predominantly relied on non-verbal cues to communicate consent and frequently submitted to expectations set by the individual initiating the encounter. Many participants described sexual experiences that they did not perceive as rape, yet neither fully desired nor explicitly consented to. Explicit verbal consent was uncommon and often viewed as unnecessary or awkward. Significant gendered asymmetries in initiation and compliance were evident, and intoxication frequently created conditions in which meaningful consent was compromised. Participants demonstrated difficulty distinguishing between non-consensual sex and rape, suggesting a concerning gap in consent literacy. The findings point to an urgent need for higher education institutions to embed discussions of consent communication, power, and assertiveness within student orientation and reproductive health programmes and initiatives.

https://doi.org/10.26803/MyRes.2026.27