Black University Students and Sexual Pleasure: Connection, Agency, and Breaking Stereotypes
What is the Issue?
Discussions about sexual experiences among Black university students often focus on negative outcomes like risky behaviors, trauma, and shame, but what about the positive aspects? For many, pleasure is a significant part of their sexual experiences, yet this is rarely discussed in research or educational settings. The article by Hargons et al. (2018) addresses this gap by exploring the narratives of Black university students’ last sexual encounters, specifically focusing on the role of pleasure in these experiences. If we explore how Black students experience and describe pleasure it can offer a more holistic view of their sexuality, one that moves beyond stigmatization.
What is the Purpose of this Investigation?
The purpose of this investigation is to center pleasure in the sexual experiences of Black university students, challenging the deficit-focused narratives that dominate research on Black sexuality. The authors aimed to explore how Black students describe and make meaning of their last sexual encounters, emphasizing moments of pleasure. This study is guided by the following questions:
How do Black university students describe pleasure in their most recent sexual encounter?
What factors contribute to their experience of pleasure during these encounters?
How do these narratives of pleasure push back against or affirm mainstream ideas about Black sexuality?
To answer these questions, the researchers conducted in-depth interviews with Black undergraduate students, analyzing their narratives to capture the complexities of how they experienced pleasure during their most recent sexual experiences.
What were the Results?
The study revealed that Black university students’ experiences of pleasure in their last sexual encounters were influenced by several factors, reflecting the diverse and multifaceted nature of their sexual experiences. Three key themes emerged:
Emotional and Physical Connection – Participants often associated pleasure with feeling emotionally connected to their partners, beyond just the physical aspects of sex. Trust, communication, and mutual respect were highlighted as essential to their pleasurable experiences.
Agency and Control – For many students, pleasure was tied to feeling in control of their sexual experiences. Being able to make decisions about what they wanted and how they wanted it contributed significantly to their enjoyment. This sense of agency was especially important for women participants, who described feeling empowered by their ability to direct their sexual encounters.
Breaking Stereotypes – Participants pushed back against stereotypical depictions of Black sexuality that often focus on hypersexuality or deviance. Instead, they emphasized that their experiences of pleasure were nuanced and complex, involving emotional intimacy, mutual respect, and personal empowerment. These narratives challenged mainstream portrayals of Black sexuality as merely physical or animalistic.
What are the Implications?
The findings from this study have important implications for how Black sexuality is discussed both in academic research and sexual education. By centering pleasure, the authors highlight the need for more nuanced and positive discussions about Black sexual experiences. These results push back against harmful stereotypes that often frame Black sexuality in a negative light, emphasizing the importance of emotional connection, agency, and empowerment in the sexual lives of Black university students. Furthermore, this research highlights the importance of creating spaces in both educational and clinical settings where Black students can talk about their sexual experiences in ways that honor their full humanity.
Hargons, C. N., Mosley, D. V., Meiller, C., Stuck, J., Kirkpatrick, B., Adams, C., & Angyal, B. (2018). “It feels so good”: Pleasure in last sexual encounter narratives of Black university students. Journal of Black Psychology, 44(2), 103-127. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095798417749407
