Preventing Gender-Based Violence: Portuguese Youth Perspectives on Primary Prevention Programs

Camila Iglesias (), Raquel Rodrigues, Ana Guerreiro, Cátia Pontedeira and Maria José Magalhães
Additional contact information
Camila Iglesias: Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Justice (CIJ-FDUP), Faculty of Law, University of Porto, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
Raquel Rodrigues: Center for Philosophical and Humanistic Studies, Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences (FFCS), Portuguese Catholic University, 4710-362 Braga, Portugal
Ana Guerreiro: Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Justice (CIJ-FDUP), Faculty of Law, University of Porto, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
Cátia Pontedeira: University of Maia, 4475-690 Maia, Porto, Portugal
Maria José Magalhães: Interdisciplinary Center for Gender Studies (CIEG/ISCSP-ULisboa), Institute of Social and Political Sciences, University of Lisbon, 1300-663 Lisboa, Portugal

Social Sciences, 2025, vol. 14, issue 4, 1-20

Abstract: Gender-based violence (GBV) remains a pressing societal issue that requires urgent attention. Although there have been efforts to implement GBV prevention programs in Portugal, research assessing their long-term impact on young people is notably scarce. This study seeks to address this gap by examining the perceptions and experiences of young individuals involved in these programs. The research captures a comprehensive view of the participants’ perspectives through in-depth interviews. The findings reveal personal and interpersonal effects from participation in GBV prevention initiatives. They highlight the necessity for such programs to commence in early childhood to maximize their effectiveness and societal impact over time. Moreover, the research indicates that these initiatives influence youth’s personal development, relationships, career aspirations and professional choices. Consequently, this study advocates for the broader implementation of holistic GBV prevention programs in educational settings and calls for further investigation into their long-lasting outcomes. It emphasizes the importance of adopting a holistic, structured, and interactive approach to primary prevention, ultimately empowering future generations and creating a safer society for all.

Keywords: primary prevention; gender-based violence; youth perspectives (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/244/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/244/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:14:y:2025:i:4:p:244-:d:1636201

Access Statistics for this article

Social Sciences is currently edited by Ms. Yvonne Chu

More articles in Social Sciences from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().