Analysis Regarding the Effectiveness of an Intervention Program for Equality and Prevention of Gender Violence in Adolescents

Abstract

Affective–sexual education programs (ASEPs) are effective in combating gender violence (GV). Most previous studies have focused on the short-term effect these programs have on explicit sexist attitudes. The objective of this study was to analyze the short- and medium-term effect of an ASEP regarding sexist attitudes. An educational intervention study was carried out on 561 high school students in Tenerife (Spain). The 15 h intervention used a participatory methodology with debates, working groups, and game dynamics. Explicit attitudes were measured with the scale of sexist, violent, and stereotyped attitudes (SVSAs) and the gender role attitudes scale (GRAS), and implicit attitudes were measured with the assessment of the behavior of the characters of a brief tailored story, in which an interaction between two young people with an ambiguous component of gender violence is described. Four measurements were made: pre-intervention, post-intervention, 6 months, and 12 months. After the intervention, in the experimental group, scale scores decreased (SVSA from 28.7 ± 7.7 to 21.8 ± 2.1, p < 0.0001; GRAS from 30.6 ± 7.8 to 22.3 ± 2.8, p < 0.0001), and the level of approval of the behavior of the female character of the story improved (from 5.4 ± 2.6 to 7.6 ± 2.1, p < 0.0001). The effect of the intervention on sexist attitudes was maintained until the end of the 12-month follow-up period.

1. Introduction

Gender-based violence (GV) is a significant social and public health problem that has a multi-causal origin related to both socio-cultural and individual factors. It affects all age groups, with an overall prevalence rate of 20% for physical violence and 9% for sexual violence in adolescents [1]. The inequality of power between men and women is at the root of this problem, which has different forms of expression from emotional blackmail, threats, insults, and physical aggression to the subtlest forms, such as sexism [2,3].

Gender stereotypes and sexism are often reinforced through educational models transmitted by parents, teachers, and the media, which children tend to imitate and which become ingrained during adolescence [4,5,6]. Adolescence is a time of rapid biological and psychosocial change, which makes it more vulnerable to environmental influences. This complex stage is the culmination of the construction of one’s own identity, including sexuality, which arouses curiosity and great interest. Previous studies have shown that sexist attitudes are more accentuated in male adolescents and in those who have been exposed to pornographic content [7]. Adolescents are immersed in a digital ecosystem that allows them unlimited and free access to pornography and induces its consumption, which is associated with sexist attitudes and a higher risk of practicing coercion and sexual abuse [7]. Evidence suggests that teen dating violence (including physical, sexual, psychological, and cyber violence) is associated with high-risk behaviors and poor mental health outcomes and increases the risk of repeating these patterns in later relationships, both in the role of victim and aggressor [8]. Other factors related to adolescents’ sexist attitudes are the educational level of their parents as well as family structure. Several studies have found fewer sexist attitudes in adolescents whose parents had a high level of education [2,9,10]. Adolescents’ attitudes towards gender-based violence are also influenced by family conflicts, which are more frequent in dysfunctional families, in situations of unemployment and parental divorce [11].

International organizations, such as UNESCO and the WHO, have been recommending the design and delivery of comprehensive emotional–sexual education training programs as effective instruments to combat gender inequality for decades [12]. Comprehensive sexual education is based on a curriculum that delves into the cognitive, emotional, physical, and social aspects of sexuality. The objective is that children and adolescents develop respectful social and sexual relationships, become aware that their choices affect their own well-being as well as others, and become aware of their sexual health rights and how to protect them [13]. In Spain, there is no regulated affective–sexual education, and different approaches to sexual education coexist. Four major models are distinguished, such as the risk model, which focuses on risky practices and contraception. In this model, training is generally provided by healthcare professionals, and interventions are insufficient, as they associate the experience of sexuality with the idea of danger. The moral model is based on the transmission of principles rooted in religious beliefs (preparing for marriage and promoting sexual abstinence). The revolutionary model is linked to political ideas that link sexual repression with social repression (achieving sexual liberalization). The biographical–professional model is based on scientific knowledge of human sexuality from open, positive, and tolerant attitudes. It is based on the concept of health as physical, psychological, and social well-being, and sexuality is viewed as a fundamental human right. However, it can be said that even today there are still few programs that integrate this holistic approach, addressing all aspects of sexuality, affectivity, and gender perspective. These would facilitate the reduction in gender discrimination, as well as the improvement of personal autonomy and self-esteem [14]. In recent years, several intervention models have been developed that employ digital tools to combat stereotypes and promote adolescent well-being from a gender perspective [15].

Existing laws and regulations in many countries have failed to provide an effective response to the demand from international organizations for measures to combat inequality and GV. Few nations have a specific policy on sexual education, which includes guidelines on the contents that a sexual education curriculum must have, and how to put these into practice [16,17]. This could explain why several recent studies carried out among adolescents and young adults have confirmed sexist attitudes [2,3,9,18,19], increased rates of sexually transmitted infections, risk behaviors (such as a decrease in the use of condoms) [20], aggressive behavior [21], and cases of GV [22,23].

Likewise, it must be taken into account that systematic reviews that analyze the effectiveness of affective–sexual education programs highlight the absence of rigorous data on effective measures to prevent GV. Furthermore, methodological weaknesses have been noted, such as small sample sizes, a lack of random assignment of subjects, and heterogeneity in measurement instruments, designs, the timing of measurements, and a lack of long-term follow-up [13,14,24,25]. Finally, the lack of consensus regarding the optimal instrument (Gold Standard) to measure the effect of interventions makes a more precise comparison between studies difficult [25]. Even so, the available evidence makes it possible to affirm that the prevention of GV is viable and that positive effects can be achieved [24,25].

Most studies have focused on the short-term effects of these programs on explicit sexist attitudes [26,27,28,29,30]. Attitudes can be assessed from an explicit perspective based on a person’s self-report of his or her attitudes, but this form of assessment has limitations, including the different capacities of people to be aware of their own attitudes and internal states, the social desirability of the responses, or the positive image they try to offer of themselves. Therefore, indirect instruments should be included in the assessment of attitudes that allow access to people’s internal states and attitudes without consulting them directly. These implicit attitude measures allow for an assessment that is less influenced by social expectations [31].

We have not found any intervention that used instruments to measure implicit sexist attitudes. The following studies, which focused on reducing non-egalitarian attitudes, exclusively used instruments for measuring explicit sexist attitudes.

(a)

The “Agarimos” program is designed to promote emotional intelligence and sexual development in compulsory secondary education students through fairer and more equal relationships between genders. The program consisted of 28 one-hour educational sessions on self-knowledge and personal assessment and on psycho-affective and sexual development. In the experimental group (EG), a significant reduction in traditional sexist attitudes was achieved after receiving the intervention. Among the most debatable aspects of this program is the fact that both groups differed significantly in the sociodemographic variables: educational level, job qualifications, and the religious opinion of the parents [26].

(b)

The program to promote equitable gender norms in men has the objective of promoting critical reflection in students regarding common gender norms that could increase the risk of violence and sexually transmitted infections. It consisted of community participation activities, which took place over 6 months, and group education activities in eight sessions lasting 2–3 h over 4 months. The educational intervention achieved a positive and significant change towards supporting equitable gender norms in the experimental group [27].

(c)

The “TRUE LOVE” program was created to reduce dating violence in high school students. The educational intervention consisted of the delivery, over 16 weeks, of educational material on gender roles, sexual rights, and strategies to deal with dating violence. It obtained a significant reduction in the attitudes and beliefs that justify sexism in the EG, 2 weeks after finishing the intervention. One of the limitations of this study is the fact that there were significant differences in the age of the participants in both groups [28].

It is noteworthy that none of these studies provided follow-up after the evaluation at the end of the intervention.

It is known that affective–sexual education programs are effective tools for combating gender inequality, but most previous studies have focused on the short-term effects of these intervention programs on explicit sexist attitudes. This led us to launch the present study with a broader objective of analyzing whether an intervention for equality and the prevention of GV in adolescents reduces sexist attitudes, gender roles, and stereotypes and whether the results are maintained 12 months after the intervention.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Design

This was a quasi-experimental, longitudinal educational intervention study (pre–post) that was controlled and randomized and was carried out from 1 October 2019 to 30 January 2021.

This study was carried out in Tenerife, Canary Islands, an archipelago belonging to the territory of Spain, with a population of 2,238,754 inhabitants, including 1,074,409 on Tenerife Island, of which 14.7% were of foreign nationality and 5.2% were in the 15–19 age group [32].

2.2. Participants

The inclusion criteria were teenagers between 14 and 19 years who were studying in their first year of a Baccalaureate in one of the four schools selected for the study (three public and one private) and who agreed to participate. Subjects with any disability or language barrier that prevented them from understanding and completing the questionnaires were excluded.

In Spain, the Baccalaureate is an educational stage of two academic years (normally from 16 to 18 years of age) and is the final period of schooling before higher education.

The sample size estimation was performed using the sample calculator in Excel [33], taking into account that in the 2017/2018 academic year, 14,088 adolescents in Tenerife completed high school [34], and we expected losses of 25% during follow-up after one year. The estimated sample size was 229 students for the intervention group and 229 students for the control group. The final sample (561 participants: 269 men and 292 women) was above this estimate because sampling was carried out in classrooms. In each of the participating schools, classrooms were assigned, using randomization tables, to either the control group or the intervention group.

For a higher representativeness, a two-stage sample was used. In the first phase, it was stratified by type of school (public or private), and in the second, non-probabilistic purposive sampling was carried out that respected the public/private ratio of 3 to 1, which exists in the autonomous community of the Canary Islands, where the study was carried out [35]. It was also taken into account that schools in areas of different socio-economic levels were included and that they had a similar proportion of male and female adolescents in the classrooms. Of the 6 schools invited to participate, 4 accepted: 3 state schools and 1 private school. Two of the schools were in areas with a low socio-economic level population and the other two were in areas with a medium-high socio-economic level. The gender distribution was similar in all the schools included in the study.

2.3. Instruments

The students who participated in the study had 30 min to respond to a self-completed pre-intervention questionnaire, which included questions on the following aspects: age, sex, country of birth, school, type of high school, pornography consumption, main source of information on equality and GV, and number of classes received in the last year or participation in other activities on equality and/or GV different from those included in the intervention program of this study. The educational level, marital status, and employment status of the parents were also recorded.

The questionnaire also included:

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The sexist attitudes, violence, and stereotypes in adolescents (SVSAs) scale, which was designed and validated in February 2018 by Marichal Torralbo et al. [36], with a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.878.

-

The gender role attitudes scale (GRAS), which was designed and validated in July 2014 by García Cueto et al. [37], with a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.99.

Both scales consist of 20 items and measure explicit attitudes. Each item is scored on a Likert-type scale, ranging from 1 (total disagreement) to 5 (total agreement), with a neutral central value. The final score of the scale is obtained by adding the values of each item so that the higher the score, the greater the explicit sexist attitudes.

The SVSA and GRAS scales were chosen because both have been recently validated in studies with adolescents in Spain, and they measure different aspects of sexist attitudes, which complement each other. As an example, one of the items on the SVSA scale was “A certain degree of sexual violence makes the relationship more interesting”, and one of the items on the GRAS scale was “some jobs are not suitable for women”.

In order to measure implicit sexist attitudes, as we did not have validated instruments, we carried out an exploratory study with a brief tailored story (Appendix A). It describes the interaction between two adolescents, with a component of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and sexual abuse, but with a certain projective ambiguity. The female protagonist invites a friend to her house and initially agrees to have sexual relations. When she verbalizes that she does not wish to continue, the male protagonist ignores her words and forces a non-consensual sexual relationship during which the girl adopts a passive attitude.

At no point were participants informed that their sexist attitudes were being evaluated, so they could not adjust their responses to social desirability. We considered that in this way, their underlying and unconscious motivations or attitudes would be revealed. After reading the story, the students had to answer two questions to evaluate the behavior of the characters, marking them on a 10-point Likert-type scale. The lower end of the scale (score 1) represents a view of the character’s behavior as completely incorrect, while the upper end (score 10) represents a view as completely correct. Given the content of the story and, in particular, those two components to which we have referred (aggressiveness on the part of the man and passivity on the part of the woman), it was considered that the most favorable judgments regarding the man’s behavior and the most unfavorable to the woman’s behavior would indicate an implicit sexist attitude.

The questionnaires and the story were peer reviewed and tested in a pilot study with 63 adolescents with a mean age of 16.2 years (standard deviation 0.77) in order to check that the items on the scales and the story did not present comprehension difficulties and that they did not generate doubts when answering. No modifications were necessary.

The interventions and the collection of pre-intervention and immediate post-intervention data were carried out by the main researcher in person in the classrooms of the selected institutes during school hours. All post-intervention follow-up questionnaires included the two scales and the story mentioned above. Due to restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, data collection at 6 months and one year was carried out using a Google questionnaire using the online platforms of the schools.

2.4. Procedure

We first carried out a descriptive study in a larger sample that included first- and second-year high school students, the results of which have been published [21]. The intervention described in the present study was developed only with the first-year Baccalaureate students since second-year Baccalaureate students would leave school the following year and the planned follow-up could not be carried out.

Classroom randomization was performed using a randomization table. The experimental group (EG) received an intervention for the prevention of GV that included talks, debates, exercises, videos, reading a comic, and an escape room to reinforce key concepts about equality and GV. The control group (CG) received a talk about contraception and sexually transmitted infections.

The educational intervention (

Table 1. Educational intervention for equality and prevention of gender violence.

Topic	Objectives	Examples of Activities
First face-to-face session in the classroom (7 h): Key concepts on equality and gender violence: - Sex, gender, gender roles. - Gender violence, types of gender violence. - Risk indicators for gender violence at the beginning of a relationship. - Respect toward a partner. - Jealousy and consequences within the relationship. - Control. - Cycles of gender violence. - Myths regarding romantic love. - Characteristics of a healthy relationship. - New models of masculinity and femininity. - Prostitution. - Trafficking of women.	Transmission of equality values, respect, and non-violence.	Activities to work on the key concepts: - Lectures with the support of PowerPoint. - Debates. - Work groups using index cards. - Video screening.
Comic reading (1 h): Symptoms of an unhealthy harmful relationship: - Control. - Isolation. - Humiliation. - Violence.	Know the manifestations of a non-equal relationship.	Comic reading about a relationship with elements of gender violence.
Second face-to-face session in the classroom (7 h): Key concepts about equality and gender violence: - Transmission of non-discriminatory values. - Respect towards others. - Consent in sexual relationships. - Passive attitude of a victim of sexual violence. Escape room on-site in the classroom: Obstacles found by women throughout history, and their fight against inequality: - Patriarchal culture. - Invisibility. - Lower recognition of achievements. - Scarce occupation of powerful posts. Gender violence.	Transmission of equality values, respect, and freedom from violence. Discover, through the game, how many of these obstacles remain.	Activities focused on key concepts: - Lectures with PowerPoint support. - Debates. - Group work with flash cards. - Video screening. Carried out in the classroom; escape room for small groups.

), given by a health professional expert in sexual education, aimed to transmit values of equality, respect, and the absence of violence, approaching sexuality from a gender perspective and being open and tolerant. It was structured in 6 didactic units on the following topics: gender equality; gender violence; the myths of romantic love and gender violence in relationships; what we can do about gender violence; sexual violence; and prostitution, a form of violence against women. The objective of this unit is to facilitate awareness of prostitution as a form of gender-based violence due to the nature of the practice itself, in which women are reduced to sexual objects, the power relations it generates, and the circumstances that lead to its practice. Apart from the debate on the voluntary nature of prostitution and its social consideration, this practice is often associated with physical violence and other problems that affect the physical and mental health of the women who engage in it.

Each of the units included talks, with a participatory methodology, group exercises using the “educating in equality” worksheets [38], classroom debates, in which participants could express their opinions and concerns, screening of videos, and resolution of doubts about the topics that were addressed. It also included the reading of a comic showing the manifestations of a non-egalitarian relationship [39] and an activity based on game dynamics to increase motivation and participation, the escape room “Women and their struggle for gender equality”, developed by a member of the research team (ECV) whose purpose was to discover, through the game, the obstacles that women have encountered throughout history in their struggle against inequality. This last activity was carried out in groups of 4–8 students in a maximum time of 60 min. Detailed information on the intervention can be accessed in Spanish at https://previogen.com/ (accessed on 19 May 2025).

The total duration of the intervention was 15 h. Secondary education centers were visited in person on two separate days during school hours with a 7-day interval. During those 7 days, they read the comic at home and worked on it with their teachers in the classroom during class. Each face-to-face session lasted 7 h. The process of reading and understanding the comic was estimated to take no more than an hour.

The study received approval by the Ethics Committee of the University of La Laguna and the permission of the schools. To guarantee the rights of the students, their approval and that of their parents or legal guardians were requested through informed consent. The questionnaires were filled out individually by each participant in the study. During the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers were provided with links to the online questionnaires (at 6 and 12 months post-intervention), with the aim of distributing them to participants through the educational centers’ online platforms. Only the research team had access to the questionnaire responses. No feedback to questionnaire respondents was given.

The processing of the data was carried out in such a way that their confidentiality was guaranteed. Participants’ identifying information was anonymized so that no one outside the study could associate the identity of the participants with the rest of the data collected. To protect confidentiality, both the questionnaire and participants’ data were associated with a numerical code consisting of the last 4 digits and the end letter of the participant’s national identity number, avoiding the risk of identification of the participants.

2.5. Statistical Analysis

Cronbach’s coefficient was used to estimate the internal consistency of the components of the SVSA and GRAS scales. To evaluate the short- and medium-term effectiveness of the educational intervention, repeated measures analysis of variance was carried out for each of the dependent variables (SVSA and GRAS scales, and an assessment of the behavior of the female protagonist of the story), with a study group (EG, CG) and study period (pre-intervention, post-intervention, 6 months, and 12 months) as independent variables.

To determine the possible influence of variables other than the intervention (socio-economic status, prior exposure to equality education, and pornography consumption) on the results obtained, analyses of covariance were carried out.

Statistical analysis was performed using IBM SPSS software (Version 25). p < 0.05 was considered significant. Missing values were not substituted.

The study received approval by the Ethics Committee of the University of La Laguna and the permission of the schools. To guarantee the rights of the students, their approval and that of their parents or legal guardians were requested through informed consent. The processing of the data was carried out in such a way that their confidentiality was guaranteed. Statistical analysis was performed using IBM SPSS software (Version 25).

3. Results

A total of 21 first-year Baccalaureate classrooms were selected and randomly assigned to the EG and CG. Forty adolescents were excluded as they did not attend on the agreed day to complete the pre-intervention questionnaire and the first session of the educational intervention. A total of 561 students were recruited for the study. Everyone completed the pre-intervention questionnaire. A total of 438 subjects (207 in the EG and 231 in the CG) attended all the educational sessions and completed all the post-intervention follow-up questionnaires. A total of 21.9% of participants dropped out of the study (Figure 1).

We verified that there were no significant differences in the sociodemographic variables between the subjects who dropped out (n = 123) and those who completed the study (n = 438).

3.1. Sociodemographic and Attitudinal Profiles of the Control and Intervention Groups

When comparing the sociodemographic and attitudinal characteristics of the two study groups, we found that there were only significant differences in the country of birth, with a higher proportion of participants born outside Spain in the CG (

Table 2. Profiles of the participants according to group.

Variable	Total Cases (n = 561)	Experimental Group (n = 287)	Control Group (n = 274)
Sex n(%) man/woman	269 (48%)/292 (52%)	142 (49.5%)/145 (50.5%)	127 (46.4%)/147 (53.6%)
Age m ± ds	16.1 ± 0.6	16.1 ± 0.6	16.2 ± 0.6
Born in Spain * n(%) yes/no	439 (78.4%)/121 (21.6%)	241 (84%)/46 (16%)	198 (72.5%)/75 (27.5%)
Lost values	1 (0.1%)
Time spent in Spain for those born elsewhere m ± ds	6.4 ± 5.0	6.3 ± 5.0	6.5 ± 5.0
Mothers with a university degree n(%) yes/no	168 (29.9%)/393 (70.1%)	83 (28.9%)/204 (71.1%)	85 (31%)/189 (69%)
Mothers with active employment n(%) yes/no	480 (85.6%)/81 (14.4%)	244 (85%)/43 (15%)	236 (86.1%)/38 (13.9%)
Mother lives with partner n(%) yes/no	427 (76.1%)/134 (23.9%)	226 (78.7%)/61 (21.3%)	201 (73.4%)/73 (26.6%)
Father with a university degree n(%) yes/no	126 (23.2%)/416 (76.8%)	56 (20.2%)/221 (79.8%)	70 (26.4%)/195 (73.6%)
Lost values	19 (3.3%)
Father with active employment n(%) yes/no	478 (88.5%)/62 (11.5%)	244 (88.1%)/33 (11.9%)	234 (89%)/29 (11%)
Lost Values	21 (3.7%)
Father lives with partner n(%) yes/no	443 (82%)/97 (18%)	232 (83.8%)/45 (16.2%)	211 (80.2%)/52 (19.8%)
Lost values	21 (3.7%)

* Comparison between the control group and the intervention group in participants’ country of birth: p < 0.05.

and

Table 3. Attitudinal characteristics of the two study groups.

Variable	Total Cases (n = 561)	Experimental Group (n = 287)	Control Group (n = 274)
Have you ever watched pornography? n(%) yes/no	390 (84.8%)/70 (15.2%)	175 (84.1%)/33 (15.9%)	215 (85.3%)/37 (14.7%)
Lost values	101 (18%)
Have you consumed pornography in the last 30 days? n(%) yes/mo	164 (35.7%)/296 (64.3%)	79 (38%)/129 (62%)	85 (33.7%)/167 (66.3%)
Lost values	101 (18%)
Are sexual practices in pornography similar to real-life situations? n(%)
Yes	51 (11.1%)	19 (9.1%)	32 (12.7%)
No	352 (76.5%)	167 (80.3%)	185 (73.4%)
Don’t know	57 (12.4%)	22 (10.6%)	35 (13.9%)
Lost values	101 (18%)
Has pornography affected your relationships? n(%)
Not at all	292 (63.5%)	134 (64.4%)	158 (62.7%)
Little	107 (23.3%)	46 (22.1%)	61 (24.2%)
Quite a bit	29 (6.3%)	11 (5.3%)	18 (7.1%)
A lot	32 (7%)	17 (8.2%)	15 (6%)
Lost values	101 (18%)
Formation about equality and/or gender violence in the last school year n(%)
None	377 (76.9%)	179 (76.8%)	198 (77%)
At least one class	113 (23%)	54 (23.2%)	59 (22.9%)
Lost values	71 (12.7%)
Main source of information about equality and gender violence n(%)
Family	67 (13.7%)	32 (13.7%)	35 (13.6%)
Mass media	95 (19.4%)	41 (17.6%)	54 (21%)
Social media	177 (36.1%)	90 (38.6%)	87 (33.9%)
Education centers	127 (25.9%)	62 (26.6%)	65 (25.3%)
Nowhere or other	24 (4.8%)	8 (3.4%)	16 (6.2%)
Lost values	71 (12.7%)
Variable pre-interventions (sexist attitudes)
SVSA scale m ± ds	28.3 ± 7.5	28.7 ± 7.7	27.9 ± 7.3
GRAS scale	30.2 ± 8.2	30.6 ± 7.8	29.8 ± 8.6
Behavior boy short story m ± ds	1.6 ± 1.5	1.7 ± 1.7	1.4 ± 1.4
Behavior girl short story m ± ds	5.4 ± 2.7	5.4 ± 2.6	5.5 ± 2.8

SVSA = sexist attitudes, violence, and gender stereotypes in adolescents; GRAS = gender role attitudes.

).

3.2. Explicit and Implicit Sexist Attitudes of the Participants Before the Educational Intervention

To assess explicit sexist attitudes, we used the SVSA and GRAS scales since each one measures different aspects of these attitudes. In our sample, the Cronbach’s alpha of the SVSA scale was 0.86; and that of the GRAS scale was 0.81. The average score of the SVSA scale was 28.3 ± 7.5, and the GRAS scale was 30.2 ± 8.2. The correlation between both scales was significant; r_xy = 0.6 (p = 0.001).

In order to evaluate implicit sexist attitudes, as already noted, the answers to two questions regarding the behavior of the characters of the story were used (Appendix A). The average score of the item that assesses the behavior of the male protagonist was 1.6 ± 1.5. The vast majority of subjects were clear that the behavior of the male protagonist was totally incorrect. Only 11.6% of the subjects gave a response greater than 1 (that is, they considered the aggressive behavior adopted by the male protagonist to be correct). The average score of the item that assesses the behavior of the female protagonist was 5.4 ± 2.7. A high proportion, 55.6% of the participants, gave this item a score equal to or below 5, considering the passive behavior adopted by the female protagonist of the story to be incorrect when she is forced to maintain an unwanted sexual relationship.

When comparing the baseline scores of the scales and the items in the story, between the CG and the EG, we verified that there were no significant differences (Table 3).

3.3. Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Intervention

To evaluate the effectiveness of the educational intervention in the short, medium, and long term, a repeated measures analysis of variance was carried out for each of the dependent variables (SVSA and GRAS scales, and an assessment of the behavior of the female protagonist of the story), comparing the averages of the EG with the CG, at four time points (pre-intervention, post-intervention: immediate, 6 months, and one year) (

Table 4. Means, standard deviations, confidence intervals, and Fs associated with the Group × Moment interactions for the three dependent variables.

	Experimental Group		Control Group
	m ± ds	Confidence Interval	m ± ds	Confidence Interval	F Interactions Group × Moment	p	η2p
SVSA scale
Baseline	28.5 ± 8.2	27.4–29.5	27.8 ± 7.6	27.0–29.0	F (3, 1308) = 177.20	<0.05	0.289
Immediate post-intervention	21.8 ± 2.0	21.0–22.5	27.9 ± 7.3	27.3–28.8
6 months post-intervention	21.7 ± 1.9	20.9–22.5	28.1 ± 7.7	27.4–28.9
1 year post-intervention	21.7 ± 1.9	21.0–22.5	28.0 ± 7.6	27.3–28.7
GRAS scale
Baseline	30.3 ± 7.9	29.1–31.4	29.9 ± 8.6	29.0–31.1	F (3, 1299) = 317.66	<0.05	0.423
Immediate post-intervention	22.4 ± 2.8	21.3–23.1	30.0 ± 9.2	29.3–30.9
6 months post-intervention	22.1 ± 2.5	21.2–22.9	30.2 ± 8.6	29.4–31.0
1 year post-intervention	22.3 ± 2.6	21.4–23.2	29.9 ± 8.6	29.2–30.9
Behavior girl short story
Baseline	5.4 ± 2.6	5.1–5.8	5.3 ± 2.8	5.0–5.7	F (3, 1305) = 223.43	<0.05	0.339
Immediate post-intervention	7.6 ± 2.1	7.3–8.0	5.5 ± 2.7	5.0–5.7
6 months post-intervention	7.8 ± 1.9	7.5–8.1	5.2 ± 2.8	4.9–5.5
1 year post-intervention	7.6 ± 2.0	7.3–8.0	5.4 ± 2.8	5.0–5.7

SVSA = sexist attitudes, violence, and gender stereotypes in adolescents; GRAS = gender role attitudes.

, Figure 2 and Figure 3). We did not include in the analyses the assessment of the behavior of the male protagonist of the story due to the low variability, which we have referred to before.

In the EG, explicit sexist attitudes decreased, with a significant decrease in the scores on the GRAS and SVSA scales after the intervention, which was maintained at 6 months and at one year. Regarding implicit sexist attitudes, we found that after the intervention, the level of approval of the passive behavior of the female character of the story improved significantly when she was forced to maintain an undesired sexual relationship. The effect of the intervention on participants’ implicit sexist attitudes was maintained until the end of the follow-up period.

In the CG, there were no significant changes in the scores of the scales (EARG and GRAS) or in the assessment of the behavior of the story’s female protagonist (Table 4, Figure 2 and Figure 3).

To determine the potential influence of other sources of variation on these results, a series of covariates were included (socio-economic status, prior exposure to equality education, and pornography consumption). None of them reached significance, and the Group × Time interaction remained significant for all three dependent variables.

4. Discussion

This study analyzed the effectiveness of an educational intervention program aimed at promoting equality and preventing GV in adolescents. The program has proven to be effective in reducing explicit and implicit sexist attitudes, both in the short and medium term, in first-year Baccalaureate students.

Numerous previous studies regarding interventions on emotional and sexual education in adolescents [26,27,28,29,30,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51] have proved to provide positive effects, but those aimed at achieving changes in sexist attitudes are a minority [26,27,28,29,30]. This is probably due in part to the fact that such attitudes are difficult to measure [14].

Comparing our study with the three previous programs, several important differences emerge. First, they do not perform random assignments to groups, which threatens the internal validity of their results. They also do not incorporate measures of implicit sexist attitudes, so we cannot know if they achieved a reduction in these attitudes. In addition, they carry out a single short-term follow-up. In our research, we randomly assigned the classrooms to the CG and the EG, which guarantees the internal validity of our findings. We achieved a reduction in both explicit and implicit sexist attitudes. Likewise, we tracked attitudes over a longer period of time. This has allowed us to verify that the intervention has been effective in the medium term, achieving a stable attitudinal change over time. Our intervention, having a shorter duration than previous studies, achieves the desired effect in changing sexist attitudes.

One of the main strengths of the intervention developed, which we believe explains its effectiveness in generating a change in the sexist attitudes of the participants in our study, was that it did not focus on notions of anatomy or the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies, but rather, with a holistic approach, addressed aspects of affectivity, emotions, and equal enjoyment, highlighting the emotional and social aspects of sexuality from a gender perspective, which are open, positive, and tolerant, with the aim of achieving real equality between the sexes. Part of the program’s success can also be attributed to its participatory methodology with game dynamics in the classroom to awaken the interest and motivation of the participants. Many discussions focused on new masculinity and the importance of developing respectful relationships and protecting the reproductive and sexual health rights of adolescent girls.

Sexism is a problem that needs a comprehensive and systematic approach in adolescents since sexist attitudes are related to harmful forms of intimate interaction [52]. Qualitative research studies highlight the pivotal role of teachers in perpetuating or combating gender stereotypes and sexist attitudes in adolescents [30,53]. In a recent study, Sulla et al. [53], using a grounded theory approach, determined the fundamental role of teacher attitudes, peer influence, and cultural norms in the formation and maintenance of gender stereotypes in educational settings. To effectively combat this deeply rooted phenomenon in our society and ensure a more equitable, inclusive, and respectful school environment for all, integrated, multi-level interventions are needed, involving students, teachers, educational institutions, and parents.

It is essential to develop educational programs, taught by teachers with training in sexuality, since a poorly prepared teacher may transmit inaccurate information or reproduce values and attitudes that silence debates about gender, sex, sexuality, and rights [17]. The results of our study support the viability of the developed program, which can be adapted to different contexts and needs. Having provided teachers with a web platform that includes all the tools we use to address equality education in the classroom (https://previogen.com, accessed on 19 May 2025) contributes to the program’s continuity and scalability, allowing it to reach more students at no initial cost to schools. The implementation of the program will require teachers to receive previous training in sexuality, but the associated costs will be offset by its social impact, its contribution to improving the quality of teaching, and its input to coeducation, one of the pillars of the prevention of gender-based violence [54].

Our study provides new information on effective strategies for preventing gender-based violence. It features a rigorous design with a control group, validated instruments for measuring explicit sexist attitudes, and a high follow-up rate. However, some limitations should be noted. An unforeseen circumstance for our research was the closure of educational centers due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced us to change the way we completed the questionnaires. The first two (pre-intervention and immediate post-intervention) were administered in the classrooms in person and in paper format. Those at 6 months and one year were completed online, using a Google questionnaire, which may imply less control over participants’ responses. To minimize this limitation of the study, we carried out some control elements, such as analyzing each participant’s IP address and response time, in order to identify duplicate responses and possible automatic response patterns. Another limitation may stem from the fact that, at each center, randomization was performed by classroom. During free time, students from different classrooms could have discussed the activities they participated in, which could affect the validity of the comparison between groups. However, it should be noted that the follow-up period of our study took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, with virtual classes, which limited the contact between study participants. A further limitation of the study is the fact that the instrument used for measuring implicit sexist attitudes had not been previously validated. Finally, this study was conducted in a specific region of Spain (the Canary Islands) with particular socio-cultural characteristics. The results must be considered in light of these limitations.

Both previous studies and our research show that it is possible to reduce sexist attitudes with the aim of preventing GV. They also show that it can be achieved without excessive costs within scheduled deadlines and that these changes are maintained over time. This study represents a contribution to the prevention of gender violence. Future research could delve deeper into cross-cultural aspects related to sexist attitudes, with interventions developed in diverse socio-economic, cultural, and educational contexts, which would allow for more representative results. Likewise, studies that include students at different stages of adolescence, students with different sexual orientations, and students belonging to ethnic minorities should be designed. Finally, it is important to develop studies aimed at validating instruments that measure implicit sexist attitudes and at analyzing the long-term effectiveness of affective–sexual education programs.

5. Conclusions

Sexism is a problem that requires a comprehensive and systematic approach in adolescents, as sexist attitudes are related to harmful forms of intimate interaction. This study analyzed the effectiveness of an educational intervention program aimed at promoting equality and preventing GV in adolescents. It has a rigorous design with a control group, validated instruments to measure explicit sexist attitudes, and a high follow-up rate. The program has proven to be effective in reducing explicit and implicit sexist attitudes, both in the short and medium term, achieving stable attitudinal change over time. Part of the program’s success can be attributed to its participatory methodology, with game dynamics in the classroom to arouse the interest and motivation of the participants.

Future research could delve deeper into cross-cultural aspects related to sexist attitudes, with interventions developed in diverse socio-economic, cultural, and educational contexts. Having made a web platform available to teachers, which includes all the tools we use to address equality education in the classroom, contributes to the continuity and scalability of the program, making it possible to reach more students at no initial cost to schools.