'We Are Trying to Make Sense of Our Lives': Health Promotion in the Context of Young People's Digital Sexual Environment.
James A, Power J, Waling A, Lim G • Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals • 2025
Young people interact with digital sexual health content from a wide range of sources and platforms, and this environment serves as an important space for self-exploration in relation to sex, relationships and identity that is situated in the broader context of young people's offline environment, community, and friendships.
Key Findings
Methods
Young people aged 18-25 actively engage with digital sexual health content from a wide range of sources and platforms as part of their broader sexual learning.
Qualitative, in-depth interviews were conducted with 22 young people aged 18-25
22 key informants specialising in relationships and sexuality education (RSE), sexual health and digital content design were also interviewed
Young people's digital engagement with sexual content was found to span diverse platforms and communication modes
Digital engagement was situated within the broader context of young people's offline environment, community, and friendships
Results
Digital spaces function as important environments for young people's self-exploration related to sex, relationships, and identity.
Digital environments were described as serving as 'an important space for self-exploration in relation to sex, relationships and identity'
This self-exploration was not isolated but connected to young people's offline lives, communities, and friendships
The study found that online engagement contributes to existing formal and informal sexual health messaging
Young people's digital sexual environment was framed as part of a broader ecosystem of sexual health learning
Results
Access to diverse online resources supports young people in developing skills and knowledge about sex, relationships, and identity.
Digital spaces were found to support skill and knowledge development by 'providing access to diverse resources across various platforms and communication modes'
Having a range of information and perspectives online enables young people to exercise judgement and critically reflect
The diversity of content was identified as a key mechanism through which young people build competencies
Both young people and key informants participated, providing complementary perspectives on this learning process
Conclusions
Health promoters need to understand the key elements of online engagement that help young people build understanding of sex and relationships in order to support sexual health.
The study argues that online health promotion should be understood as 'contributing to existing formal and informal sexual health messaging'
Understanding young people's existing digital practices was identified as necessary for effective health promotion engagement
Key informants specialising in RSE, sexual health and digital content design contributed perspectives on how to best engage with digital environments
The 'SO WHAT?' section emphasises that health promotion must account for the full ecology of young people's digital and offline sexual health learning
Background
There is limited existing understanding of how health promoters can best engage with digital environments to support young people's sexual learning in the context of their existing digital practices.
The paper identifies this gap as the primary motivation for the study
Young people's engagement with sexual content online has received 'ongoing attention in both policy and practice' but practical health promotion guidance remains limited
The study used qualitative, in-depth interviews to address this gap
A total of 44 participants were interviewed across two groups: young people and specialist key informants
What This Means
This research investigated how young Australians aged 18-25 use digital environments to learn about sex, relationships, and identity, and what this means for health promotion professionals. The researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 22 young people and 22 specialists in areas like sex education, sexual health, and digital content design. They found that young people draw on a wide variety of online sources and platforms — not just official health websites — as part of a broader, everyday process of making sense of their sexual lives and identities. This online activity was deeply connected to their offline lives, friendships, and communities rather than existing in isolation.
The study found that having access to diverse perspectives and information online helps young people think critically, exercise their own judgment, and build practical knowledge about sex and relationships. The variety of content available — across different platforms and formats — was seen as a strength, enabling young people to find information relevant to their specific identities and circumstances, including content that may not be available in formal school-based education.
This research suggests that health promotion efforts aimed at young people's sexual health need to be designed with an understanding of how young people already use digital spaces. Rather than treating online health content as a standalone intervention, health promoters should see it as one part of a larger ecosystem that includes formal education, peer conversations, and community context. Effective digital sexual health promotion may work best when it complements and connects with the informal ways young people are already learning online, rather than trying to replace or compete with those existing practices.
James A, Power J, Waling A, Lim G. (2025). 'We Are Trying to Make Sense of Our Lives': Health Promotion in the Context of Young People's Digital Sexual Environment.. Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals. https://doi.org/10.1002/hpja.70029