Do you want to avoid the hassle of traveling with your printed poster? IAPHS2026 is pleased to make poster printing available to you through our supplier PosterSessionOnline. Your poster will be professionally reviewed, printed and shipped directly to Portland and you will be able to pick it up from the Poster desk. Click here to learn more.
Primary Submission Category: Reproductive health
World Café as a Participatory Action Method to Explore Youth Perceptions of Sexual Stigma and Imaginings of Life without Stigma in western Kenya
Authors: Abigail Lee, William Story, Yvonne Wanjiru, Cyril Okeka, Valentine Mukoya, Sylvia Ambani, Maureen Wanjiru, Nema Aluku,
Presenting Author: Abigail Lee*
Background: Youth in Kenya experience high rates of pregnancy and HIV. These outcomes are due, in part, to stigma related to sexual behavior, which is distressing for youth. This study uses a novel participatory action approach, called World Café, to explore youth perceptions of sexual behavior stigma and what life may be like without stigma.
Methods: This study engaged 38 youth ages 15-18 in a World Café event in Kakamega, Kenya. During World Café, youth discussed things that were important to them, their perceptions of sexually active youth, and what life would be like if there was no judgment around sexual behavior. Follow-up in-depth interviews were conducted with 4 youth aged 18. Group discussions and interviews were audio recorded with consent, transcribed, and translated to English. Transcripts were thematically coded using Dedoose and code summaries were developed to describe main and deviant narratives.
Results: Youth held negative perceptions of sexually active adolescents, believing they lack parental guidance, do not listen, do not care about their lives, and are “useless.” Most youth thought that a lack of judgment around sexual behavior would lead to negative outcomes for young people. Without this judgment, youth said they would feel lonely and like no one cared about them or their futures, additionally describing that sexually active youth would not achieve their dreams. Some youth believed removing sexual behavior judgment would improve health and future aspirations.
Conclusions: Findings suggest youth are entrenched in sexual behavior stigma, and they have mixed views of what life may be like without this judgment. Information about the role of stigma, involvement of caretakers, and mental distress emerged and require further inquiry. Adolescent sexual and reproductive health interventions in western Kenya should involve caretakers and work to shift narratives about the worth and potential of sexually active youth to improve their mental health.