Teaching Sexual Consent With a Narrative-Based Card Game

Abstract

Women in college experience alarming rates of sexual violence, despite universities' attempts to teach consent. Students often find the teaching unrealistic, believing it violates everyday sexual narratives. This case study of 27 students at a large American university playing and discussing The Hook Up Game, considers the possibilities for narrative-based card games to provide authentic consent learning. A narrative analysis compared the stories generated through gameplay to established sexual scripts, and collaborative discourse analysis examined the learning opportunities afforded by the game. Findings illustrate the capacity of narrative-based card games to create space for exploring the concept of sexual consent.

Keywords: consent education; narrative-based card games; sexual assault prevention; transformational play.