In e na ional Jou nal o
En i onmen al Resea ch
and Public Heal h
A icle
Da ing Violence: Idealiza ion o Lo e and Roman ic My hs in
Spanish Adolescen s
Adelina Ma ín-Sal ado 1, Ka ima Saddiki-Mimoun 2, Ma íaÁngeles Pé ez-Mo en e 3,* ,
Ma ía Adelaida Ál a ez-Se ano 4,* , Ma ía Gázquez-López 4, Enca nación Ma ínez-Ga cía5,6 and
Elisabe Fe nández-Gómez 1


Ci a ion: Ma ín-Sal ado , A.;
Saddiki-Mimoun, K.; Pé ez-Mo en e,
M.Á.; Ál a ez-Se ano, M.A.;
Gázquez-López, M.; Ma ínez-Ga cía,
E.; Fe nández-Gómez, E. Da ing
Violence: Idealiza ion o Lo e and
Roman ic My hs in Spanish
Adolescen s. In . J. En i on. Res.
Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296.
h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/ije ph
18105296
Academic Edi o : Ko-Ling Chan
Recei ed: 15 Ap il 2021
Accep ed: 12 May 2021
Published: 16 May 2021
Publishe ’s No e: MDPI s ays neu al
wi h ega d o ju isdic ional claims in
published maps and ins i u ional a il-
ia ions.
Copy igh : © 2021 by he au ho s.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land.
This a icle is an open access a icle
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A ibu ion (CC BY) license (h ps://
c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/
4.0/).
1Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o G anada, 52005 Melilla, Spain;
adema in@ug .es (A.M.-S.); elisabe dez@ug .es (E.F.-G.)
2Hospi al Coma cal de Melilla, 52007 Melilla, Spain; [email p o ec ed]
3Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o Jaén, 23071 Jaén, Spain
4Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o G anada, 51001 Ceu a, Spain;
mgazquez@ug .es
5Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o G anada, 18016 G anada, Spain;
ema inez@ug .es
6Guadix High Resolu ion Hospi al, 18500 Guadix, G anada, Spain
*Co espondence: [email p o ec ed] (M.Á.P.-M.); adeal a ez@ug .es (M.A.Á.-S.)
Abs ac :
Da ing iolence is a signi ican p oblem among adolescen s. I encompasses a a ie y o
iolen beha io , om e bal abuse o physical and sexual abuse, om h ea s o ape and mu de .
Among young people, idealiza ion o lo e and oman ic my hs a e e y common as a consequence o
ou cul u e and socie y, which lead hem o de elop dys unc ional ela ionships ha somehow a o
and acili a e pa ne iolence and sexis ideas in daily li e. Educa ion is he basic ool o e adica e
disc imina ion and iolence agains women. The objec i e o his s udy is o explo e he alse my hs
o oman ic lo e in adolescen s and hei ela ed ac o s. A c oss-sec ional s udy was conduc ed
wi h 16–19-yea -old eenage s (n= 180), h ough ques ionnai es and by employing he oman ic lo e
my hs scale, he ambi alen sexism in en o y, and he lo e a i udes scale. Adolescen s accep ed
o a g ea e deg ee he lo e my hs associa ed wi h idealiza ion han hose ela ed o abuse wi h
scale alues o Med = 2.72, SD = 0.55, and Med = 1.34, SD = 0.68, espec i ely. Designed models
p edic lo e idealiza ion on he basis o bene olen sexism (
β
= 0.03; CI 95% = 0.021–0.039), eligion
(
β= 0.198
; CI 95% = 0.047–0.349), passiona e lo e (
β= 0.038
; CI 95% = 0.015–0.061), p ac ical lo e
(
β= 0.024
; CI 95% = 0.001–0.047), and iendly lo e (
β
= 0.036; CI 95% = 0.014–0.058). Hos ile sexism
and unde g adua e s udies we e associa ed wi h he my hs ha ela e lo e and abuse (
β
= 0.19;
CI 95% = 0.007–0.031, β= 0.208; CI 95% = 0.001–0.414, espec i ely).
Keywo ds: gende s udies; da ing iolence agains women; adolescen s; oman ic lo e my hs
1. In oduc ion
In ima e pa ne iolence (IPV) is one o he mos signi ican ep esen a ions o inequal-
i y, subo dina ion, and powe ela ionships by men agains women [
1
]. The pe cen age o
women a ound he wo ld a ec ed by i eaches 30%, hus cons i u ing an impo an public
heal h issue occu ing in e e y coun y, cul u e, and social class, wi h se ious consequences
on women’s heal h, bo h physical and men al [2].
In Spain, acco ding o he da a published by he Go e nmen Delega ion o Gende
Violence in 2020, 45 women we e mu de ed by hei pa ne s o o me pa ne s and
113,615 in ima e pa ne iolence cases we e epo ed [3].
S udies ha e e ealed ha , despi e he e o s made, iolence agains women s ill
exis s among Spanish eenage s and schoolchild en [
4
–
6
]. F om 2013, he yea in which
cases o een da ing iolence s a ed being eco ded in ou coun y, 37 mu de s o young
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/ije ph18105296 h ps://www.mdpi.com/jou nal/ije ph
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 2 o 11
women by hei pa ne o o me pa ne ha e been egis e ed [
7
]. Diaz-Aguado e al., in
hei s udy “La si uación de la iolencia con a las muje es en la adolescencia en España”
(Violence agains women in adolescence in Spain) poin ou ha he isk o all kinds o
iolence, bo h e bal abuse and h ea s, physical and sexual, as well as ape and mu de ,
inc eases du ing da ing. Among 16–24-yea -old gi ls who s a e ha ing had a oman ic
ela ionship, 2.5% o hem su e ed physical iolence compa ed o he 0.8% epo ed by 25-
yea -old o olde women. Likewise, he es ima ed p e alence in bo h age g oups o sexual
iolence is o 3.7% and 1.1%, espec i ely; o psychological iolence in ol ing con ol, o
17.3% and 5.9%; and o psychological and emo ional abuse, o 11.6% and 5.0%. The la e is
especially equen among adolescen s, being epo ed by 20% o 16–17-yea -old women
who ha e been in a ela ionship, diminishing as age inc eases [
5
]. Rele an di e ences
in psychological consequences we e also obse ed, whe e 80.8% o young women ha e
expe ienced hem, compa ed o 68.3% o olde women. In addi ion o anxie y o anguish,
wan ing o c y o no eason, i i abili y, and mood swings, hey epo a highe le el o
suicidal idea ion [
5
]. Wi hin he academic con ex , hese women show mo e di icul y in
hei s udies, hei in eg a ion wi h pee s, and sel -es eem, compa ed o hose who ha e
no su e ed IPV [
8
]. Howe e , hey eso o police o cou s in a lesse deg ee o epo
he iolence su e ed (14.5% s. 22.6%), o o eques help se ices (heal h, psychological,
social, legal assessmen se ices, e c.) o ace he consequences he eo (27.3% s. 33.3%) [
5
].
Adolescence is a pe iod in which se e al changes occu a biological, psychological,
and social le els. Sexual a ac ion and ela ionships s a aking place, and he idealiza ion
o lo e and he exis ence o oman ic my hs a e e y common [
9
]. Roman ic lo e is de i ed
om he my h o he And ogyne desc ibed in Pla o’s The Banque [
10
], which jus i ies
he bases o he na u alness and uni e sali y o lo e. Ne e heless, oday i is based
mo e on poli e lo e and he need o li e wi h someone who comple es ou exis ence [
11
].
Roman ic lo e my hs mainly lie in he obsessi e sea ch o he pe ec pa ne who will
make us o ally happy, so ha socie y has come o conside ha su e ing is na u al i such
complemen is no ound [11].
Fo he pa ia chal socie y, being a woman, and i s ela ed emale oles, is associa ed
wi h being a wi e and a mo he and, he e o e, wi h he ask o p o iding ca e, a ec ion, and
lo e o o he s [
11
]. Mo eo e , om se e al eligious sec o s o he pa ia chal socie y, he
passi e ole and he ole o subo dina ion o women owa ds men ha e been encou aged
and ein o ced. The media also p omo e he idea ha oman ic lo e is he ideal o unique
and ue lo e [
12
]. Thus, in o de o a ain such lo e, young women may conside ha
hey should su ende o hei pa ne s o ally, jus like a mo he lo e [
13
]. In his way,
oman ic my hs a such ages a e deemed ep esen a ions o so-called ue lo e [
14
]. Bu he
exis ence o hese my hs in a ela ionship may easily lead o episodes o gende iolence
which, howe e , may be unde s ood as ac s o lo e [12,13,15].
On he o he hand, i has been widely documen ed ha sexis a i udes help pe -
pe ua e gende inequali y [
16
]. Glick and Fiske s a e ha sexism is based on h ee ideas:
domina ing pa e nalism (women a e weake and in e io o men); compe i i e gende
di e en ia ion (women a e di e en and do no ha e he necessa y cha ac e is ics o go e n
social ins i u ions, amily and home being hei places); and he e osexual hos ili y (women,
due o hei sexual powe , a e dange ous and ha e he capaci y o manipula e men) [
17
].
These au ho s also di e en ia e wo componen s which, al hough ela ed, a e clea ly dis-
inguished: hos ile sexism and bene olen sexism. Hos ile sexism, o adi ional sexism,
conside s women in e io and weak wi h espec o men. Bene olen sexism is de ined as a
se o a i udes owa ds women based on a s e eo yped ision limi ed o ce ain oles, bu
which has a posi i e emo ional aspec o he ecei e [17,18].
Educa ion is essen ial o p e en pa ne iolence, since i is he basis o knowledge and
i allows o he de elopmen o skills which ain eenage s o make hei own decisions
and unde ake hei own esponsibili ies. Such ea ly ages a e a o able o modi ying igid
eachings, my hs, aboos, belie s, and conduc which may ha e had an in luence on hei
educa ion [
19
–
22
]. Tha is why, in he las se e al yea s, mul iple educa ional in e en ions
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 3 o 11
ha e been de eloped wi h he aim o p omo ing gende equali y; p e en ing agg essi e
beha io among pee s, bo h wi hin and wi hou social media; as well as add essing sexis
a i udes and oman ic my hs among adolescen s [
23
,
24
]. Such an example is he p og am
“De eloping heal hy and egali a ian adolescen ela ionships” (DARSI) implemen ed in
he Valencian Communi y (Spain), which showed an associa ion be ween his ype o
in e en ion and a signi ican dec ease in agg essi e conduc . The e icacy o he p og am
acco ding o Wilks’ Lambda dis ibu ion was 0.656, F (12, 338) = 6.608, p< 0.001, wi h a
la ge e ec size, η2= 0.190) [25].
Howe e , apa om educa ional ins i u es’ in ol emen in and commi men o
pa ne iolence p e en ion, hei in e ac ion wi h cou , social, and heal h sys ems is
also necessa y [
26
–
28
]. The ole o he school nu se is s a egic in educa ion cen e s, bo h
o de ec cases o da ing iolence, p o ide imely heal h a en ion, and design s a egies
ha shall help p e en and e adica e such phenomena [
29
]. Ne e heless, he in o ma ion
ela ed o he pe sis ence o oman ic my hs in adolescen s and hei ela ed ac o s is s ill
incipien . The objec i e o his s udy is o explo e he alse oman ic my hs in young people
aged 16–19 and hei ela ed ac o s.
2. Ma e ials and Me hods
2.1. Da a Collec ion
This is a c oss-sec ional s udy by means o an anonymous ques ionnai e, sel -comple ed
online by 16–19-yea -old adolescen s in Ap il 2020 in a ci y in Sou he n Spain. The numbe
o s uden s s udying in he las yea o seconda y school and he i s yea o s udy a a
uni e si y in he ci y we e 299 and 91, espec i ely. By means o non-p obabili y quo a
sampling by cou se, wi h a con idence le el o 95% and maximum es ima ion e o o 7%,
a sample size o 180 adolescen s was es ima ed. Said me hod was chosen o gua an ee
he p opo ionali y o indi iduals wi h unde g adua e and g adua e s udies ega ding
dis ibu ion o s uden s en olled in he cen e s selec ed o he s udy. All en olled s uden s
had he same oppo uni y o access he ques ionnai e.
2.2. Measu emen Tool
Fo collec ion o da a, Bosch e al.’s (2008) oman ic lo e my hs scale [
30
], Glick and
Fiske’s (1996) ambi alen sexism in en o y [
17
] and Hend ick, Hend ick, and Dick’s (1998)
lo e a i udes scale [
31
] we e employed. In addi ion, a iables such as gende , age (yea s
old), eligion (being a belie e o a non-belie e ), oman ic s a us (in a ela ionship and no
in a ela ionship), and le el o s udy (unde g adua e and g adua e) we e collec ed.
The oman ic lo e my hs scale [
30
] was alida ed in Spanish by Bosch e al. I com-
p ises 10 i ems g ouped by wo dimensions: lo e idealiza ion (8 i ems) and lo e–abuse
ela ionship (2 i ems). The answe o ma is Like ype, 1 = o ally disag ee and 5 = o ally
ag ee. The o al scale showed good eliabili y (C onbach’s alpha = 0.64), being 0.69 o
he lo e idealiza ion subscale, and o 0.77 o he lo e–abuse link subscale [
32
]. Lemus
e al. [
33
] adap ed o Spanish he ambi alen sexism in en o y [
17
], composed o 22 i ems
wi h wo dimensions, hos ile sexism and bene olen sexism, o 11 i ems each. The Like
ype answe o ma anges om 1 = o ally disag ee o 5 = o ally ag ee. Measu emen s
o he gene al scale as a measu e o ambi alen sexism show a C onbach’s alpha o 0.81,
which in he hos ile sexism subscale is 0.84, and in bene olen sexism, 0.77 [
33
]. Finally, he
lo e a i udes scale designed by Hend ick, Hend ick, and Dick and alida ed in Spanish
by Rod íguez-Cas o e al., 2013 [
34
] is composed o 18 i ems g ouped by six dimensions,
co esponding o six ypes o lo e: oman ic lo e, play ul lo e, iendly lo e, p ac ical
lo e, obsessi e lo e, and al uis ic lo e [
31
]. Likewise, i uses Like ype answe s whe e
1 = o ally
disag ee and 5 = o ally ag ee, he scale eliabili y anging om 0.88 o al uis ic
lo e o 0.68 o p ac ical lo e [34].
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 4 o 11
2.3. Da a Analysis
The sample was desc ibed by means o equencies and measu es o cen al endency
(mean and s anda d de ia ion) pu suan o he quan i a i e o quali a i e na u e o he
a iables analyzed. La e , bi a ia e analyses we e conduc ed o lo e idealiza ion and
o he lo e–abuse link, he wo componen s o oman ic lo e my hs, conside ing as
independen a iables sociodemog aphic ac o s (age, gende , le el o s udy, oman ic
s a us, and eligious belie s), he dimensions o he ambi alen sexism scale (bene olen
sexism and hos ile sexism) and lo e a i udes (passiona e lo e, play ul lo e, iendly lo e,
p ac ical lo e, obsessi e lo e, and al uis ic lo e). Fo con as ing means, he S uden ’s
pa ame ic es was applied and he e ec size was calcula ed by means o Cohen’s
d. Fu he mo e, Pea son’s co ela ion analysis was ca ied ou on bo h dimensions o
oman ic lo e my hs scale wi h age, dimensions o lo e a i udes and ambi alen sexism
scales, es ablishing he le el o s a is ical signi icance a a alue o p< 0.05.
Finally, wo models o s epwise mul iple linea eg ession we e designed by in o-
ducing all he independen a iables, es ima ing he be a alues, s anda d e o , and hei
con idence in e als a 95%. The linea i y and independence o esiduals we e e i ied by
means o he Du bin–Wa son s a is ic, hus de e mining accep able alues o independence
o less han 2.5.
E e y analysis has been conduc ed using he S a is ical Package o he Social Sciences
(SPSS) p og am, e sion 25, (IBM, New Yo k, NY, USA, o Mac).
2.4. E hical Conside a ions
The s udy complies wi h good clinical p ac ice egula ions, se o h in Eu opean
Di ec i e 2001/20/EC, and in Law 14/2007, o 3 July, on biomedical esea ch. T ea men o
pe sonal da a in heal h esea ch is go e ned by he p o isions o O ganic Law 3/2018 o 5
Decembe , on he p o ec ion o pe sonal da a and gua an ee o digi al igh s. Pa icipan s
we e in o med o he objec i es o he s udy and p o ided hei consen o pa icipa e by
checking a speci ic box.
3. Resul s
The sample included 184 s uden s wi h a mean age o 17.6, SD = 1.15 yea s and a
emale a io o 74.5%. As ega ds le el o s udy, 121 (65.8%) we e unde g adua e s uden s,
62% (n= 114) we e no in a oman ic ela ionship, and 128 (69.6%) decla ed hemsel es
belie e s (Table 1).
Table 1. Pa icipan s’ sociodemog aphic cha ac e is ics.
Va iables
Pa icipan s
(n= 184)
M (SD)
Age (yea s old) 17.6 (1.15)
n(%)
Gende
Male 47 (25.5)
Female 137 (74.5)
Le el o s udy
Unde g adua e 121 (65.8)
G adua e 63 (34.2)
Roman ic s a us
No in a ela ionship 114 (62)
In a ela ionship 70 (38)
Religion
Belie e 128 (69.6)
Non-belie e 56 (30.4)
M = mean; SD = s anda d de ia ion; n= equency; % = pe cen age.
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 5 o 11
Table 2shows he mean o sco es ob ained in he di e en dimensions o he oman ic
lo e my hs, ambi alen sexism, and lo e a i udes scales. Lo e idealiza ion and bene olen
sexism eached he highes sco es o 2.72 (0.55) and 2.25 (0.65), espec i ely. Play ul lo e is
he one which, less equen ly, pa icipa ing adolescen s s a e hey eel, wi h a sco e o 2.11
(0.96).
Table 2. Desc ip i e alues o oman ic lo e my hs, ambi alen sexism, and lo e a i udes scales.
M (SD)
Roman ic lo e my hs
Lo e idealiza ion 2.72 (0.55)
Lo e–abuse link 1.34 (0.68)
Ambi alen sexism
Bene olen sexism 2.25 (0.65)
Hos ile sexism 1.99 (0.72)
Lo e a i udes
Passiona e lo e 3.3 (0.96)
Play ul lo e 2.11 (0.97)
F iendly lo e 3.16 (0.01)
P ac ical lo e 3.16 (0.1)
Obsessi e lo e 2.41 (0.85)
Al uis ic lo e 2.59 (0.97)
M = Mean; SD = S anda d De ia ion.
Table 3shows he esul s o bi a ia e analyses o he wo dimensions o he oman ic
lo e my hs scale. Among hose who decla ed hemsel es belie e s, a sco e o 2.83 is
obse ed in lo e idealiza ion wi h s a is ically signi ican di e ences and a mean e ec
size wi h espec o non-belie ing adolescen s (p= 0.001; Cohen’s d = 0.683). Likewise,
bene olen sexism was posi i ely and mode a ely co ela ed o his dimension ( = 0.487;
p= 0.01
), while p ac ical lo e, passiona e lo e, hos ile sexism, iendly lo e, obsessi e lo e,
and al uis ic lo e did so weakly (p= 0.01). Rega ding he lo e–abuse link dimension,
men and adolescen s s udying unde g adua e s udies we e he ones who showed highe
sco es al hough wi h a weak e ec magni ude (p= 0.033; Cohen’s d = 0.361 and p=006; Co-
hen’s
d = 0.105
, espec i ely). Hos ile sexism was sligh ly associa ed wi h his componen
(
= 0.260
;p= 0.01), ollowed by al uis ic lo e, play ul lo e, and obsessi e lo e (p< 0.05).
Al hough weakly, i is obse ed ha he olde he indi idual, he less he associa ion wi h
lo e–abuse ( = −0.166; p= 0.05).
Table 3. Bi a ia e analysis o dimensions o he oman ic lo e my hs scale.
Lo e Idealiza ion Lo e–Abuse Link
M (SD) pCohen’s d M (SD) pCohen’s d
Gende
Male (n= 47) 2.72 (0.56) 0.960 1.52 (0.77) 0.033 * 0.361
Female (n= 137) 2.73 (0.54) 1.28 (0.64)
Le el o s udy
Unde g adua e (n= 121) 2.74 (0.53) 0.501 1.44 (0.74) 0.006 ** 0.105
G adua e (n= 63) 2.69 (0.57) 1.15 (0.50)
Roman ic s a us
No in a ela ionship (n= 114) 2.71 (0.53) 0.743 1.39 (0.75) 0.239
In a ela ionship (n= 70) 2.74 (0.58) 1.26 (0.55)
Religion
Belie e (n= 128) 2.83 (0.53) 0.001 ** 0.683 1.38 (0.75) 0.288
Non-belie e (n= 56) 2.48 (0.51) 1.26 (0.48)
p p
Age 0.040 0.588 −0.166 0.025 *
Bene olen sexism 0.487 0.001 ** 0.077 0.297
Hos ile sexism 0.268 0.001 ** 0.260 0.001 **
Passiona e lo e 0.301 0.001 ** −0.062 0.4
Play ul lo e 0.070 0.344 0.177 0.017 *
F iendly lo e 0.254 0.001 ** 0.001 0.992
P ac ical lo e 0.331 0.001 ** −0.075 0.313
Obsessi e lo e 0.252 0.001 ** 0.157 0.033 *
Al uis ic lo e 0.216 0.006 ** 0.187 0.011 *
M = Mean; SD = S anda d De ia ion; = Pea son Co ela ion Coe icien ; * p< 0.05. ** p< 0.01. Cohen’s d = E ec size.

In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 6 o 11
Table 4shows he inal eg ession model o he lo e idealiza ion dimension wi h he
i e p edic o a iables ha explained he 39.5% a iabili y. In his sense, adolescen s who
a e belie e s, wi h a endency owa d bene olen sexism and wi h a ision o passiona e,
p ac ical, and iendly lo e a e he ones who end o idealize lo e.
Table 4. Mul iple linea eg ession model o lo e idealiza ion.
Va iable βE o De . 95% CI
Bene olen
sexism 0.03 0.005 0.021 0.039
Belie e 0.198 0.076 0.047 0.349
Passiona e lo e 0.038 0.012 0.015 0.061
P ac ical lo e 0.024 0.012 0.001 0.047
F iendly lo e 0.036 0.011 0.014 0.058
Du bin Wa son Tes = 1.709; F = 23.24; p< 0.001.
Fo he lo e–abuse link dimension, he p edic i e model was composed o he hos ile
sexism and unde g adua e s udies a iables, which explained he 8.7% a iabili y (
Table 5)
.
I was unde g adua e s uden s wi h a endency owa d hos ile sexism who showed a
endency owa d he lo e–abuse link.
Table 5. Mul iple linea eg ession model o he lo e-abuse link.
Va iable βE o De . 95% CI
Hos ile sexism 0.19 0.006 0.007 0.031
Unde g adua e 0.208 0.105 0.001 0.414
Du bin Wa son Tes = 1.882; F = 8.68; p< 0.001.
4. Discussion
This s udy con ibu es signi ican da a on he in luence o sexism on adolescen s, as
well as on hei belie s and a i udes owa ds lo e in di e en academic con ex s, hus
inc easing he empi ical e idence o such knowledge [12,35,36].
Ou esul s show ha lo e my hs ela ed o he idealiza ion o lo e a e mo e accep ed
by adolescen s han hose ela ed o abuse. Mo eo e , mo e sexis bene olen a i udes
a e obse ed han hos ile a i udes, as p e iously documen ed in popula ions wi h simila
sociodemog aphic cha ac e is ics [
31
,
35
,
36
]. They also e eal he ela ionship be ween bo h
concep s; ha is, an inc ease in sexis a i udes, whe he hos ile o bene olen , seems o
lead o he my hi ica ion o lo e. Du ing adolescence, Ca bonell and Mes e iden i ied
hese a i udes as isk ac o s o he es ablishmen o unbalanced ela ionships and wi h a
endency owa d abuse [37].
Among all lo e a i udes analyzed, he passiona e ision was highligh ed abo e
all o he s, ollowed by he iendly one, as ega ds he es ablishmen o a long- e m
commi men , and o he p ac ical one o sea ch o he pe ec lo e, being he p oduc o
he combina ion o equi emen s mo e han o own eelings. Such esul s coincide wi h
hose epo ed by Moyeda e al., who in e p e hem om he pe spec i e o social models
imposed h ough di e en media and ins i u ions [38].
Wi h espec o gende , boys and gi ls in his s udy had a simila oman ic pe cep ion,
as ound by Rod íguez and Alonso [
39
], al hough such indings disag ee wi h hose o
o he au ho s. In his sense, i is epo ed ha women may end o su ende o ally o
hei pa ne s, while men ha e a mo e demanding a i ude [
13
,
37
]. Ca a e al. [
40
] also
demons a ed di e ences be ween boys and gi ls. Al hough oman ic lo e my hs we e a
signi ican p edic o o cybe ne ic con ol ic imiza ion (ways o abusi e con ol o ic ims
o moni o hei social ela ionships and wha hey a e doing a any ime) bo h in boys
and gi ls, said au ho s hold ha belie ing such my hs could ha e had a highe impac
on gi ls. On he o he hand, in bo h gende s, oman ic my hs we e a signi ican posi i e
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 7 o 11
p edic o o cybe con ol and cybe -agg ession ic imiza ion (beha io in ol ing ha m
o ic ims h ough di ec a acks, o ins ance, h ea s, insul s, o disclosu e o p i a e
in o ma ion). Ne e heless, i s weigh has be e p edic ed cybe con ol ic imiza ion in
adolescen gi ls. We do obse e highe sco es in he lo e–abuse link among adolescen
boys, which esul coincides wi h o he publica ions [
33
,
41
]. Such a i udes deno e he
in e naliza ion o iolence wi hin he oman ic ela ionship con ex om an ea ly age,
which is eally dis u bing, especially in a socie y whe e o mal o legal equali y is a eali y,
bu , howe e , o each ac ual gende equali y, i seems e iden ha mo e e o s a e s ill
equi ed [42].
Age was in e sely ela ed o he lo e–abuse link, so ha as i inc eases, he associa ion
diminishes. Al hough he age ma gin analyzed is na ow, his inding may be indica i e
o a endency owa d he es ablishmen o heal hie oman ic ela ionships as adolescen s
ma u e [37,43,44].
Upon conside a ion o he le el o s udy, unde g adua e s uden s suppo ed sligh ly
mo e nega i e a i udes in he lo e–abuse link han g adua e s uden s. Wang [
45
] obse ed
ha as he educa ional le el o pa icipan s inc eased, a i udes and pe cep ions owa ds
pa ne iolence had no signi ican e ec . In con as , Na a o-Pé ez e al. [
44
] poin
ou ha o mal educa ion has a di ec in luence on sexis a i udes; in he in e en ion
pe o med, sexism was educed be ween 6 and 12%.
The sociodemog aphic a iable wi h highe ele ance in ou s udy was, undoub edly,
conside ing you sel a belie e . This aspec has an impac on bo h dimensions, in pa icula ,
on lo e idealiza ion wi h a mean e ec size. People wi h eligious belie s may also show
mo e adi ional li es yles ending owa d a highe no maliza ion o such my hs. In
P ina and Scha z-S e ens’ s udy [
46
], eligiousness was also a s ong p edic o o sexism
bo h in he U.S. and he I alian popula ions (
β
= 0.25, p< 0.001;
β
= 0.31, p< 0.001,
espec i ely) as well as o he accep ance o he iolence my h (
β
= 0.21, p< 0.05;
β
= 0.13,
p< 0.01). O he s udies explo ed he link be ween eligious a ilia ion and iolence agains
women [
47
–
49
]. Ghanim [
49
] compa ed he ela ionship be ween Ch is ians and Muslims,
and di e en ypes o iolence agains women, acco ding o opinions o women hemsel es.
Muslims expe ienced highe p e alence in all ypes o iolence (physical and/o sexual,
and psychological) compa ed o Ch is ian women, which may be aken in o accoun o
loca e popula ions wi h a highe isk o su e ing his kind o iolence.
Ou p edic i e model, ob ained o lo e idealiza ion, was de e mined by bene olen
sexis conduc s, being a belie e , and by a i udes a o ing passiona e, p ac ical, and
iendly lo e, which indings coincide wi h hose documen ed by o he au ho s. Gul
e al. [
50
], in hei e iew o li e a u e, concluded ha women ind men wi h bene olen
sexism a i udes a ac i e because hey el hey we e willing o p o ec , p o ide, and
commi , despi e being awa e o he ha m ul consequences. Lelau ain e al. [
51
] epo ed
ha pa icipan s mo e inclined o oman ic lo e we e p one o blaming ic imized women
and o exone a ing he ba e e , which means a link among oman ic lo e, ambi alen
sexism, and domes ic iolence my hs. Fu he mo e, i has been widely documen ed ha
lo e s yles a e lea n h ough cul u al ules and p ac ices in he ela ionship. In adi ional
cul u es, he p ac ical lo e s yle seems o be less alued by conside ing ha his eeling
a ises mo e om an emo ional ac han om a logical one [
31
,
52
,
53
]. The e o e, i is
possible o hink ha mo e eligious socie ies will end o pe pe ua e my hs ela ed o he
idealiza ion and sea ch o pe ec lo e like passiona e, iendly and p ac ical lo e.
Hos ile sexism and a lowe le el o s udies, in ou p edic i e model, we e sligh ly
associa ed wi h he lo e–abuse link. Hos ile and bene olen sexism a e complemen a y
ideologies ha p e ail in cul u es, and bo h p edic gende inequali ies [
19
]. In Spain, i
has been obse ed ha wi hin a sho ime pe iod, sexis a i udes ha e been inc easing
signi ican ly among young people. Since he pu pose o educa ion in equali y is cu en ly a
p io i y in ou educa ional con ex , i may no , howe e , be p oducing ce ain esul s such
as educing hos ile sexism, a leas among pa icipan s o his s udy. Al hough we obse e
a sligh associa ion be ween a lowe le el o s udy and lo e–abuse, we coincide wi h Bosch
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 8 o 11
e al. [
54
] when poin ing ou ha associa ing a low sociocul u al le el wi h pa ne iolence
is a misogynis ic my h adi ionally used o jus i y such iolen conduc s. In gene al, his
s udy is in line wi h hose concluding ha he pe pe ua ion o oman ic lo e my hs helps
main ain gende s e eo ypes and inequali y be ween men and women, hus jus i ying he
iolence su e ed by women in hei oman ic ela ionships [55,56].
The ela ionship o ca e be ween nu ses and pa ien s makes i possible o alue a
pe son comp ehensi ely, hei amily and social en i onmen , and he consequences o
hei child en. In his sense, he ole o a nu se includes ca e and aining and educa ion
on an equal oo ing ega ding adul s and, especially, child en and young people. Since
hey p o ide heal h educa ion in sexual in e cou se and consen , nu ses may help p omo e
heal hy ela ionships among adolescen s. This gua an ees ha young people know any
esou ces and suppo a ailable in o de o a oid sexual abuse and iolence. Fu he mo e,
nu ses acili a e access o se ices o ic ims o abuse [
57
]. The igu e o he school nu se
could, by means o wo kshops, design s a egies ha shall help p e en and e adica e such
phenomenon [29].
S udy Limi a ions
This s udy has se e al limi a ions. Fi s o all, he ype o quo a sampling may ha e
inclined pa icipa ion owa ds pa icipan s mo e awa e o gende equali y, which would
include a classi ica ion bias. Mo eo e , he low pa icipa ion o boys, ega dless o e lec ing
hei low in e es in his opic, may ha e minimized he associa ions ound. Howe e , in
gene al, he esul s obse ed a e in line wi h o he s udies, which con ibu es heo e ical
consis ency o he s udy. To o e come such limi a ions, in subsequen esea ch, a highe
e o should be made o achie e gende -balanced pa icipa ion.
Al hough he ep esen a ion o s uden s has been sa is ac o y and, he e o e, he
in e nal alidi y o he s udy may be deemed adequa e, in o de o gene alize ou esul s,
he numbe o educa ional cen e s should be inc eased o inc ease ex e nal alidi y and,
he e o e, i s gene aliza ion o o he con ex s.
Las ly, he exis ence o social desi abili y bias in answe s should no be elimina ed,
since we add essed especially sensi i e opics like lo e my hs and sexism. To con ol i , he
anonymi y o he s uden s, who olun ee ed o he s udy, was gua an eed.
5. Conclusions
We ha e obse ed ha adolescen s uden s end o accep lo e my hs ela ed o
idealiza ion o lo e mo e han hose ela ed o abuse. Such idealiza ion o lo e was ela ed
o p ac icing a eligion, and no o gende , le el o s udy, o oman ic s a us. Unde g adua e
boys showed a i udes mo e ela ed o lo e–abuse.
Bene olen sexism, eligion, passiona e lo e, p ac ical lo e, and iendly lo e p edic ed
a highe idealiza ion o lo e, while hos ile sexism and unde g adua e s udies ac ed as
ac o s p edic ing lo e–abuse.
Awa eness o hese ac o s could be use ul in designing socio-educa ional s a egies
add essing lo e my hs and sexis a i udes s ill pe sis en among adolescen s in ou egion.
School nu ses ha e an impo an ole o play in educa ion cen e s as p o essionals di ec ly
in ol ed in he a en ion and p e en ion o iolence agains women in he ela ionship
con ex , mainly a an ea ly age.
Au ho Con ibu ions:
Concep ualiza ion, A.M.-S., K.S.-M., and M.Á.P.-M.; me hodology, E.M.-G.,
M.G.-L. and M.A.Á.-S.; o mal analysis, A.M.-S. and M.A.Á.-S.; in es iga ion, A.M.-S., K.S.-M. and
E.F.-G.; da a cu a ion, A.M.-S., K.S.-M. and M.A.Á.-S.; w i ing—o iginal d a p epa a ion, A.M.-S.,
K.S.-M., M.Á.P.-M., M.A.Á.-S., M.G.-L., E.M.-G., E.F.-G.; w i ing— e iew and edi ing, A.M.-S., K.S.-
M., M.Á.P.-M., M.A.Á.-S., M.G.-L., E.M.-G., E.F.-G.; isualiza ion, A.M.-S. and E.F.-G.; supe ision,
A.M.-S. and E.M.-G. All au ho s ha e ead and ag eed o he published e sion o he manusc ip .
Funding: This esea ch ecei ed no ex e nal unding.
In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 9 o 11
Ins i u ional Re iew Boa d S a emen :
The e hical e iew and app o al o his s udy was wai ed,
because he pa icipan s signed he in o med consen p io o he s udy.
In o med Consen S a emen : In o med consen was ob ained om all subjec s in ol ed in he s udy.
Con lic s o In e es : The au ho s decla e no con lic o in e es .
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