# INTOXICATED SEXUAL ENCOUNTERS: ALCOHOL, SEXUAL SCRIPTS AND CONSENT AMONG YOUNG ADULTS

> **NIH NIH R01** · SCIENTIFIC ANALYSIS CORPORATION · 2023 · $556,157

## Abstract

7. Project Summary
The aims of this 36 month qualitative research project are as follows: a) Identify gendered differences in
the meanings and roles of intoxication within sexual encounters; b) Explore the extent to which different
drinking contexts, and normative cultures that operate within them, influence sexual encounters; c) Examine
the ways in which social structural inequities, such as gendered power relations, influence the meanings and
outcomes of intoxicated sexual encounters; d) Produce practice-based evidence, informed by a systematic
constitutive analysis of qualitative narrative data, that can inform promising innovations for the development of
sexual victimization prevention and education initiatives. This evidence can also provide important information
for the formulation of new guidelines and practices for the operation of nightlife establishments.
 Although concern about sexual violence, victimization and harassment has increased, much of the
recent attention has been to address these issues within the workplace. Hence, much less focus has been
directed towards addressing these issues in drinking settings. This is in spite of the extensive research that has
identified the role of alcohol as a major contributory factor in sexually violent and aggressive behaviors.
However, while epidemiological and survey research on intoxication and sexual encounters has been
important, limitations with this research need to be addressed. Furthermore, while social science research on
contemporary sexual encounters and sexual consent has increased, especially among young adults, much
less research has examined the social dimensions of intoxication in the context of sexual encounters.
Consequently, we will adopt an alternative theoretical framework combining insights from existing social
science research to emphasize both the socio-contextual and structural aspects of intoxicated sexual
encounters. Additionally, this proposed project considers these issues among diverse groups of young adults,
not only those enrolled in college, who have been the primary focus of existing research on sexual encounters.
By combining theories from several fields and research traditions, we can expand the current state of
understanding of the meanings, processes, and implications of intoxicated sexual encounters for young adults.
 Our proposed project will examine the following three research questions:
 1. How do young adults understand and conceptualize the role of intoxication in shaping sexual
 encounters, consent and victimization?
 2. To what extent do different intoxication settings, such as bars, clubs and parties, influence the
 processes of sexual encounters, consent, and victimization?
 3. How do socio-structural factors (cultural scripts of sexuality and gendered intoxication, gendered
 power relations, gender inequities) influence the processes involved in intoxicated sexual encounters?
 In order to examine these issues, we will conduct in-depth intervie...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10696048
- **Project number:** 5R01AA030253-02
- **Recipient organization:** SCIENTIFIC ANALYSIS CORPORATION
- **Principal Investigator:** GEOFFREY P HUNT
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $556,157
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-09-05 → 2026-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10696048

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10696048, INTOXICATED SEXUAL ENCOUNTERS: ALCOHOL, SEXUAL SCRIPTS AND CONSENT AMONG YOUNG ADULTS (5R01AA030253-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10696048. Licensed CC0.

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