Prejudice against sexual and gender diversity and beliefs about sex education among university students

Abstract

Discrimination against sexual and gender minorities is a persistent problem in several contexts. This article sought to investigate prejudice against sexual and gender diversity and beliefs about sex education among students of licenciatura (Brazilian term for a bachelor of education degree with a specialization) courses from different areas, and whether there are differences in the manifestation of these attitudes and beliefs between freshmen and seniors. Five hundred eighty university students participated in this study and the data was collected through scales to measure sexual and gender prejudice and beliefs about sex education, and through a sociodemographic characterization form. The results showed that prejudice and belief indices varied by area of study and differences were observed in the mean values of beliefs, but not in those of prejudice, between freshmen and seniors. The importance of more investments is emphasized so that undergraduate students present lower levels of this type of prejudice when completing their respective courses.