”A compliment immediately becomes a harassment” : A qualitative study of young male university students’ perceptions on the #metoo movement and the changes in their attitudes

Abstract: In the fall of 2017, the #metoo movement began on social media to encourage victims of sexual harassment to speak up and show the magnitude of the problem, especially violence committed by men against women. The message of #metoo went viral and developed into a significant topic on gender equality. It became a global trend in countries such as Sweden, France and various other countries, which caused a storm of users to share their stories with the help of the hashtag metoo on their social media platforms. The motivation behind the chosen area of study is to comprehend opinions on the movement. In order to get a different perspective on the women’s movement the focus throughout lie on young men. The aim of this study is to examine how heterosexual male students at a university in Sweden view the movement both as a Swedish and a global phenomenon. Furthermore, the study examined if the students believe their attitudes toward sexual harassment have been affected or changed by the movement. This bachelor thesis attempted to answer the research questions and present the results by conducting focus group interviews. The presented results of the focus group interviews showed an overall positive attitude towards the purpose of the movement. However, a majority agreed that the movement had developed into something beyond its purpose and discussed the negative effects it brought with it. The participants expressed concern for the usage of the hashtag for minor incidents which eventually overshadowed the initial positive purpose of the movement. Through the study, it was furthermore revealed that the participants did not believe that a change in attitudes had occurred within themselves, even though they believed it may have brought change to other men in society.