Divulgação científica no contexto sexualidade

Abstract

Social media are part of our day-to-day live nowadays and it is used by a lot of people as their source for information, this characteristic it is a big contributor to the exposure of information without proper sources or simply imprecise. Considering this, scientific dissemination about sexuality requires even more specificity, since misinformation in this area can lead to high-risk sexual behavior, aggravating a huge problem on our public health system. That is why is necessary that scientists, spokespersons, and professionals in general to bring to light not only new information and discoveries but to help demystify false information that could be harmful to the people. Translating scientific information to a more simplistic, or easy to understand, language not only facilitates the access to information, but incentivizes critical thinking, curiosity and allow people to normalize debating important topics on a regular basis. The dissemination of scientific information on sexuality comes in to fill the voids and to change taboos in our contemporary society that might lead to issues like unwanted pregnancies, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), violence, prejudice, and overall difficulty in relationships. To help with that, through the Digital Scientific Dissemination Project on Sexuality (LNFI/ICBS/UFAL) we created an Instagram™ profile with the username Ciencia Sem Vergonha (@cienciasemvergonha), which posted ludic and informative posts on topics like Neurobiology, Health and Behavior with the focus on sexuality, on the period between March and October of 2022. We analyzed the metrics of eighteen posts made on the feed, which were divided into four subcategories (Neurobiology, Sexual Behavior, General Health and Terminology & Curiosities), the profile reached 173 followers, from which 59 answered our questionnaire with questions about sexuality and scientific dissemination. The results suggest that there is, in fact, difficulty in finding content on sexuality that are trustworthy, based on technical-scientific knowledge to better guide their decision making. That is why we incentivize that more professionals also help us in promoting scientific information on sexuality, so we can guide people into a healthier life with their sexuality.