Abstract

The ways in which young people who are students at the Austral University of Chile interpret inequality and gender violence and the positions they adopt towards these phenomena. A qualitative methodology was used to analyze oral and written testimonies from 12 pre and postgraduate students at the university in accordance with constructivist grounded theory. The results show that the students’ interpretations and positions are influenced by their direct and indirect experiences of violence, as well as their access to different sources of knowledge. As a result, young people demonstrate different stages of understanding, awareness and critical reflection of this phenomenon, as well as expressing either critical/active or uncritical/passive positions. Finally, the university students proposed strategies to eradicate gender violence, including the creation of coeducational spaces, making heteronormative practices more flexible and integrating dissenting opinions.