ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the cultural norms and expectations that surround and regulate dynamics of consent in different contexts, examining how they may limit people's sexual freedom and stand in the way of genuinely consensual interactions. What templates for sexual interaction do the participants experience and how do they relate to them? What problems, or possibilities, can such templates or scripts create? What happens if one tries to break with them? The chapter engages with theories and research about “sexual scripts”, showing that while sexual interactions may be more or less strongly scripted, there is no such thing as an entirely unscripted sexual interaction, since interaction cannot take place without some form of pre-established expectations about what to take for granted in the interaction. While previous research on sexual scripting has been focused on heterosexual sex, I show that same-sex interactions also tend to be strongly scripted and highlight the intricate processes through which applaudable principles of sexual mutuality may work as a coercive force undermining consent.
