Young People’s Perceptions of Technology-Facilitated Coercive Control: The Role of Behavioural Frequency, Impact on the Victim and Participant Gender

As digital technologies have been increasingly integrated into everyday life, there has been accompanying evidence of their misuse by individuals engaging in coercive control. Although numerous studies have explored the prevalence of technology-facilitated coercive control (TFCC) in young people's relationships, comparatively little attention has been devoted to how these behaviours are perceived and interpreted. Employing a factorial survey design with 1,010 participants in Australia aged 16 to 25, this study investigated how individual and situational factors shape young people's perceptions of four hypothetical dating scenarios involving TFCC: (a) digital sexual coercion, (b) digital humiliation, (c) digital monitoring and (d) digital harassment and threats. Results indicate that behaviours were perceived as more harmful and less acceptable when they occurred frequently and had a negative impact on the victim. Adjusted associations between gender and perceptions emerged, with young men rating digital sexual coercion and humiliation as less harmful than young women and gender diverse participants. Open-ended responses revealed that young men often justified or minimised these behaviours. Qualitative data further highlighted the role of motive and meaning in shaping participants' interpretations of TFCC behaviours. Overall, the findings underscore the importance of contextual and individual factors in shaping perceptions of TFCC. Implications for TFCC measurement and prevention strategies are discussed.