We’ve all heard the phrase, “communication is key,” and in intimate and sexual relationships, this line should always be taken with the utmost seriousness.

This is especially true on college campuses, where we unfortunately hear of many ignoring the importance of sexual communication, leading to a disproportionate number of sexually related crimes in university spaces across the country.

Several methods have been discussed and implemented to curb this problem, but modern statistics show that education and the ability to maintain strong, consistent conversations are key to consensual and meaningful relationships.

This can be achieved in several ways, but I believe implementing a more structured sexual communication section in Iowa’s curriculum or requiring first-year and transfer students to take sexual communication classes would most likely help create a more supportive and educated community to reduce sexually related crimes.

According to the National Library of Medicine, “1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men reported experiencing some form of sexual violence during their lifetime, with 19.1 percent of women and 1.5 percent of men experiencing completed or attempted rape.”

This statistic becomes even more alarming when we learn that the same study found that of women who are sexually assaulted, 36.5 percent of reported victims are between the ages of 18 and 24. This highlights the lack of communication and sexual intimacy education that plagues many college campuses nationwide, and it needs to change.

Critics of sexual health training and advocates for celibacy education may claim that talking more about sex and the facets of intimate relationships exacerbates the problem, but recent studies suggest otherwise.

A University of North Carolina-Greensboro study published in the Journal of Advanced Nursing found that having the confidence to engage in important conversations around sex and consent led to tangible results in safer sex practices.

The study claimed, “Communication self-efficacy influences actual communication of safer sex practices, [which] lends support to a major proposition of social cognitive theory — that a person’s confidence in performing a behavior is an important predictor of that behavior.”

A similar study at Barnard College found that strong sexual intimacy and communication courses not only made college campuses safer but also increased the willingness of young men who took these courses to accept sexual assault claims as truthful.

The study also indicated that individuals who completed courses in sexual communication and health were more likely to make educated decisions about their peers’ sexual health and assist those in difficult sexual situations to find safe alternatives.

“A larger follow-up study found that those effects could last up to a year after the intervention, and that they were effective at both a rural and an urban college,” the Barnard College study states.

This illustrates the importance of sexually related conversations with a partner, as well as how sexual health education can particularly benefit young men ages 18 to 24 in building strong sexual relationships built on consent and mutual respect.

Although this success in sexual education can be achieved through short-term training, it is typically more effective when taught throughout the year in a curriculum-based course.

Dr. Sylvia Mikucki-Enyart, an associate professor of communication studies at the University of Iowa, helped develop and teach the class COMM 2030: Sexual Communication in Personal Relationships.

The course focuses on scientific, researched-based evidence to facilitate active discussions about sexual behaviors and the historical context of sexual communication. It also aims to provide students with practical tools for conversations about sex and related issues.

Mickucki-Enyart said sexual communication classes are important for students because they “help dismantle myths and stereotypes and reduce shame students often carry with them about their bodies and sexual relationships.”

She also encourages more students at Iowa to take such classes, arguing that creating dialogue about sexual communication benefits the campus by dispelling rumors and stereotypes about sexual health and behavior.

Iowa currently incorporates sexual health and communication into the Success at Iowa program, a required course for all first-year students. However, students have discussed the downfalls aligning with its asynchronous nature and perceived lack of rigor, which many claim have rendered it irrelevant.

On top of this, the university consistently sees sexual assault cases in residence halls on both the east and west sides of campus throughout the school year, further suggesting the program needs to be revamped.