What does bathroom graffiti reveal about young adults in China?

ABSTRACT

The creation of graffiti in bathrooms is a common practice in colleges and universities in China and abroad. This private form of expression provides a unique way to understand young adults in contemporary China. The investigators conducted two studies in order to explore this social phenomenon. Study one qualitatively analyzed toilet graffiti from five universities in Central China. Results show: (1) sex, love, and self-exploration are the most common themes in bathroom graffiti; (2) male graffiti was dominated by sex while female graffiti focused on love and sex. Study two investigated the willingness of college students to engage in bathroom graffiti creation. Results show: (1) males were more willing to create pieces about sex, comments on social phenomena, verbal bullying, and teasing than female students; (2) students in year two and three were more willing to create bathroom graffiti than students in year one. Discussion focuses on the possible psychological and cultural influences on the practice of bathroom graffiti.

KEYWORDS:

• Bathroom graffiti
• gender
• sexual behavior
• young adulthood
• Chinese culture

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.