Sharing social media logins. Kissing and touching. Sharing your location. Going on a date with someone new. Being told what to wear (or not to wear). What’s OK and not OK when it comes to setting boundaries in a relationship?
Navigating relationships can be tricky, and new data released today shows more than a quarter of surveyed 14–20-year-olds are confusing controlling behaviours such as forcing physical touch out of love in a relationship as a ‘healthy boundary.’
The data also found only 22% of surveyed young people feel completely confident to take action when they are uncomfortable, feel unsafe or disrespected in a relationship - signaling a greater need for support.
These findings are part of The Line campaign’s latest initiative ‘Comfort Zone', funded by the Australian Department of Social Services. The initiative is designed to empower young Australians to recognise controlling behaviours and communicate healthy boundaries through an interactive game that helps them explore what feels right in relationships of all kinds — with friends, partners, family, and more.
The initiative is backed by Heartbreak High actors Bryn Chapman Parish (Spider) and Sherry-Lee Watson (Missy), TikTok content creators Taz and Alessia (900k+ followers).
“I’d love for young people to gain an understanding of what boundaries are earlier in their life than I did. I went through my teens and most of my 20’s having completely porous boundaries, people pleasing over my own needs and priorities,” Bryn Chapman Parish.
“Respecting other people’s boundaries is a learned behaviour and that if you make a mistake, you’re allowed to apologise and change the way you approach things. This will often lead to you growing into a well-rounded and respected person,” Sherry Lee Watson.
“Boundaries are so foundational to every relationship to the point that if a boundary continues to be crossed, the friendship usually breaks down quickly. Setting boundaries means you care. It’s saying, “hey, I want you to be in my life for a long time,” Taz and Alessia.
The initiative includes a new interactive TikTok filter that encourages users to reflect on boundaries in a fun, engaging and shareable way.
The campaign research also found young people are struggling to understand consent, with over half (54%) of surveyed young people believing that ‘if a guy wants to have sex with a girl, it’s up to the girl to make it very clear she doesn’t want to.’
Our Watch CEO Patty Kinnersly said that most young people want to do the right thing, but they need the proper tools and support.
“Healthy relationships start with healthy boundaries. By helping young people know what’s OK and not OK, they can navigate relationships knowing where their ‘comfort zone’ is and what to do if something doesn’t feel right for them,” Ms Kinnersly said.
Visit Comfort Zone for practical tips and advice on healthy boundaries and recognising controlling behaviours.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Social Services, the Hon Tanya Plibersek MP:
“We want our kids to grow up understanding what healthy relationships look like, and to be able to talk to each other about it.
“Young people are inundated with unhealthy and even dangerous information, especially online. We have to combat that, to change behaviours at the start before they lead to coercive or violent situations. It’s great to see people they trust using their voice and platforms to help shape this discussion and challenge concerning behaviours.
“To end domestic and family violence we need to invest in the frontline services that help people and keep them safe, but we also need to stop the behaviours that lead to it. That’s why the Albanese Labor Government is investing a record $4 billion in initiatives including prevention, early intervention, response, and recovery.”
Quotes attributable to Assistant Minister for Social Services and Assistant Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence, the Hon Ged Kearney MP:
“It’s critical that we focus not just on reacting to violence but preventing it. We know violence often comes after a gradual escalation of boundary breaking and coercion - it’s so critical we teach our young people these early signs of an unhealthy relationship.
“He’s being mean to you because he likes you,” “He’s just being protective.” These are things all of us hear since girlhood. It’s deeply unsettling yet unsurprising that so many young people still don’t know the difference between healthy and unhealthy boundaries.
“Women have always been told that boundary breaking, coercion and abuse are individual issues to resolve. They’re not. The Albanese Labor Government takes all forms of abuse very seriously and has a large role to play in stamping it out across all government systems and all parts of society.”
- More than a quarter of young people confuse controlling behaviours as signs of healthy boundaries (27% thought being told you cannot walk away from an argument was a healthy boundary, and 29% thought forcing physical touch out of love was a healthy boundary).
- A third of young people misidentified unhealthy relationship behaviours as healthy (for example, 31% identified ‘I have a right to know where my partner is most of the time’ as a healthy relationship behaviour, and 27% identified ‘it’s okay to be jealous because it means I care about my partner’ as a healthy relationship behaviour).
- 49% of young men aged 14-17 are unsure, or don’t know what makes a relationship healthy.
About Our Watch/The Line
Our Watch is Australia’s leading organisation for the prevention of violence against women. The Line is a behaviour change campaign that exists to help young people, especially young men aged 14-20, to understand what’s ok and what’s not when it comes to sex, dating and relationships.
The campaign is active on social media and has a dedicated website featuring articles covering everything from how to handle rejection to why it’s important for men to show their emotions.
TikTok | Instagram | YouTube| SnapChat
Background on the research, The Line, 2025
The research involved a nationally representative online survey of 1,000 young people aged 14–20 across Australia. Quotas and weighting were applied to ensure balanced representation by age, gender and location. The survey explored young people’s self-reported understanding, confidence and behaviours in relation to boundaries, consent and respectful relationships.
The project was conducted in accordance with the Market Research International Standard, ISO 20252. Ethical approval for the research was granted by a Bellberry Limited Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC).
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Media Contact
Please contact [email protected] or 0448 844 930.
*If you cover this story, or any story regarding violence against women and children,
please include the following tagline:
If you or someone you know is experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, domestic, family or sexual violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, chat online via www.1800RESPECT.org.au, or text 0458 737 732.
To access guides for reporting about violence against women and their children, visit Media Making Change.
Key Facts:
- More than a quarter of young people confuse controlling behaviours as signs of healthy boundaries (27% thought being told you cannot walk away from an argument was a healthy boundary, and 29% thought forcing physical touch out of love was a healthy boundary).
- A third of young people misidentified unhealthy relationship behaviours as healthy (for example, 31% identified ‘I have a right to know where my partner is most of the time’ as a healthy relationship behaviour, and 27% identified ‘it’s okay to be jealous because it means I care about my partner’ as a healthy relationship behaviour).
- 49% of young men aged 14-17 are unsure, or don’t know what makes a relationship healthy.
About us:
About Our Watch/The Line
Our Watch is Australia’s leading organisation for the prevention of violence against women. The Line is a behaviour change campaign that exists to help young people, especially young men aged 14-20, to understand what’s ok and what’s not when it comes to sex, dating and relationships.
The campaign is active on social media and has a dedicated website featuring articles covering everything from how to handle rejection to why it’s important for men to show their emotions.
TikTok | Instagram | YouTube| SnapChat
Contact details:
Media Contact
Please contact [email protected] or 0448 844 930.
*If you cover this story, or any story regarding violence against women and children,
please include the following tagline:
If you or someone you know is experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, domestic, family or sexual violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, chat online via www.1800RESPECT.org.au, or text 0458 737 732.
To access guides for reporting about violence against women and their children, visit Media Making Change.
