Teens with Behavioral Problems, Particularly Girls, More Likely to Sext

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by MedicalXpress.

It’s important that programs promoting safer sexting behaviors consider the specific needs of adolescents with behavioral problems, a new study by McGill University researchers suggests. The research is published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior.

Adolescents with behavioral problems engage in elevated levels of sexting compared with their peers without such problems. While this is the case both for male and female teens, the researchers found, the link was stronger for the young women.

The researchers also found that girls who exhibited behavioral problems as children engage in elevated levels of sexting as adolescents. For boys, however, behavioral problems in childhood are not a predictor of future adolescent sexting, their study indicates.

The researchers urge educators, parents and mental health professionals to have open, non-judgmental dialogues with youth to help guide and support them through the complexities of human interactions in the digital age. The study contributes information about which youth might be at greater risk.

“They must recognize and support youth who may be particularly vulnerable to experiencing sexual victimization, such as girls with conduct problems,” said Audrey Mariamo, the study’s first author and Ph.D. student in Educational and Counselling Psychology under the supervision of Temcheff.

Source: MedicalXpress
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-06-teens-behavioral-problems-girls-sext.html