Family functioning patterns predict teenage girls’ sexting

Abstract

Online exchange of sexual content (“sexting”) is associated with potentially negative consequences, especially for girls. We investigated possible associations between family functioning and girls’ sexting. Italian teenage girls ( N = 250; Mage = 16.36 years; SDage = 1.88) completed online surveys that evaluated family functioning (communication, flexibility, cohesion, disengagement, chaos, enmeshment, and rigidity) and five sexting behaviors: (a) engaging in sexting, (b) sexting with a partner, (c) number of people with whom girls share sexts, (d) nonconsensual forwarding of sexts, and (e) sexting for emotion regulation. We found that engaging in sexting, sexting for emotion regulation, and the number of people with whom girls share sexts were predicted by age and low family communication. Sexting with a partner was predicted by age and high flexibility, and nonconsensual forwarding of sexts was positively predicted by enmeshment.

The Relationship between Dark Triad Personality Traits and Sexting Behaviors among Adolescents and Young Adults across 11 Countries

“…An increasing amount of scholars consider sexting as a normal, even healthy aspect of sexual expression, and part of the repertoire of interpersonal sexual communication relationships (e.g., [ 15 , 20 , 21 ]). This kind of sexting, named experimental sexting, refers to consensual exchange of sexual content for addressing young peoples’ developmental tasks and needs, such as exploring their sexuality and identity [ 22 , 23 ]. Wolak, Finkelhor, and Mitchell [ 19 ] were the first to talk about the concept of experimental sexting, identifying sexting as a new sexual normative behavior related to sexual experimentation that is typical of adolescence and young adulthood, such as sharing own photos for receiving feedback about the adequacy of one’s own body image or for sexual experimentation [ 24 , 25 ].…”

Social-Ecological Examination of Non-Consensual Sexting Perpetration among U.S. Adolescents

“…Our study suggests that positive parental monitoring and involvement in youths’ activities could have a protective effect on sexting perpetration, particularly among LGB adolescents. The effect of parental monitoring could be due to higher supervision of cellphone and internet use among more involved parents which could directly be associated with youths’ use of cellphones for sexting [ 71 ]. Additionally, this finding could be explained by higher adolescent-parent communication and a better family dynamic among LGB students with higher parental monitoring which would support the establishment of clear rules around sexting and other risky behaviors [ 70 ].…”

Is sexting bad for adolescent girls’ psychological well-being? A longitudinal assessment in middle to late adolescence

“…One large-scale cross-sectional study of Croatian adolescents found that parental monitoring significantly predicted levels of sexual experience, sexting, and self-reported sexual aggressiveness in both male and female adolescents (Tomić et al, 2018). Compatible findings were reported in an Italian study of female adolescents, where communication in the family strongly and negatively predicted participants' engaging in sexting (Bianchi, Morelli, Baiocco, Cattelino, et al, 2019).…”