Peer attachment, sexual experiences, and risky online behaviors as predictors of sexting behaviors among undergraduate students

Sexting and risky sexual behaviours among undergraduate students in Botswana: An exploratory study

“…This result is supported by the study of Currin et al (2016) where condomless sex was also not associated with sexting behaviors. However, the result was in contrast to findings by Benotsch et al (2013) and Crimmins & Seigfried-Spellar (2014) which had confirmed a relationship between sexting and unprotected sex. More in-depth research is required to explore whether and how sexting leads to unprotected sex or vice versa.…”

“…One of the conclusive findings is that young people who engage in sexting were more likely to be sexually active (i.e., engaging in vaginal, anal, or oral sex) than those who were not sexting (Klettke et al, 2014). Studies of the relationship between sexting and risky sexual behaviours have found that sexting was associated with condomless sex (Benotsch et al, 2013;Crimmins & Seigfried-Spellar, 2014;Ferguson, 2011), multiple sexual partners (Benotsch et al, 2013, Dake, Price, Mazriaz, & Ward, 2012Dir, Cyders, & Coskunpinar, 2013), and the use of alcohol and illicit drugs (Benotsch et al, 2013;Dake et al, 2012), which may increase the likelihood of risky sexual behaviours. Some studies, however, did not find a relationship between sexting and sexually risky behaviours (Currin et al, 2016;Gordon-Messer et al, 2013).…”

Cyber safety for adolescent girls

“…Predictors of risk of harm from receiving sexts are being younger, women, and scoring higher on psychological difficulties and lower on sensation seeking. Other predictors of involvement in sexting are being sexually active [35,37,38], involvement in alcohol and drug use [35,39], having unprotected sex [40,41], engaging in web-based chatting with strangers and viewing adult pornography [41], and personality variables of neuroticism and low agreeableness [42], whereas in women anxious attachment in closer relationships has been associated with consenting to unwanted involvement, often to avoid an argument [43]. There is less research specifically on the impact of sexting on victims, separate from the broader topic of cyberbullying.…”

Online erotica usage as a mediator between internet addiction and engagement in risky online sexual behaviors

“…In fact, a growing body of research now exists examining the ways in which Internet use and addiction relates to Internet sexuality, which includes a variety of behaviors, such as consumption of pornography, visiting online sex chat rooms, and even meeting online partners for offline sexual contact (e.g., Döring, 2009;Griffiths, 2001;Jones & Hertlein, 2012;Judge & Saleh, 2013;Pratarelli & Browne, 2002;Young, 2008). In a separate body of work, researchers have investigated the associations between sexting (i.e., the transmission of sexual material via technological devices) and risky offline sexual behavior among adults (e.g., Benotsch, Snipes, Martin, & Bull, 2013;Crimmins & Seigfried-Spellar, 2014;Dir, Cyders, & Coskunpinar, 2013;Drouin, 2015;Ferguson, 2011;Gordon-Messer, Bauermeister, Grodzinski, & Zimmerman, 2013;Klettke, Hallford, & Mellor, 2014). These studies have produced mixed results, but generally they have found that sexting is related to a variety of offline, risky sexual behaviors, including sex with multiple partners, unprotected sex, and sex while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.…”

“…These studies have produced mixed results, but generally they have found that sexting is related to a variety of offline, risky sexual behaviors, including sex with multiple partners, unprotected sex, and sex while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. In their recent study, Crimmins and Seigfried-Spellar (2014) combined the themes of online sexual activities and sexting and found that using the Internet to engage in webbased chat with strangers and using adult pornography was predictive of sending a seminude or nude photo or video via text. In this study, we sought to extend this line of inquiry by examining the extent to which Internet addiction was associated with online sexual activities (in this case, use of pornography and sexual chat sites) and risky sexual behaviors among adults, including the sending of sexually-explicit photos to online-only chat partners and expectations of sex with online-only chat partners.…”