Sexting and Cyberbullying in the Developmental Context

Abstract

The internet and its associated electronic technologies have provoked a considerable wave of worry and anxiety among parents and policy makers worldwide in recent years. But in this discussion a very crucial distinction has not been sufficiently made. It is one thing to say that there are risks online. The research has clearly established the point that such perils exist, from online molesters and bullies, to exposure to problematic content. But where it is easy for people to jump beyond the evidence base is when they assert, not just that there are risks, but that the Internet is a risk-promoting environment or a specially risky environment. They imply that there are features of the Internet that increase risk for young people above what they already encounter or what they encounter in other environments, or what they used to encounter. It is hard to cite any research that as yet supports that notion. Yet, this is the narrative implicit in much of what is being written.Of course, writers generally preface their discussion of risks by talking about the benefits of the Internet, making the point that it has both risks and benefits. But then they go on to describe Internet dynamics that increase risks and that increase the potential for deviance or corruption. (Pellow, 2009) In a phrase, they assert that the Internet is a risk-and social problem "amplifier." So, for example, the contention is, not just that they can encounter sexual exploiters online, but that the Internet makes it more likely that children will be sexually abused because it has made it so easy for molesters to find them.