More than half of American teens have been asked to send a "sext," based on data from 948 high school students. The findings were published online July 2 in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
Sexting, the sending of explicit electronic messages, may predict real-life sexual behavior in teenagers, the study investigators wrote. Although teen sexting has received much media attention, data on the public health implications of this behavior are limited, the researchers said.
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Sexting, the sending of explicit electronic messages, may predict real-life sexual behavior in teenagers.
To determine the prevalence of teen sexting and how it relates to dating and sexual activity, Jeff R. Temple, Ph.D., of the University of Texas, Galveston, and his colleagues surveyed high school students from seven public high schools in Texas (Arch. Pediatr. Adolesc. Med. 2012; July 2 [doi: 10.1001/archpediatrics.2012.835]).
Overall, 28% of the teens reported sending a naked picture of themselves via text or e-mail (a "sext"), and 31% reported asking someone to send them a sext. Approximately 28% of both genders reported sending a sext, but significantly more girls than boys reported having been asked for a sext (69% vs. 42%) and significantly more boys than girls reported having asked someone for a sext (46% vs. 21%).
"Among girls, there was a significant association between all sexting behaviors and all dating, sex, and risky sex behaviors," the researchers said. Of the girls who reported sending a sext, 77% also reported having sex, compared with 42% of girls who did not report sending a sext. In addition, 96% of girls who said that they weren’t bothered by being asked for a sext reported having had sex, compared with 45%-71% of girls who said they were at least somewhat bothered by being asked for a sext.
Among boys, 82% of those who reported sending a sext also reported having sex, compared with 45% of boys who did not report sending a sext. In addition, 76% of boys who reported being asked for a sext also reported having sex, compared with 38% of boys who had not been asked for a sext.
Overall, "teens who engaged in sexting behaviors were more likely to have begun dating and to have had sex than those who did not sext," Dr. Temple and his associates wrote.
Despite the associations between sexting and sexual activity, however, "we found that teens are genuinely bothered by being asked to send a naked picture," the researchers said. Fewer than 10% of girls and 50% of boys were "not at all bothered" by a request for a sext, they said, but future research should be more clear about whether "bothered" means "annoyed" or "embarrassed," they said.
The students surveyed were 14-19 years of age and were in 10th or 11th grade. Approximately 56% were girls, 27% were black, 30% were white, 32% were Hispanic, 3% were Asian, and 8% were of mixed/other race. The study was conducted during school hours, and students received $10 gift cards for participating.
The study was limited by the use of self-reports and by the lack of data on whether risky sex behaviors occurred before or after sexting, but the study is the first to show a link between sexting and sexual behavior in a diverse, school-based sample of teens. "These findings reinforce calls by the American Academy of Pediatrics to discuss teen sexting with patients and patients’ parents," they noted.
In an accompanying editorial, Dr. Megan A. Moreno and Jennifer M. Whitehill, Ph.D., wrote that "sexting appears to be a media expression of adolescent sexual intent or behavior, rather than a distinct phenomenon limited to the digital world" (Arch. Pediatr. Adolesc. Med. 2012; July 2 [doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2012.1320]).
The current study findings suggest that clinicians "may consider sexual disclosures in a social media setting as an expression of adolescents’ offline sexual intentions or behaviors," said Dr. Moreno of the department of pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and Dr. Whitehill of the department of pediatrics at the University of Washington, Seattle.
Social media present unique challenges to those concerned with teen health because of the large amounts of time, largely unsupervised, that teens spend using social media. The social media, however, also can be an entry for clinicians and parents to talk to teens about sexual health and a tool for education and prevention efforts, they added.
Dr. Temple and his associates did not report any financial conflicts. Neither Dr. Moreno nor Dr. Whitehill had any financial conflicts to disclose.