Construction and Validation of the Intimate Images Diffusion Scale Among Adolescents

Are Youth Sexting Rates Still on the Rise? A Meta-analytic Update

A meta-analysis of 39 studies (110,380 participants) from 2009 to 2015 indicated that youth sexting increased over time. To inform current practice and policy initiatives, this meta-analytic update of studies since 2016 examined if rates of youth sexting have continued to rise and whether youth sexting differs by age, sex, sexting methods, and geographical location. Electronic searches were conducted in March 2020 in Embase, PsycINFO, MEDLINE, and Web of Science, yielding 1,101 nonduplicate records. Studies were included if they provided prevalence of youth sexting and data collection occurred ≥2016. Literature review and data extraction were conducted by following established PRISMA guidelines. All relevant data were extracted by two independent reviewers. To calculate mean prevalence rates, random-effects meta-analyses were conducted. Twenty-eight studies (N = 48,024) met inclusion criteria. The estimated pooled prevalence rates were as follows: (1) sending (19.3%), (2) receiving (34.8%), and (3) forwarding sexts without consent (14.5%). These prevalence rates are statistically similar to studies with data collected before 2016. In recent studies, females receive sexts at a higher rate than males, older youth are more likely to send sexts, and younger and older adolescents receive sexts at similar rates. Youth sexting rates have likely plateaued. Sexting education initiatives should begin early and encourage safe, ethical, and respectful online behavior.

Development and Validation of the Adolescent Sexting Scale (A-SextS) with a Spanish Sample

“Sexting” is generally defined as the exchange of sexual media content via the internet. However, research on this topic has underscored the need to seek greater consensus when considering different conceptual elements that make up this definition. The aim of this study was to develop and validate an instrument for measuring sexting among adolescents, in order to cover a gap identified in the previous literature. The Adolescent Sexting Scale (A-SextS for short) was developed for validation on a sample of 579 Spanish secondary school pupils between the ages of 11 and 18. Evidence for face, content, concurrent, and criterion validity were assessed. A comprehensive set of 64 items, covering six defining characteristics of sexting (e.g., actions, recipient, media format, degree of sexual explicitness), was constructed after conducting an extensive literature review, two discussion groups, and a pilot study. Sexting prevalence rates measured by A-SextS were mostly concurrent with those found in previous studies. A-SextS subscales produced statistically significant positive associations with pornography consumption and physical sexual intercourse. The study shows that A-SextS can be an integrating instrument that facilitates a rigorous and comprehensive assessment of adolescent sexting experiences, as well as the formulation of an operationalized definition of the practice of sexting.

Self-esteem, self-efficacy, self-concept and intimate image diffusion among deaf adolescents: A structural equation model analysis

This study aimed to assess the role of self-esteem, self-efficacy and self-concept on intimate image diffusion among in-school deaf adolescents in Lagos, Nigeria. The theory of planned behaviour served as a framework for the study. Data was collected through structured questionnaire from 276 (male = 39.5%; female = 60.5%) in-school deaf adolescents from five senior secondary (3 integrated and 2 inclusive). Data generated were analysed with IBM SPSS 22 and IBM AMOS 26.0 packages. Mean age of participants was ±16.5, all participants use WhatsApp while 71.7% had Facebook profile. It was observed that all the fit measures of the SEM fell within the acceptable range (χ2 = 104.34, df = 39, χ2/df = 2.67, GFI = 0.92, CFI = 0.91, NFI = 0.93, IFI = 0.91 and RMSEA = 0.54). According to the findings, self-esteem and self-efficacy had a positive and direct relationship with intimate image diffusion while a negative but direct link exists between self-concept and intimate image diffusion among deaf adolescents. Based on the finding, an appropriate recommendation was made.