A new study in the journal Pediatrics found a link between seventh graders sexting (texting sexually explicit language or photographs) and engaging in sexual activity.
Researchers from Brown University surveyed 420 at-risk seventh graders from 2009 to 2012 about sexting and whether they are sexually active. The researchers found that 22% had sexted within the prior six months – 17% sending texts and 5% sending photos. This group was much more likely — from four to seven times as likely — to engage in a wide variety of sexual activities, from “making out” to intercourse.
The researchers concluded that even in middle school “attention should be paid to adolescents’ electronic communication because sexting may be a marker for sexual risk behaviors that can have significant consequences, including pregnancy or disease.”
The researchers also suggest making sexting part of the standard sexual education curriculum.
