The results of a study on sexting with teens appeared in the Journal Pediatrics in January 2012, and it offered some encouragement for us worried parents.
You can view the entire study here.
Basically, it found that there is definitely a line forming between teens who send images that are suggestive, and images that are blatantly sexual.
Of the 1,560 internet users surveyed in this research, which included adolescents between the ages of 10 and 17, 9.6 percent admitted to sending "sexually suggestive" images.
Whoa, you say, that's a lot but read on.
One percent surveyed admitted to sending images that would violate child pornography laws.
Any number in that regard is too high, but knowing only 1 in 100 teens are sending potentially damaging (and criminal) images may mean that parents, teachers, community leaders, and advertisement campaigns are getting through about the dangers of sexting.
The authors of the study urge we still need to do more. Quite clearly, for a small minority, it is not sinking in.
This very subject was the focus of a parenting blog two years ago. You can find that here.
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