From scandals involving high profile politicians to tragic cases of cyberbullying, ‘sexting’ has been in the news a lot these days. Defined by the RCMP as “sending or receiving sexually explicit or sexually suggestive nude or semi-nude images or video,” sexting now has a pretty bad rap, with much of the media focusing on its dangers and consequences— particularly among teens.
According to the RCMP website, while teens initially send these sexually explicit images of themselves to romantic partners or interests, the danger lies in that these images can easily end up in the wrong hands. Countless cases of cyberbullying have emerged in recent years in which sexually explicit images initially intended for one recipient are shared via social networks, spurring harassment and unwanted attention. Take the case of Jessica Logan, who committed suicide after her ex-boyfriend circulated among his friends a nude picture of her she had sent him while they were dating.
The possession of sexually explicit pictures of children, of course, can have severe legal consequences: A recent article in The Guardian describes how in South Australia, charges of child pornography among children and teens have increased exponentially in recent years due to the emergence of sexting, from 15 per year in 2009 now to 44. This trend is a serious concern given that being charged with child pornography can drastically change the course of one’s life.
But while there are clearly potential dangers to sexting, is it possible that our fears are overblown?
Many say yes and that in reality the consequences of sexting are more neutral. Researchers at the University of Michigan recently surveyed 3,447 men and women between the ages of 18 to 24 and found that the majority (57%) did not engage in sexting. Of those who did engage in sexting, the majority engaged in two-way sexting and that these two-way sexters were more likely to be sexually-active than not—suggesting that sexting usually occurs within the context of a relationship. These findings mirrored those gathered by another study, which also found that those in a relationship tended to have more positive experiences of sexting compared to those who were single. The study also found that women had less positive reactions to sexting than men.
It appears then that whether sexting is harmful or not depends to a great degree on contextual factors—such as age, gender, and relationship status—and that more research needs to be done before we can make sweeping conclusions. If you’re curious about this topic and want to learn more, UTP Journals has some great articles you can check out. In “Sexting and the Law in Canada” from The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality 22.3, Andrea Slane discusses the current state of Canadian legal approaches to sexting and the conceptual difficulties associated with developing appropriate legal responses to it. In “The Gendered Dimensions of Sexting: Assessing the Applicability of Canada’s Child Pornography Provision” from Canadian Journal of Women and the Law 23.2, Jane Bailey and Mouna Hanna discuss the serious negative consequences of sexting among teens and the complications of applying child pornography laws to teens—most often whom are girls.
What are your views on sexting? Tweet us your thoughts at @utpjournals.
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