Abstract
Sexting consists in sending and sharing sexual images, videos, or messages using smartphones and social networks. According to the literature, sexting is related to the level of self-esteem and social media’s infl uence. This study investigates sexually risky behaviours and the main motivations for sexting and compares differences in self-esteem and social media infl uence, involving a sample of Italian girls (– years old). The sample is divided into three groups according to their attitude towards sexting behaviour (non-sexters, occasional, and frequent), based on the score of the Sexting Behaviours Scale. The participants fi lled out the Questionnaire on Health and Sexual Behaviour (sexual risky behaviours and main motivations for sexting); the Multidimensional Self-Concept Scale (self-esteem) and the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire- (the infl uence of society and the media on body perception and self-image). Our results show that most participants use sexting within the couple and have a responsible attitude towards sexuality and low sexual risks. Moreover, frequent sexters present higher levels of social media infl uence related to the internalization of the body, beauty and athletic model, and a lower level of global, academic, and competence self-esteem. These data could be useful for policy programs on social media use and sexting.
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