Is
Internet Bad for Teen Girls?
A study
shows that teen girls who depict themselves online in a provocative way
and who have a history of child abuse are more likely to receive online
sexual advances. Then they meet those individuals offline. It suggests
parents should know how their teenage girls present themselves online.
Published in the June issue of Pediatrics, the study reveals that 40% of
all 173 teen girls in the study reported experiencing online sexual
advances, and 26% reported meeting someone in person who they first met
online.
"The
importance of parental monitoring of adolescent Internet use cannot be
understated," says Jennie Noll, PhD, a psychologist at Cincinnati
Children's Hospital Medical Center and the study's main author. "This is
particularly important given that 55% of adolescent Internet users have
or are currently using social networking Websites.
Dr.
Noll studied girls between the ages of 14 and 17. Each was asked to
create an avatar -- an electronic image to represent herself -- and
complete a questionnaire regarding her computer and Internet usage,
sexual attitudes and activities, substance use, involvement with peers,
and presence of maternal and paternal caregivers.
The
avatars they created were evaluated based on previously defined
categories spanning a continuum from conservative to provocative,
depending on such factors as bust and hip size, upper body clothing,
lower body clothing and piercings. Those who had depicted themselves as
provocative in terms of body and clothing choices were more likely to
have had online sexual advances.
In
addition to choosing a provocative avatar, other risk factors for online
sexual advances included substance abuse and being preoccupied with sex
and sexual thoughts. Associating with high-risk peers was an additional
risk factor for in-person encounters.
The
presentation of oneself in a provocative manner, however, is not
necessarily limited to Websites that rely on avatars as the primary
interface. For female adolescents in particular, says Dr. Noll,
self-presentations such as a compilation of photographs and narrative
descriptions on networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace might also
increase their vulnerability.
Parents
can play an important role in preventing exposure to online sexual
solicitations, according to Dr. Noll. For example, she says, parents
should emphasize to adolescents ways to ward off sexual advances and
explain to them how virtual self-representations can influence behaviors
and perceptions.
While
its findings were released Tuesday (May 26), the study was supported by
a grant from the National Institutes of Health.
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