Parent-Child Sex Communication Prompts, Approaches, Reactions, and Functions According to Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Sons

Minimal research on parent-child sex communication between parents and gay, bisexual, and queer (GBQ) adolescent sons prevents the formulation of interventions that would buffer or brake this youth population’s risks for HIV/STI. We sought to describe the perspectives of GBQ adolescent males on this process and the potential ways they think parents can address their sons’ informational needs, including countering youth access of sexually explicit media. We conducted 30 semi-structured interviews with GBQ male youth aged 15–20 years. Thematic and content analysis revealed four central themes: prompts and triggers, parents’ approaches, sons’ reactions, and the functions assigned to sex communication. Parents can be sources of reliable sexual health information and may be leveraged for future HIV/STI risk reduction work.

Qualification of child sexting, sextorsion and online grooming

Some characteristics of actus reus of Art. 3011 and of Art. 1561 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine are analyzed. The characteristics of sexting and sextorsion, the subject matter of which is child pornography, and online grooming are revealed. If the participant in the child sexting is an adult who received from the child through a means of communication its image in a sexually explicit manner, his actions must be assessed as the production of child pornography (part 3 of Art. 3011 of the Criminal Code) and its storage (part 1 or 2 of Art. 3011 of the Criminal Code depending on the absence or presence of the purpose of selling or distribution). In this case, the adult participant in the sexting uses a child who photographs or shoots himself in a sexually explicit manner as a «tool» for the production of child pornography. If the participant in the child sexting is a minor (who has reached the age of 16), the responsibility for such acts arises only if he has the purpose of selling or distribution child pornography. If an adult participant in sexting has the purpose to obtain an image of a child in a sexually explicit manner and then threatens to sell or distribute it in order to obtain new such images, then there is a sextorsion that should be qualified as the production of child pornography (part 3 of Art. 3011 of the Criminal Code), the storage of child pornography with the purpose of selling or distribution (part 2 of Art. 3011 of the Criminal Code) and forcing a minor under-18s or under-14s to participate in the creation of child pornography (part 3 or 4 of Art. 3011 of the Criminal Code). If the purpose of the sextorsion is to meet with the child online or in real life to commit any sexual or lewd acts with him or to involve the child in the production of child pornography, such sextorsion should be qualified as the production of child pornography (part 3 of Art. 3011 of the Criminal Code), the storage of child pornography with the purpose of selling or distribution (part 2 of Art. 3011 of the Criminal Code) and depending on the stage of the sextorsion: or as preparation for harassment of a child for sexual purposes, or as an attempt to commit a criminal offense, or as a completed harassment (Art. 1561 of the Criminal Code). Building a trusting relationship by adult with a child on the Internet for a future meeting with the purpose to committing any sexual or lewd acts against him or involving him in the production of child pornography constitutes online grooming and should qualify as preparation for harassment of a child for sexual purposes. Key words: child pornography, sexting, sextorsion, online grooming.

Gender Differences in How Parents, Peers, and Exposure to Sexually Explicit Materials Influence the Intention to Engage in Casual Sex among Adolescents and Young Adults in Taiwan: Applying the Theory of Planned Behavior

The aims of this study were to examine gender differences in how parent–child discussions on sex issues, peer interactions around sexual issues, and exposure to sexually explicit materials affect the intention to engage in casual sex among adolescents and young adults in Taiwan. This cross-sectional survey study recruited 767 participants (348 men and 419 women) aged 15–24 years. The survey collected data on participants’ intention to engage in casual sex, their attitude toward and perception of casual sex based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) (favorable attitude, perceiving positive social norms toward casual sex, and perceived control over involvement), parent–child and peer discussions about sexual issues, and exposure to sexually explicit materials. The results of multiple regression analysis revealed that parent–child discussions on sex issues, peer interactions around sexual issues, and exposure to sexually explicit materials were significantly associated with the intention to engage in casual sex. The results of structural equation modeling (SEM) further supported that favorable attitude, perceiving positive social norms toward casual sex, and control over involvement mediated the associations. For men, decreased favorable attitude mediated the negative association between parent–child discussions and casual sex intention; increased favorable attitudes and decreased control over involvement mediated the positive associations between peer interactions and casual sex intention. For women, decreased control over involvement mediated the positive association between exposure to sexually explicit materials and casual sex intention. The associations between peer interaction and subjective norms of acceptance, perceived control over involvement, and casual sex intention were stronger in men than in women; the association of favorable attitudes with casual sex intention was also stronger in men than in women.

Regulating and representing camming: Strict limits on acceptable content on webcam sex platforms

This article analyses the discursive construction of the limits of webcamming in terms of service agreements by BongaCams, LiveJasmin and Chaturbate, three of the world’s most popular webcam sex platforms. Through this analysis, the moderation practices in the webcamming industry are examined. Regulation of sexual platforms and its implications for representations of online sex work are still largely unclear. Through a critical discourse analysis of seven webcam platform terms of service documents, this article scrutinises the norms for camming as dictated by industry leading platforms. This analysis shows that these platforms, for legal and financial reasons, reject the idea of camming as sexually explicit or as (sex) work. Such a construction of camming limits sexual expression online, obstructs online sex workers’ labour rights and perpetuates sex work stigma. This article sheds light on how digital platforms can establish and maintain norms which regulate users’ online expressions, working conditions and representations.

Gender differences in videoed accounts of victim blaming for revenge porn for self-taken and stealth-taken sexually explicit images and videos

Using video recounts from revenge porn victims, this study explores whether levels of victim blaming differs for the sharing of self- and stealth-taken sexually explicit images and videos. Building on previous work which has demonstrated victim blame for both self- and stealth generated images in occurrences of revenge porn (Zvi & Schechory-Bitton, 2020), the reported study presents an original and ecologically valid methodological approach whereby 342 (76 male, 266 female) participants (Mage = 39.27, SD = 11.70) from the UK watched videoed accounts of real experiences of falling victim to revenge porn, rather than using text based, often fictional, vignettes to attribute blame which dominate studies in this area. All data was collected in 2019. The results demonstrated that significantly more blame was assigned to victims when participants were indirectly rather than directly asked who was to blame for the occurrence of revenge porn, supporting the notion of an unconscious processing bias in attributing blame. More blame was also assigned to those victims who themselves generated the material compared to when it had been acquired without their awareness by a perpetrator, suggesting the cognitive bias to be in line with a just world hypothesis. Male participants were more likely to blame a victim than were female participants, although sex of victim and mode of shared sexually-explicit material (video or image) did not appear to affect levels of victim-blame. Findings are considered in terms of extant research and the need for future work in the area of victim blame and revenge pornography.

Relationships between Coerced Sexting and Differentiation of Self: An Exploration of Protective Factors

Pressure to send sexually explicit messages, or ‘sexting coercion’ is associated with adverse mental health outcomes and sexual risk behaviors. This study explores Differentiation of Self (DoS) as a potential protective factor to reduce susceptibility to sexting coercion. A convenience sample of 399 Australian participants, aged 18 to 21 years (Mage = 19.63; SD = 1.14, 68.2% women) completed an online survey measuring sexting behaviors and DoS. Women were four times more likely to send willing unwanted sexts, and seven times more likely to engage in coerced unwanted sexting than men. Participants with low DoS were four times more likely to engage in coerced unwanted sexting. DoS significantly mediated the relationship between gender and coerced unwanted sexting. Results support the proposal of a sexting coercion typology encompassing discrete sub-types of sexting coercion. Results also indicate DoS may operate as a protective factor for young people in Australia, reducing compliance with sexting when coerced.

Trends in Internet Safety Education by Healthcare Providers

Introduction. The purpose of this study was to explore healthcare provider training, comfort, and provision of internet safety counseling. Prior research has demonstrated increased parental concern regarding the pervasive access to the internet by children, including the potential impacts of risky internet behavior and adverse media exposure. Methods. A self-reported survey was provided to a convenience sample of 31 healthcare providers during a mental health training seminar. Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results. Internet safety counseling, especially regarding risky online behavior, was not a focal point of provider-patient interaction in the sample population. This finding was reinforced with more than half of the respondents indicating that they infrequently or never provide internet safety counseling (n = 17, 56%). While research has placed an emphasis on the importance of discussing the risks of exposure to violence, drugs, and sexually explicit media online, this study found that the topics most often discussed were setting time limits (77%), limiting access to media devices (67%), and supervising internet use (50%). This may be due in part to the fact that most respondents (n = 17, 57%) reported never receiving training on internet safety counseling. Conclusions. Overall, significant deficits were identified in internet safety counseling training for professionals and provision of education for families. These finding were inconsistent with the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations around media use counseling and a point of urgent concern given the increasing time spent on media devices, particularly during the COVID pandemic.