A total of 288 students from the University of Valencia belonging to the degrees of Pedagogy (66.7%), Teacher Training in Primary Education (25%) and Teacher Training in Integral Education (8.3%) participated in the surveys analysed. Mainly, degrees aimed at education professionals. The study describes 39.2% of respondents as sexting practitioners. Therefore, it can be very useful to introduce concepts such as sexting in future and new fields of study related to sex education and in relation to the dangers that this practice may entail.

These surveys were conducted in the age group of young adults, aged between 18 and 25 years old. It has been observed that the prevalence of sending one’s own sexual material and its possible consequences, such as cyberbullying or sextortion, is higher in this age group than in the adolescent population, according to the prevalences of similar studies conducted in population between 12 and 16 years old. The information was taken through a battery of previously validated instruments including a Sexting Behaviour Scale, an inventory of social media and applications, and a risk perception scale. All this, reviewed by teachers of the degree in Pedagogy. Thus, data were collected on the frequency of practice, risk perception, or style and motivation of practice, among others.

In addition, 55.8% confess to performing assiduously with their partner, while 44.2% exchange sexual material with third parties, mainly. Although variables such as sex or sexual orientation were assessed, these results were removed from the study as 80.9% of the surveys were conducted on women and 90.6% on people declared heterosexual. These statistical distributions represent major limitations in the sample used in this study.

The study by Enrique García-Tort and Laura Monsalve Lorente, from the Department of Didactics and School Organisation at the University of Valencia and members of the Curriculum, Resources and Educational Institutions research group (CRIE-UV), also shows the significant correlations between the moral assessment of the practice and its risk perception. That is, the better the moral assessment and the lower the perception of risk, the higher the frequency of the practice.

“Although sexting is not a widespread practice among young adults, few have not had any kind of interaction related to this practice. This may be due to the current ubiquity of smartphones and the growth of social media”, is highlighted in the work. However, there is clear evidence of a possible bias in adolescents and young adults when declaring the practice of sexting through questionnaires, as the rate of image reception usually stands out in studies above that of sending.

Article: Monsalve Lorente, L. and García Tort, E. “Prevalencia del sexting en adultos jóvenes universitarios: motivación y percepción del riesgo”. Psychology, Society, & Education, 13(1), 99-114 (2021). DOI: 10.25115/psye.v10i1.3482