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Emotionally Tough, Sexting Rough: Relationship Between Callous Unemotional Traits and Aggravated Sexting in 11
Mara Morelli1, Fau Rosati1, Elena Cattelino2
1Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.
Background:
Sexting is now widely acknowledged as a common sexual behavior among adolescents and young adults. However, the occurrence of abusive interactions, such as non-consensual sexting, warrants attention. Prevalence rates of non-consensual sexting vary between countries, influenced by gender and age. The present study examined the relationship between three facets of callous-unemotional (CU) traits (i.e., callousness, uncaring, and unemotional) and the sharing of non-consensual sexts across different relationship contexts (i.e., acquaintances, strangers, or partners).
Method:
Data were drawn from a cross-countries project encompassing 11 countries: Belgium, China, Czech Republic, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Turkey, Uganda, and the USA. The sample comprised 6093 young adults (3682 girls; 2401 boys), aged 13 to 30 (M=20.35; SD=3.63).
Results:
Results from a logistic mixed-model indicate that CU traits predict non-consensual sexting, with high callousness and uncaring, and low unemotional traits associated with non-consensual sexting involving partners and strangers. Younger individuals and women were more likely to engage in all forms of non-consensual sexting compared to older individuals and men.
Conclusions:
It is important to promote sexual education programs to increase emotional self-awareness and challenge gender stereotypes in order to reduce adverse outcomes associated with sexting.
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