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Adolescents' Interaction in WhatsApp Groups: The Normalisation of Violent Content
Kristel Anciones-Anguita1, Vanesa Pastor-Cerezo1, Paloma Cendejas1
1Universidad de Alcalá, Madrid, Spain.
Journal of Interpersonal Violence
|March 13, 2026
Summary
Spanish teenagers frequently encounter violent digital content in WhatsApp groups, leading to normalization and distress, especially among girls. This highlights risks in unsupervised online spaces and the need for digital literacy education.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Media Studies
Background:
- Adolescent digital media consumption raises concerns about exposure to violent content.
- Peer communication spaces on platforms like WhatsApp facilitate content circulation.
- Understanding the psychosocial impact of this exposure is critical.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how Spanish teenagers interact within WhatsApp groups.
- To explore the dissemination and normalization of violence in these digital peer spaces.
- To identify the psychosocial consequences for adolescents.
Main Methods:
- Data collected from 164 secondary school students (mean age 14.4 years).
- Utilized open-ended questionnaires for data gathering.
- Employed reflexive thematic analysis to interpret experiences with digital content.
Main Results:
- Frequent exposure to explicit physical/sexual violence, hate speech, and self-harm content reported.
- Gender differences observed: boys circulated content more, girls experienced more distress.
- Humor normalized harmful content; lack of adult supervision exacerbated issues.
Conclusions:
- Unregulated digital spaces pose significant risks to adolescent psychosocial development.
- Targeted educational and policy interventions are necessary.
- Promoting empathy, digital literacy, and prosocial values can mitigate harm.
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