Gender Differences in Sexting Behavior of College Students

A new study by researchers at the University of Utah finds continuing widespread use of sexting by teens and young adults. The survey of 1,130 undergraduate college students found that 20 percent of the students had sent nude photographs of themselves to someone from their cellphones. Some 38 percent of the students surveyed said that they had received such photographs.

The study found significant differences in the sexting practices of young men and young women. While the percentage of men and women who had sent sext messages was similar, men were far more likely than women to have received nude photographs on their cellphones. Nearly half of young men in the survey reported having received a sext message compared to 32.1 percent of young women. The difference may be due to the fact that men reported that they were far more likely than women to forward sext messages that they had received.

Women reported that 83 percent of all their sext messages went to their boyfriend. But men reported that only 55 percent of their sext messages went to their girlfriend. Men were far more likely than women to send explicit photos as a flirting mechanism to people they did not know well.

The study was published on the website of the journal Computers in Human Behavior. The article may be accessed here.