Who are These Girls Involved in Sexting?

• In Event: Technology, Social Media, and Surveillance of Youth

Abstract

Sexting has been defined as ‘the creating, sharing and forwarding of sexually suggestive nude or nearly nude images’ (Lenhart, 2009). Two different forms of sexting must be distinguished (Robitaille-Froidure, 2014). While primary sexting refers to the private action of sending naked pictures or videos of oneself, secondary sexting refers to the transfer of this material by someone who received it. In Canada, the intimate partner exception protects people who are sexting in a private context (primary sexting), even if the material produced could be considered juvenile pornography. However, secondary sexting is illegal. Since this phenomenon is new, few studies have been conducted, particularly concerning the implication of girls in secondary sexting. The aim of the present study is to determine the contexts in which girls engage in secondary sexting. Our study is based on a police database that includes information on all the girls who were charged with at least one offense involving child pornography in the province of Quebec in Canada between 1991 and 2004 (n=27) and the file cases of 18 of these girls. Our study depicts a thorough picture of girls producing or distributing sexting material.

Authors

• Marion Desfachelles, Université de Montréal

• Francis Fortin, Université de Montréal