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Publication #FAR1210

 

Online Sexual Solicitation1

Kate Fogarty2

Figure 1. 
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Internet connectivity in the form of blogs, chat rooms, and forums can be hazardous to our teens today. These online communication aids are not themselves the problem; rather, teens face an ever-present threat of being sexually solicited online.

For example, teens may be persuaded to discuss sex with someone, to do something sexual, or disclose personal sexual information. This can happen when an adult initiates a nonsexual relationship with a child or adolescent online, builds trust, and then seduces her or him. Similarly, online seduction can also occur between peers.

Studies find that teens most at risk for being approached sexually online are more likely to be female and between the ages of 14 and 17 years. Teens who are depressed and who have experienced difficult life transitions are especially vulnerable. Also, teens who use the Internet more frequently and who engage in high online risk behavior are more likely to be approached sexually online (Mitchell et al. 2001, Ybarra et al. 2004).

Ways to keep your teen safe online include keeping computers with Internet access in a centralized location in the home, educating your child or preteen about potential dangers and devising ways to handle online solicitation, and setting ground rules for Internet use, such as scheduled times, permissible websites, and limiting online communication to familiar peers. Although there is a big scary cyberworld out there, the family and home can be a safe haven for teens.

Listening, learning, and living together: it's the science of life. "Family Album" is a co-production of University of Florida IFAS Extension, the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, and of WUFT-FM. If you'd like to learn more, please visit our website at http://www.familyalbumradio.org.

To listen to the radio broadcast:

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References

Mitchell, K. J., Finkelhor, D., & Wolak, J. (2001). Risk factors for and impact of online sexual solicitation of youth. Journal of the American Medical Association, 285, 3011-3014.

Ybarra, M., Leaf, P., & Diener-West, M. (2004). Sex differences in youth-reported depressive symptomatology and unwanted internet sexual solicitation. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 6, no pagination specified.

Footnotes

1.

This document is FAR1210, one of a series of the Family Youth and Community Sciences Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Broadcast as program 465 in July 2006. Published on EDIS July 2012. In the interest of time and/or clarity, the broadcast version of this script may have been modified. Visit the EDIS website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

2.

Kate Fogarty, assistant professor, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Nick T. Place, Dean.