A recent study contradicts the notion that teenagers are “sexting” non-stop. In fact, only 9.6 percent said they had either sent or received an image that included nudity in the past year, according to the New York Times.

The survey, conducted by the Crimes Against Children Research Center (CACRC) at the University of New Hampshire, asked 1,560 children across the country about the messages they had seen, sent, and forwarded on their cell phones. Only two percent of “sexters” said they were in the pictures themselves, and the other seven percent said they were on the receiving end, and only three percent forwarded messages they received.

According to Lisa Jones at the CACRC, the researchers were not surprised by the results. She said previous studies about sexting often included 18, 19 and 20 year-olds, and while the behavior is still risky, there are no legal concerns about child pornography in this demographic. Additionally, many previous studies used a broad definition of nudity, and might have included pictures of children in bathing suits. However, law enforcement would not consider “sexy poses in bathing suits” to be sexually explicit.

Jones said that most youth are aware that sexting is potentially dangerous. However, in one third of the cases when it happens, drugs and alcohol are involved. “Sexting is like any kind of sexual risk taking, there is an element of something possibly going wrong. But it may be happening in a context where other kinds of risk taking are happening,” said Jones.

The CACRC also did a study that specifically looked at the sexting incidents that involved law enforcement agencies. They found that one-third of all sexting incidents that are brought to the police involve adult sex offenders soliciting images from children. “In a lot of the incidents that are largely publicized, the most serious element is bullying, it’s more serious than the photo itself,” said Jones.

The following story was originally published on LA Youth.

By Yuri Kim

When I got my driver’s license last September I was really excited. Even though for the first year you have your license, you’re not allowed to have passengers under the age of 20, I ignored the rules and went everywhere with my friends—the mall, restaurants, coffee shops and the beach. My mom warned me that if I got in an accident, she would take my car away. I promised her that I would be careful. But I didn’t listen. Since everyone I knew, even my parents and friends, texted while driving, I didn’t think it was dangerous. I texted whenever I was at stop signs or red lights because I thought it was safe.

A few days before Halloween, I was rushing from store to store to find my butterfly costume. My friends were constantly texting me, asking what I was going to wear and where I was shopping. I stopped at a stop sign to reply to my friend’s text, “Where u at?” I texted back, “On my way home, where you at?” After I sent the message, I looked left and right to make sure that no one was there. As I was about to go, I heard my message ringtone and I looked down to read her reply, “What time are we meeting up?” As I was replying to that text, I pushed on the gas, assuming that no one was there since I had checked a few seconds before. Still looking at my phone, I drove through the intersection and boom! I hit a red Mustang.

Both cars were damaged

We both pulled over and got out of our cars. Thankfully, no one was injured and no passengers were in our cars. The right front side of my car was dented and my bumper was starting to fall off. The left side of his car was dented. I started crying, thinking that this was the end of my driving days. Even though he hadn’t stopped at the stop sign, I felt as if it was my fault because I was texting while driving.

His face was bright red and he kept asking, “What were you thinking?” and “How old are you?” I was scared so I called my mom and told her I was in an accident. She asked me what happened and if I was hurt. She told me not to do anything until she got there and not to apologize.

Teenagers who choose to continue their sexting extravaganza no longer have to worry about going to jail for it—well, at least in New Jersey. Teens who get caught sexting for the first time are no longer in danger of having a criminal record. Criminal records can prevent young people from getting jobs and even going to college. Instead, teens who are caught sexting will have to complete a diversionary program that the attorney’s general office will develop.

According to NBC, GOP Assemblyman Jon Bramnick spoke in favor of the legislation, saying it was a good bill that "Sends a clear signal to the Judiciary that when young people make a mistake, this Legislature is saying, 'give them a chance, give them an option other than a criminal past.'"

The court will decide who is eligible for the diversionary program.

By Denise Tejada

New Jersey kids who are caught "sexting" for the first time won’t be charged as sex offenders, but will be placed in a program that will help them understand the consequences of sending sexually explicit pictures.

Sexting is the notion of sending these photos via cell phone or email and posting them online. Teenagers have been charged with possessing and distributing child pornography. What may seem like an innocent, playful way of communicating can therefore lead to a permanent criminal background.

The proposed measure would require the attorney general’s office to create a program that teaches young people the criminal penalties and social consequences of sending or receiving nude or semi-nude images via cell phone or email.

Sponsoring the bill is State Assemblywoman Pam Lampitt. She said there needs to be a different method to bring awareness to teens without creating a criminal background. "We need to create a path that places education and forgiveness before arrest and prosecution," Lampitt told Philly.com. "Young people, especially teen girls , need to understand that sending inappropriate pictures is not only potentially illegal, but can leave an indelible mark on them socially and educationally."

Parents now have the opportunity to start taking measures into their own hands. Apple created a text-based communication control that monitors a person’s incoming and outgoing text messages, serving as a filter that controls a conversation. In other words, any messages containing “forbidden” content will not be received or sent. This is one way of monitoring sexting amongst teens.

Two recent studies about teen sex habits have shaken up scientists and parents.  One study explored who is having unprotected sex and the other explored the impact of texting on a teen’s likeliness to be sexually active.

A new study by Nicole Weller at Arizona State University reveals that teen girls are 30 percent less likely than teen boys to use protection when having sex for the first time.  In addition, black teenagers were 40 percent less likely to use protection than white teens when having sex for the first time.

Weller’s study was designed to measure the effects of early sexual health education.  She looked at 5,012 boys and girls between the ages of 11 and 19.  An article on Time’s Healthland website reports that ten years ago, the average age when teens began having sex was 15, and is now 17.5.  

More has changed in the last decade than just the age at which teens lose their virginity. As another recent study shows, researchers are now following new demographics within the teenage population. Namely, the "hyper-texters."

According to this recent study done at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine a teenager’s texting frequency makes a difference.  “Hyper-texters,” or those who send more than 120 texts per day, were more likely to have had sex.  According to Time’s Healthland article, “Researchers found that heavy texting and social networking were more common among girls, minorities and kids from homes with a single mother or less parental education.”

The study was conducted in the Cleveland-area where they surveyed 4,200 high school students.  They found 20 percent qualified as hyper-texters and 11 percent were hyper-networkers, which means spending three or more hours per day on Facebook and MySpace.

Hyper-texters were found to be 3.5 percent more likely to have had sex than normal texters.  They hyper-networkers were NOT more likely to have had sex, but they were more likely to drink, use drugs, and fight.  

No one is accusing texting or networking as the cause of these behaviors, however. Instead, researchers are looking for links between characteristics that the hyper-texters might share, such as being social, impulsive, and vulnerable to peer pressure, and maybe a lack of parental oversight.  

On October 13, Apple was granted a patent on an anti-sexting device that allows an administrator to censor text messages on the iPhone. The device seems targeted at parents who do not want their children to be 'sexting' their peers or sending inappropriate photos via text message.

CNN reported, "Messages containing blocked material either would not be received or would have the objectionable content redacted.  Unlike other text blockers, Apple's version would also be able to filter content based on a child's grade level and claims to filter abbreviated words that may be missed by other programs."

In addition to censoring text messages, the patent also boasts the ability to turn texting into an educational activity. The tool has the ability to withhold text messages unless they are grammatically correct, preventing common texting lingo like LOL and OMG.

Perhaps the most interesting twist to the functionality of this device -- it can act as a tool to learn foreign languages. Confused? CNN reports, "Parents of kids who are studying Spanish, for example, could be required to send a certain number of messages per month in that language, according to the document. If kids did not meet the foreign language quota, their texting privileges could be automatically revoked until they send more Spanish-language text messages."

We’ve all heard about the texting revolution. Complaints about how youth can’t use proper grammar or can’t speak in full sentences are prevalent. But texting is affecting more than just our communication - it is creeping into the future of youth health care.

“Text in the City,” a pilot program designed to provide young people with health advisory text messages, began in January 2010, out of the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center in New York. According to the program’s website, “It allows teens to ask confidential questions and sign up for birth control reminders. We also offer weekly 'healthbytes' of useful and interesting health-based advice, via text.”

Sounds ideal: no embarrassing phone calls to the doctor about that... thing... that’s itchy... and protruding from your... whatever. These situations were the impetus for creating this program in the first place. Teens felt more comfortable asking questions over text messages.

In an article in in PSFK London, Katie Malbon, creator of the program, was able identify this behavior. “Through texting, she was able to encourage adolescents to ask questions about health at a much higher frequency... A key point that surfaced in her research was that adolescents had plenty of questions pertaining to sexual health, especially about birth control. This helped Katie start an additional service that offers reminders, on either a daily or weekly basis, that sent texts about when to take contraception.”

The birth control reminder text messages even delete themselves after being opened, so that parents won’t see them. These reminder texts cannot do any harm.

However, Malbon wrote a blog post about an iPhone app called the “Ovulation Calendar app,” that is designed to tell users when they will be expected to ovulate. This could be useful for women trying to get pregnant. However, Malbon mentions a patient who relied on this calendar to tell her when having unprotected sex was safe. She ended up pregnant. Malbon writes, “Adolescence is a time when periods are irregular with anovulatory cycles being common place in the first few years after menarche. Teenagers forget when their last period was, days and dates are hazy and are not always recorded properly, life is typically a little chaotic, it doesn't work like clockwork.”

AT&T has a new campaign targeting people, especially youth who text while driving. The new campaign reminds people that no text is worth risking your own life and that "Txtng & Driving ... It Can Wait." The cell phone company is using real scenarios to get the message across. But coming up with this simple method was not simple at all.

“We explored several campaign concepts but we didn't have our 'aha!' moment until we asked one of our focus groups to take out their devices and read the last text they received," said Cathy Coughlin, senior executive vice president and global marketing officer for AT&T. "When we asked if that particular message was worth the potential risk of reading while driving at 65 mph, you could have heard a pin drop. That's when we realized the message 'it can wait' was effective in educating consumers about the dangers of texting while driving."

(via PR Newswire)

AT&T’s campaign encourages teens, parents, and high school educators to be proactive and spread the word through word of mouth or via Facebook. To honor the AT&T’s Facebook pledge not to text and drive, the company will donate $250,000 to one or more non-profit organizations focused on youth safety. The company has an online resource center in which people can watch commercials, download posters, brochures, safety tips, and rate their texting and driving IQ.
 

7 hours and 38 minutes…that’s how much the average young person spends using technology every single day, and I’m not surprised.

Take texting for instance. I am a texting addict, and it’s as essential to my life as eating. Recently I decided to deprive myself from texting for an entire week -- but, could I handle it?

On day one, I felt like something was missing -- the same way coffee drinkers feel without their morning cup. I longed for the feel of the buttons underneath my fingers.

By day two, I was grumpy and stressed because I’d gone from sending and receiving 500 texts a day, down to almost none. Then on day three, while under the influence of cold medicine, my phone shook with a text from a friend. It was a simple reminder to watch our favorite TV show, Vampire Diaries. Without thinking, I pressed the letter “K” and with just one letter, I had broken my no texting streak. But could I be blamed? If someone throws a ball at you, you duck. It’s a reflex, a physical reaction. And that’s how I am about my phone. I reach for it without thinking, and I depend on it. Not just for convenience, but for maintaining my friendships!

According to the Census Bureau more than 110 billion texts were sent during the month of December 2008, doubling the number for texts sent in December 2007. This averages out to 407 per cell phone owner. Texting is more convenient at times than calling. The research doesn’t break down the data by age. Amanda Lenhart of the Pew Internet and American Life Project  says teens have a huge role in these numbers being high. Lenhart told The Huffington Post  "If teens are a leader for America, then we are moving to a text-based communication system. For them, there is less interest in talking."

The Census Bureau data reinforces that kids are shaping the future of tomorrow because they are changing the way people communicate. Lenhart’s research found that teens send more than 2,000 text messages a month. Two-thirds of teens use text messages because of its simplicity and because they are able to communicate with out being heard.

Census Bureau’s findings also showed that average length of time for cell phone calls declined last year to 2.3 minutes—making it the shortest average time length since the 1990s. Monthly cell phone bills have remained around $50.

Full story on The Huffington Post