Related Articles
- The Women Who Came Before Us
- Christmas Self Esteem - Giving the Gift of Self Worth, Self Confidence and Self Respect
- 5 Financial tips for families having disabled kids
- Breaking Down The Communication Barriers With Your Kids
- Are You Raising Codependent Children?
- Camp Safely With Your Kids This Summer
- Helping Your Child With Autism Cope With School Anxiety
- Routines to Improve Concentration in Children
- Single Mothers: Guide to Measures of Help Available
- How to Create Special Memories for Elementary School Kids
Teenage Sexting Consequences - Is Teen Sexting Such A Big Deal?
If you want to take the opportunity to talk to your teen they may not recognise the term sexting - they may know it as "phone sex," "booty call," or "hooking up".
It would be fair to say that many teenagers do not realise the possible consequences of sexting - they often see it as a joke or a bit of fun. (I'm quite sure many of us did silly things as teenagers for those very reasons - I know I did!). Teens may be being influenced by their peers, or do it as a way to get noticed, or think it will make them more popular.
What many fail to realise is that once they press "send" on that sexy image, there is no way they can ever get it back. Neither should they assume it will remain private - it may come back to haunt them years from now... social lives,repuations and future careers can be ruined as a result of explicit pictures being made public, to say nothing of embarrassment and social humiliation (as many an A lister has discovered).
Is teen sexting such a big deal, then? Yes, on at least two counts:Tragically, there are well documented cases where teenagers have committed suicide over sexting photographs which have not stayed private...
And what of the Law? Does sexting come under Child Pornography or Obscenity laws? Yes, in some States and some parts of the world. Some States viewed sexting matters very seriously and not only the teens involved but their parents can face charges as well.
The Child Pornography laws in many States and countries have been in place for many years, way before cell phones were around. This is why this is such a "grey" area and can lead to sexting offenders being placed on the Sex Offenders Register or even prison terms. Check the Laws where you live - some States now have lighter penalties for a first sexting offence, such as a $60 fine or the teen may have to join an educational program.(This is now the case in Florida).
Some parents have an agreement with their child, (particularly if they seem to be turning into a teen text addict), that they will check their cell phone from time to time - just to see that all is well. Now while this may seem very reasonable, some teens who are involved in sexting have two strategies :
- have a second phone they use for sexting (which parents do not get to see!) or
- they use acronyms which they figure will be a complete mystery to their parents. (Paying for the second phone can cause all sorts of problems, as you can appreciate and is much more common than many parents want to admit...)
With 3 in 10 teens at least known to be involved in sexting, would you like to have a complete list of sexting acronyms so you will know if your child is involved in this dangerous behavior?
Articlebase.com
Back to listings of articles about Parenting
