Predicting Problematic Adolescent Sexting: The Educational Aspects of Socioeconomic Traits, Family Relations and Pr0oblem Behaviour

Goran Livazović

Summary:  This study examines how socioeconomic traits and situational factors influence problematic adolescent sexting, drawing on the bioecological model to explore media use intensity, sexual content exposure, and general risky behaviour. These findings highlight critical educational aspects of adolescents’ lives, as schools serve as key microsystems where peer norms, digital literacy gaps, and risky behaviours may intersect in daily life. The sample included 325 adolescents (247 females and 78 males), aged 14–27 years. Females reported stronger peer relations and higher general media use. Older adolescents engaged more frequently in sexting perpetration, as did those in romantic partnerships compared with those who were single. Urban youth reported better peer relations than their rural peers, while heterosexual adolescents reported higher-quality family relations than LGBT+ youth, who exhibited greater risky media use and sexting perpetration. Regression analyses revealed that age, general risky behaviour, and sexting victimization were significant predictors of sexting perpetration. For sexting victimization, significant predictors included relationship status, family relations quality, risky media use, general risky behaviour, and sexting perpetration. These findings underscore the bioecological model’s emphasis on the interplay of personal characteristics, proximal processes, and contextual influences in shaping sexting behaviours among adolescents.