Validation of the Sexting Behavior and Motives Questionnaire (SBM-Q)

Background: Sexting has garnered interest from the public and the scientific community given its ever-increasing presence in adolescents’ lives. However, analysis varies depending on the baseline study used. This calls for a standardised sexting instrument that addresses scientific evidence-based re...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Rey Alamillo, Rosario del, Ojeda Pérez, Mónica, Casas Bolaños, José Antonio
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2021
Country:España
Institution:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repository:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/167043
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/167043
https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2020.207
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Sexting
Adolescence
Online
Motives
Sexual behavior
Assessment
Description
Summary:Background: Sexting has garnered interest from the public and the scientific community given its ever-increasing presence in adolescents’ lives. However, analysis varies depending on the baseline study used. This calls for a standardised sexting instrument that addresses scientific evidence-based recommendations. The primary aim of this study was to develop and validate the structure of a questionnaire that includes the various sexting behaviours and motives. Method: The sample comprised 1,362 students (51.1% female; 12-18 years old). Participants were randomly split into two halves, controlling for the gender variable (n=681), and exploratory and confi rmatory factor analyses were performed. Results: Validity of the Sexting Behaviours and Motives Questionnaire (SBM-Q) was confirmed, along with the suitability of the factor structure, internal consistency, and divergent validity. This was also reported by gender. Six dimensions were identified: sending, reasons for sending, receiving, forwarding, victim of forwarding, and reasons for forwarding. Conclusions: The SBM-Q presents good psychometric properties, providing a detailed and consolidated overview of the behaviours that adolescents might engage in when sexting as well as the context in which it occurs.