Spanish adolescents' attitudes towards sexting: Validation of a scale

The purpose of this investigation is dual. Firstly, we validated the Spanish version of the Sexting Attitudes Scale of Weisskirch and Delevi (2011) in adolescents, and secondly, we evaluated sexting attitudes and behaviors in a sample of Spanish adolescents. The sample was made up of 1284 students of Secondary Education, of whom 51.2% are girls and 48.8% are boys, mean age 15.55 years (SD = 1.6). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses (EFA and CFA) guarantee the validity of the scale, with adequate fit indexes and reliability. Likewise, the results of the study confirm that boys, adolescents aged over 15, and those who live in urban areas express significantly more positive attitudes towards sexting, whereas girls show more perception of the risk associated with sending and/or receiving sexts. Boys also send and forward more sexting content than girls. In the latter part of the article, we present the practical implications these results.