TY - JOUR
T1 - Digital technologies, equitable gender norms, and sexual health practices across sexting patterns among forcibly displaced adolescents in the slums of Kampala, Uganda
AU - Okumu, Moses
AU - Logie, Carmen H.
AU - Ansong, David
AU - Mwima, Simon
AU - Hakiza, Robert
AU - Newman, Peter A.
N1 - The study was supported by funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ( CIHR ). C. Logie's role was also supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation , Canada Research Chairs , and Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation.
Data were collected in collaboration with three refugee-serving organizations (InterAid Uganda, Young Africans for Integral Development, and Tomorrow Vijana) and two Ugandan government agencies (Office of the Prime Minister, and Uganda AIDS Control Program, Ministry of Health) from January to March 2018. Peer research assistants (PRAs) (n = 12; 4 young men and 8 young women, all 18–24 years of age) who self-identified as refugees or displaced persons were recruited and trained by community partners to recruit participants and to administer the tablet-based survey. Participants in the study were adolescent girls and boys aged 16–19 years. To be eligible, participants had to (1) self-identify as a refugee or displaced person or have refugee/displaced parents, (2) live in one of five informal settlements (Kabalagala, Rubaga, Kansanga, Katwe, and Nsambya), and (3) be able to consent to participation. Participants were recruited via a peer-driven sampling technique shown to effectively recruit marginalized populations for research (Magnani et al., 2005). Each participant received recruitment coupons and was asked to recruit up to five refugee/displaced youth from their social networks to participate. Trained PRAs administered a 35- to 45-min structured survey on tablets in English or Swahili in a location selected by the participant, each of whom received a UGX 12,500 (∼USD 3.75) honorarium. Participants were given tablets to complete all sensitive questions (e.g., sexting and sexual health practices). The University of Toronto and the Uganda Ministry of Health granted ethics approval for the research.The study was supported by funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). C. Logie's role was also supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, Canada Research Chairs, and Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation.
PY - 2023/1
Y1 - 2023/1
N2 - Sexting is increasing among adolescents globally and may be an indicator of sexual activity. Yet researchers know little about sexting patterns of forcibly displaced urban adolescents. We sought to identify patterns of sexting among these adolescents and to determine how sexting patterns differed by adolescents’ digital technology use, support of equitable gender norms, and sexual health practices. Using data from a community-based sample, we identified three groups: non-sexters, or individuals who did not sext (n = 205; 84.7%); moderate sexters, or individuals who received sexually explicit texts and nude pictures, but only sent texts (n = 13; 5.4%); and poly-sexters, or individuals who sent and received both texts and nude pictures (n = 24; 9.9%). We observed differences between sexting patterns and digital technology use, gender norms, and sexual health practices. Understanding these sexting patterns may inform the development and implementation of digital sexual health interventions for forcibly displaced adolescents. This study highlights potential positive outcomes associated with sexting (i.e., condom efficacy and use) as well as its concerning correlated factors (e.g., less access to sexual and reproductive health services) among refugee adolescents. Based on these findings, we offer recommendations for future digital sexual health interventions.
AB - Sexting is increasing among adolescents globally and may be an indicator of sexual activity. Yet researchers know little about sexting patterns of forcibly displaced urban adolescents. We sought to identify patterns of sexting among these adolescents and to determine how sexting patterns differed by adolescents’ digital technology use, support of equitable gender norms, and sexual health practices. Using data from a community-based sample, we identified three groups: non-sexters, or individuals who did not sext (n = 205; 84.7%); moderate sexters, or individuals who received sexually explicit texts and nude pictures, but only sent texts (n = 13; 5.4%); and poly-sexters, or individuals who sent and received both texts and nude pictures (n = 24; 9.9%). We observed differences between sexting patterns and digital technology use, gender norms, and sexual health practices. Understanding these sexting patterns may inform the development and implementation of digital sexual health interventions for forcibly displaced adolescents. This study highlights potential positive outcomes associated with sexting (i.e., condom efficacy and use) as well as its concerning correlated factors (e.g., less access to sexual and reproductive health services) among refugee adolescents. Based on these findings, we offer recommendations for future digital sexual health interventions.
KW - Digital sexual health
KW - Equitable gender norms
KW - Latent profile analysis
KW - Refugee adolescents
KW - Sexting
KW - Sub-saharan africa
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U2 - 10.1016/j.chb.2022.107453
DO - 10.1016/j.chb.2022.107453
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85138108755
SN - 0747-5632
VL - 138
JO - Computers in Human Behavior
JF - Computers in Human Behavior
M1 - 107453
ER -