Mid Sweden University

Background: Poly-victimization research has shown the cumulative detrimental effects of violence exposure on mental health. Latent Class Analysis (LCA) of victimization is a growing research field uncovering specific combinations of violence exposures particularly negative to mental health. Despite a growing concern of technology-facilitated violence (TFSV), it is scarcely included in LCA studies. Objectives: Investigating victimization typologies that includes technology facilitated sexual violence. Participants and setting: Cross-sectional survey data from a representative sample of Swedish young people in the age range of 16–23 (N = 3243, mean age = 18.20, SD = 0.61). Methods: A Latent Class Analysis was conducted using the package PoLCA in R. A model with three classes was deemed to best fit the data. Results: Class 1 (sexual polyvictimization, 10.1 %) had high probabilities of all forms of sexual violence including TFSV and the highest proportion of psychiatric diagnosis (45.2 %). This class consisted of mostly girls. Class 2 (child abuse polyvictimization,14.8 %) was characterized by high probabilities of physical and psychological child abuse and had an even gender distribution. 30.6 % of this class endorsed having a psychiatric diagnosis. Class 3 (75.1 %) was a low victimization/normative subgroup with an even gender distribution and a low (12.8 %) frequency of psychiatric diagnosis. Class 1 exhibited the highest levels of psychiatric symptoms. Conclusions: Prevention efforts targeted against TFSV should consider the whole web of violence that some young people are situated in. Since TFSV seems to be connected to psychiatric symptoms and diagnosis, Child- and Adolescent Psychiatric services should pay more attention to this type of violence among their young patients. 

Poor mental health in adolescent boys and girls has been linked to both in-person and online sexual harassment (SH), but studies have typically analyzed the association using a single measure. The aim of this study was to explore the associations of SH victimization using different measures and cut-off values for mental ill health among adolescents. The study used a cross-sectional design with data collected by a web-based questionnaire in 2012. Participants were 1,026 students in grades 7–9 in nine public and one independent school in Sweden. Data were analyzed with logistic regression models for the total sample and separately for girls and boys. In the total sample, all forms of victimization were significantly positively associated with all dependent variables of mental ill health irrespective of the cut-off values used. ORs ranged from 1.54 (95% CI: 1.14, 2.08) for low quality of life using a cut-off value of < 7 and SH victimization, to 5.12 [95% CI: 3.52, 7.46] for self-harm and SH and online unwanted sexual solicitation (USS) combined. Statistically significant associations were also found in the analyses stratified by gender, with a few exceptions. There were no consistent patterns in the differences between girls and boys. The results imply that questions about SH should be included in adolescent mental health research and can inform the choice of measures used to assess mental ill health. The consistent associations shown for SH victimization and mental ill health should be of interest for policy makers for adolescent health promotion.

Background

Poor mental health has increased among adolescents in recent decades. Bullying and sexual harassment, both cyber and in-person, are each associated with increased depressive symptoms in adolescents and being victimised by co-occurring types is more common than just one single type of victimisation. The study aimedto investigate the association between co-occurring victimisation and depressive symptoms in adolescents when controlling for screen time, social support, physical activity, and personal relative affluence.

Method

Cross-sectional survey data from 1211 respondents (50.1% girls) aged 15–16 were used to conduct modified Poisson regression with robust error variance analyses for girls and boys separately. Four scales were used to measure cyber and in-person bullying and sexual harassment, and CESD-R10 was used to measure depressive symptoms.

Results

About 47% of girls and 20% of boys experienced all four types of victimisation, and about 12% of girls and 25% of boys experienced none of them. When controlled for all included variables, all number of victimisation types of bullying and/or sexual harassment were associated with depressive symptoms in girls. In comparison, only four types of victimisation were associated with depressive symptoms in boys.

Conclusions

The study showed that co-occurring victimisation was associated with depressive symptoms even after controlling for other relevant factors in both genders. However, in girls, all numbers of victimisation were associatedwith depressive symptoms.

Research about online sexual violence (OSV) is needed to be able to better meet the needs of girls in psychiatric care. The objectives of this study are to explore experiences of online sexual violence among young female psychiatric service users. Interviews with nine girls with psychiatric care needs were analyzed with thematic analysis. The findings are summarized in four themes which contribute to the notion that online sexual violence is only one, albeit important, part of a more complex picture of violence among young girls in psychiatric care. The girls’ narratives are shaped by, as well as reproducing gender norms. 

Background: This study aimed to examine the prevalence of male adolescents’ attitudes towards wife-beating and to explore the associations between sociodemographic factors and the acceptance of wife-beating in 20 low and lower-middle-income countries. Method: This study utilized a secondary data analysis from the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) across 20 lower—and lower-middle-income countries. To understand male adolescents’ attitudes towards justifying wife beatings, we examined factors such as residence, wealth index, education level, and household size. Data analysis was conducted using Stata 17 software, applying weighting methods from the DHS Program to ensure the results accurately represented the target population. Logistic regression was used to examine the relationships between variables. Result: Among the 26,794 individuals surveyed globally, 4.84% believed that wife beating could be justified. In Guinea, the prevalence stood at 13.42%, whereas Zimbabwe reported a figure of 1.56% in sub-Saharan Africa. Similarly, in Timor-Leste, located in South and Southeast Asia, 16.11% of people justified wife beating, while Myanmar had a mere 2.31% expressing such views. Adolescents residing in rural areas were more likely to endorse wife beating compared to their urban counterparts, who had significantly lower odds (AOR: 0.21, 95% CI: 0.07–0.67). Likewise, higher levels of education played a crucial role in diminishing the likelihood of endorsing wife beating; in Guinea, adolescents with secondary education or higher were substantially less likely to support such attitudes (AOR: 0.32, 95% CI: 0.18–0.58). Conclusion: The research findings shed light on how young men view violence against women, revealing differences in attitudes across regions. In Sub-Saharan Africa, there are diverse perspectives, with Guinea having a higher prevalence that requires immediate efforts. The concerning prevalence in Jordan highlights the importance of promoting gender equality in West Asia. These findings emphasize the need for interventions that shift beliefs and encourage tangible behavioral changes. Community workshops and skill-building programs can help translate awareness into action. It is crucial to address these attitudes to combat violence effectively. 

Bakgrund: Subjektiva hälsobesvär (SHB) är ett folkhälsoproblem som är vanligt förekommande bland ungdomar och som har ökat i Sverige under de senaste decennierna. Även om många faktorer som bidrar till SHB har identifierats, finns det fortfarande få studier som undersöker cyberutsatthet. Denna studie syftade till att undersöka i vilken utsträckning nätmobbning och sexuella trakasserier på nätet förutsäger SHB bland 15-åriga ungdomar, samt hur tre olika dimensioner av sexuella trakasserier på nätet förutsäger SHB.

Metod: Tvärsnittsdata från en enkätstudie med 1211 svarande (svarsfrekvens 81 %, 50,1 % flickor), med medelåldern 15,2 år användes för att genomföra hierarkiska multipla regressioner separat för flickor och pojkar. Subjektiva hälsobesvär mättes med HBSC-symtomlista (Health Behaviour in School-aged Children). 

Resultat: Både nätmobbning och sexuella trakasserier på nätet förutsade SHB hos tonårsflickor och tonårspojkar. De sexualiserade formerna av trakasserier på nätet var starkare prediktorer av subjektiva hälsobesvär för flickor än för pojkar, medan nätmobbning hade en starkare koppling till SHB hos pojkar. Bland de tre dimensionerna av sexuella trakasserier på nätet var oombedd sexting den starkaste prediktorn för flickor, följt av nedsättande tillmälen. Hos pojkar var dessa två dimensioner ungefär lika starka, men svagare än vad som observerades för flickor. Exploatering visade sig vara den svagaste prediktorn bland de tre, för båda könen.

Slutsatser: Både nätmobbning och sexuella trakasserier på nätet förutsade subjektiva hälsobesvär hos tonårsflickor och pojkar. De sexualiserade formerna av cyberutsatthet var starkare prediktorer för flickor än pojkar, medan nätmobbning var en starkare prediktor för pojkar. Resultaten understryker vikten av att inkludera cyberutsatthet i förståelsen av vad bidrar till SHB hos 15-åringar.

Peer victimization is a common and complex issue among young people worldwide and is affecting mental health development during a critical developmental period in their lives. By means of a Latent Class Analysis (LCA), this study explores peer poly-victimization subgroups among adolescents and their association with psychosomatic symptoms. A sample of 1536 Swedish students in grades 7–9 completed an electronic questionnaire on various types of victimization over the past six months, including physical violence, as well as in-person and cyber sexual harassment and bullying. The LCA identified three subgroups for boys and four for girls, revealing a gendered pattern of victimization, especially in the case of sexualized violence, which was more prevalent among girls. In girls, this type of violence also increased with age. Victimization was strongly associated with psychosomatic symptoms across genders, with sexualized violence having more severe health consequences. The findings emphasize the need for preventive programs that avoids siloed interventions and instead targets multiple forms of violence, including online harassment, to promote adolescent mental health.

Technology-facilitated sexual violence (TFSV) is an emerging concern in child and adolescent mental health. This article presents an analysis of how child and adolescent psychiatric professionals conceptualize the phenomenon of TFSV in relation to their clinical practice with patients exposed to this type of violence. Through Reflexive Thematic Analysis, we constructed the overarching theme: Violence as an Individual Concern. Our findings are analyzed through the lens of psychiatrization-a societal process that extends the influence of psychiatry, making social issues into psychiatric problems. This research provides critical insights into how the medicalization of TFSV may inadvertently individualize this broader societal issue.

The prevalence of sexting and dissemination of explicit sexual images (ESI) among teenagers has risen with mobile technology. Social media platforms amplify these practices, perpetuating problematic usage patterns. This study explores the understanding of how young people perceive thes enders and receivers of unsolicited dick pics, focusing on gender construction. Ten semi-structured group interviews with cisgendered girls and boys aged 12–16 were conducted and analysed thematically. The findings show that boys are the primary senders of dick pics, while girls are primarily on the receiving end, with boys and girls interpreting unsolicited dick pics differently. Girls more often viewed such behaviour as romantic, while only boys recognized it as harassment. This disparity emphasizes the need for internet safety education and interventions to challenge mainstream constructions of gender norms. By addressing these issues, educators and caregivers can better support adolescents in navigating the complexities of online interactions and promoting healthy relationships.