Teens, hormones and technology are a bad mix

Oct 3, 2015 17:02 GMT  ·  By

A recent study by the Pew Research Center comes to break some myths about online dating and the role of technology before, during, and after a teen relationship.

Fact #1: Only 8% of American teens have met a partner online. So we guess they won't be joining Ashley Madison anytime soon either.

Fact #2: Facebook is by far the most preferred social network for online hookups (46 mentions), compared to second-ranked Instagram (8 mentions).

Fact #3: Only 28% of teens search for info about their potential/current/former partner online.

Fact #4: 55% of teens like to flirt with possible partners in person, while only 10% of teens send sexy or flirty pictures or videos to their partners.

Fact #5: 35% of all teen girls end up blocking or unfriending someone online because of aggressive and uncomfortable flirting on social media. Only 16% of the teen boys do the same.

Fact #6: 52% of teens prefer to ask for dates in person, 24% via text message, 9% via a message on a social networking site.

Fact #7: Text messaging dominates the daily communication between teen romantic partners, followed by phone calls, instant messaging, and only then in-person conversations.

Fact #8: 70% of teens felt closer to their significant other because of exchanges or conversations they had online or by text messages.

Fact #9: 78% of teens consider that breaking up with someone in person is the right thing to do. 31% consider it acceptable to do it by phone, 12% via text message.

After you break up is where all the madness starts

Fact #10: Once broken up, girls tend to block or unfriend former partners more than boys, 44% compared to 31%.

Fact #11: After breaking up, 36% of teens send a very large number of texts in a short period of time.

Fact #12: After breaking up, 4% of teens downloaded tracking data from their former partner's phone.

Fact #13: After breaking up, 8% of teens sent embarrassing pictures of their former partners to other people.

Fact #14: After breaking up, 10% of teens deleted or modified their social media profiles accordingly.

Fact #15: After breaking up, 11% of teens accessed their former partner's online accounts or mobile phone.

Fact #16: After breaking up, 10% of teens sent messages to other persons, pretending to be their former partner.

Fact #17: 31% of teens say they are being checked up multiple times per day by their current or former romantic partners.

Fact #18: 22% of teens have been called names, humiliated, and insulted via the Internet or by phone call by their former partners.

Fact #19: 16% of teens were forced to remove former partners from their social media accounts by their current boyfriend/girlfriend.

Fact #20: 15% of teens have been pressured into unwanted sexual activities by their partners via the Internet or by phone.

The survey included data gathered at the end of 2014 and the start of 2015, from teens aged between 13 and 17.

Did you experience harmful and abusive behavior?
Did you experience harmful and abusive behavior?

Teens & technology, the charts (9 Images)

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