Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Online or off-line victimisation and psychological well-being: a comparison of sexual-minority and heterosexual youth

  • Original Contribution
  • Published:
European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare sexual-minority and heterosexual youths' exposure to sexual abuse off-line, problematic sexual meetings off-line with person/s met online and online harassment with regard to prevalence, psychological well-being and support seeking. A nationally representative sample of 3,432 Swedish high school seniors completed an anonymous school-based survey about sexuality, health, sexual abuse and online-related sexual victimisation or harassment. Sexual-minority adolescents reported a greater rate of sexual abuse, problematic sexual meetings off-line with person/s met online and online harassment, compared to heterosexual youth. When compared to non-victimised heterosexual adolescents, victimised heterosexual adolescents and non-victimised and victimised sexual-minority adolescents reported more psychiatric symptoms, lower self-esteem and a weaker sense of coherence. Same-sex sexual orientation was related to more psychiatric symptoms, lower self-esteem and a weaker sense of coherence even when controlled for victimisation and gender. Compared to victimised heterosexual adolescents, victimised sexual-minority adolescents were more likely to seek support because of sexual abuse (females) or Internet-related problems (males and females). Results for sexual-minority youth were basically the same whether sexual orientation was assessed as sexual identity or as sexual or emotional attraction. Health care providers are challenged to not only provide the same care to sexual-minority youth who seek counselling or psychiatric treatment for mental health problems or problems related to victimisation that all adolescents should receive but also to find ways to address topics like prevention of sexual abuse and risk-taking behaviour online or off-line.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Livingstone S, Haddon L, Görzig A, Ólafsson K (2011) Risks and safety on the Internet: the perspective of European children. Full findings. In: The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). EU Kids Online, London

  2. Valkenburg PM, Peter J (2011) Online communication among adolescents: an integrated model of its attraction, opportunities, and risks. J Adolesc Health 48:121–127

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Hillier L, Harrison L (2007) Building realities less limited than their own: young people practising same-sex attraction on the Internet. Sexualities 10:82–100

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Martin JI, D’Augelli AR (2003) How lonely are gay and lesbian youth? Psychol Rep 93:486

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Garofalo R, Herrick A, Mustanski B, Donenberg GR (2006) Online and at-risk: young men who have sex with men and the Internet. J Adolesc Health 38:104

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Wolak J, Finkelhor D, Mitchell KJ (2004) Internet-initiated sex crimes against minors: implications for prevention based on findings from a national study. J Adolesc Health 35(424):e411–e420

    Google Scholar 

  7. Svedin CG, Priebe G (2009) Unga, sex och Internet (youth, sex and the Internet). In: Ungdomsstyrelsen (ed) Se mig—Unga om sex och Internet (See me—youth about sex and the Internet). Ungdomsstyrelsen, Stockholm, pp 32–147

  8. Roth N, Boström G, Nykvist K (2006) Hälsa på lika villkor? Hälsa och livsvillkor bland HBT-personer (Health at equal conditions? Health and living conditions among LGBT-people). Statens folkhälsoinstitut, Stockholm

    Google Scholar 

  9. Fergusson DM, Horwood LJ, Ridder EM, Beautrais AL (2005) Sexual orientation and mental health in a birth cohort of young adults. Psychol Med 35:971–981

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Mitchell KJ, Finkelhor D, Wolak J, Ybarra ML, Turner H (2011) Youth Internet victimization in a broader victimization context. J Adolesc Health 48:128–134

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Ybarra ML, Mitchell KJ, Wolak J, Finkelhor D (2006) Examining characteristics and associated distress related to Internet harassment: findings from the Second Youth Internet Safety Survey. Pediatrics 118:e1169–e1177

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Friedman MS, Marshal MP, Guadamuz TE, Wei C, Wong CF, Saewyc EM, Stall R (2011) A meta-analysis of disparities in childhood sexual abuse, parental physical abuse, and peer victimization among sexual minority and sexual nonminority individuals. Am J Public Health 101:1481–1494

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Paolucci EO, Genuis ML, Violato C (2001) A meta-analysis of the published research on the effects of child sexual abuse. J Psychol 135:17–36

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Antonovsky A (1987) Unraveling the mystery of health: How people manage stress and stay well. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco

    Google Scholar 

  15. Priebe G, Hansson K, Svedin CG (2010) Sexual abuse and associations with psychosocial aspects of health. A population-based study with Swedish adolescents. Nord J Psychiatry 64:40–48

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Ginsburg KR, Winn RJ, Rudy BJ, Crawford J, Zhao H, Schwarz DF (2002) How to reach sexual minority youth in the health care setting: the teens offer guidance. J Adolesc Health 31:407–416

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Priebe G, Svedin CG (2008) Child sexual abuse is largely hidden from the adult society. An epidemiological study of adolescents’ disclosures. Child Abus Negl 32:1095–1108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Ullman SE, Foynes MM, Tang SS (2010) Benefits and barriers to disclosing sexual trauma: a contextual approach. J Trauma Dissoc 11:127–133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Roberts ST, Watlington CG, Nett SD, Batten SV (2010) Sexual trauma disclosure in clinical settings: addressing diversity. J Trauma Dissoc 11:244–259

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Lesbian G, and Bisexual (LGB) Youth Sexual Orientation Measurement Work Group (2003) Measuring sexual orientation of young people in health research. Gay and Lesbian Medical Association, San Francisco

  21. Saewyc EM, Bauer GR, Skay CL, Bearinger LH, Resnick MD, Reis E, Murphy A (2004) Measuring sexual orientation in adolescent health surveys: evaluation of eight school-based surveys. J Adolesc Health 35:345–346

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Finkelhor D (1994) The international epidemiology of child sexual abuse. Child Abus Negl 18:409–417

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Priebe G, Svedin CG (2009) Prevalence, characteristics, and associations of sexual abuse with sociodemographics and consensual sex in a population-based sample of Swedish adolescents. J Child Sex Abus 18:19–39

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Savin-Williams RC (2001) A critique of research on sexual-minority youths. J Adolesc 24:5–13

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Savin-Williams RC, Diamond LM (2000) Sexual identity trajectories among sexual-minority youths: gender comparisons. Arch Sex Behav 29:607–627

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Swedish School Register [Skolregistret]. Available in Swedish. Retrieved December 8, 2010, from http://www.scb.se/Pages/DataCollectionProductInfo____259789.aspx?PageID=99512&SelectTab=1

  27. Statistics Sweden. Available in Swedish. Retrieved February 28, 2011, from http://www.ssd.scb.se/databaser/makro/start.asp

  28. Mossige S, Ainsaar M, Svedin CG (eds) (2007) The Baltic Sea regional study on adolescents’ sexuality. NOVA Report 18/07. Norwegian Social Research (NOVA), Oslo

  29. Derogatis LR (1977) SCL-90. Administration, scoring and procedures manual-I for the R(evised) version. John Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore

  30. Nettelbladt P, Hansson L, Stefansson CG, Borgquist L, Nordström G (1993) Test characteristics of the Hopkins Symptom Check List-25 (HSCL-25) in Sweden, using the Present State Examination (PSE-9) as a caseness criterion. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 28:130–133

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Strand BH, Dalgard OS, Tambs K, Rognerud M (2003) Measuring the mental health status of the Norwegian population: a comparison of the instruments SCL-25, SCL-10, SCL-5 and MHI-5 (SF-36). Nord J Psychiatry 57:113–118

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Rosenberg M (1989) Society and the adolescent self-image. Wesleyan University Press, Middletown

    Google Scholar 

  33. Eriksson M, Lindström B (2005) Validity of Antonovsky’s sense of coherence scale: a systematic review. J Epidemiol Commun Health 59:460–466

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Hansson K, Cederblad M (1995) Känsla av sammanhang. Studier från ett salutogent perspektiv (Sense of coherence. Studies from a salutogenic perspective). Lund University, Dept. of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Lund

    Google Scholar 

  35. Statistical package for the social sciences (2011). Pearson, Armonk

  36. Suseg H, Skevik Grødem A, Valset K, Mossige S (2008) Seksuelle krenkelser via nettet—hvor stor er problemet? (Sexual violations via the Internet—how big is the problem?) NOVA Report 16/2008. Norwegian Social Research (NOVA), Oslo

  37. Mustanski B, Newcomb ME, Garofalo R (2011) Mental health of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth: a developmental resiliency perspective. J Gay Lesbian Soc Serv 23:204–225

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Eskin M, Kaynak-Demir H, Demir S (2005) Same-sex sexual orientation, childhood sexual abuse, and suicidal behavior in university students in Turkey. Arch Sex Behav 34:185–195

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  39. Mitchell KJ, Ybarra M, Finkelhor D (2007) The relative importance of online victimization in understanding depression, delinquency, and substance use. Child Maltreat 12:314–324

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Rosario M, Schrimshaw EW, Hunter J (2010) Different patterns of sexual identity development over time: implications for the psychological adjustment of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths. J Sex Res 48:3–15

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Savin-Williams RC (2005) The new gay teenager. Harvard University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  42. Ott MQ, Corliss HL, Wypij D, Rosario M, Austin SB (2011) Stability and change in self-reported sexual orientation identity in young people: application of mobility metrics. Arch Sex Behav 40:519–532

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. Coker TR, Austin SB, Schuster MA (2009) Health and healthcare for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth: reducing disparities through research, education, and practice. J Adolesc Health 45:213–215

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  44. Hoffman ND, Freeman K, Swann S (2009) Healthcare preferences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. J Adolesc Health 45:222–229

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Frankowski BL (2004) Sexual orientation and adolescents. Pediatrics 113:1827–1832

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Udry JR, Chantala K (2005) Risk factors differ according to same-sex and opposite-sex interest. J Biosoc Sci 37:481–497

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the Crime Compensation and Support Authority in Sweden and the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs for their financial support to the project and the members of the Family Violence Seminar at the University of New Hampshire, USA, for their comments.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, IKVL, Lund University, Box 117, 221 00, Lund, Sweden

    Gisela Priebe

  2. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, IKE, Faculty of Health Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

    Carl Göran Svedin

Authors
  1. Gisela Priebe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Carl Göran Svedin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gisela Priebe.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Priebe, G., Svedin, C.G. Online or off-line victimisation and psychological well-being: a comparison of sexual-minority and heterosexual youth. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 21, 569–582 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-012-0294-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-012-0294-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation