Conoscenze e comportamenti degli adolescenti in ambito affettivo-sessuale: una ricerca esplorativa

This work presents the results of an exploratory study on adolescents’ sexual\r\nand relational-emotional knowledge, sources of information, and behaviors. The\r\nstudy also investigates adolescents’ risky experiences in both real and virtual life.\r\nThe sample consists of 1522 adolescents of Italian nationality with age range\r\nbetween 12 and 18 years (44% males and 56% females), who completed an online\r\nself-report questionnaire. Results show that, contrary to their perception, adolescents’\r\nknowledge about sexuality and emotionality is rather scarce. They\r\nrefer primarily to parents, friends, and, to a considerable extent, to the Internet to\r\nget information about sexuality. In addition, the percentage of sexually active adolescents\r\nwho report to enact risky behaviors, especially among the youngest (12-\r\n14 years), is noteworthy. Finally, a consistent percentage of adolescents report to\r\nreceive or send “sensual” photo through the Internet and to receive requests to\r\nprovide personal material/information by strangers.