Asking U.S. 14-to-17-year-olds about their sexuality for the first time since the first Youth Risk Behavior Study in 1994, the Centers for Disease Control researchers found that youth who identify as gay, lesbian or bisexual are far more likely to experience depression, bullying and other forms of violence than their straight peers, EducationNews.org reported (the survey didn't ask students if … [Read more...] about Heartbreaking US data on LGB youth risk
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LGBT youth & cyberbullying: Study
The Cyberbullying Research Center has added its own data to our growing understanding of bullying related to sexual orientation. The researchers, Profs. Sameer Hinduja and Justin Patchin, found that 72% of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) students have been targeted by bullying at some point in their lives, compared to 63% of heterosexual students, with an "even more striking" … [Read more...] about LGBT youth & cyberbullying: Study
Greater sensitivity needed in handling of sexting cases
Given the nature of the sexting case that federal judge Jennifer Coffman decided not to dismiss, it seemed like a good decision. A 14-year-old boy allegedly pestering for months an emotionally vulnerable girl his age into making and sending him a sexually explicit video of herself, the video then getting circulated around their school and in other area schools, with prank calls, vandalism, and a … [Read more...] about Greater sensitivity needed in handling of sexting cases
Continuing decline in child sexual abuse
In a talk we ConnectSafely folk give, we have a slide with the question, "Has the growth in young people's use of the Internet correlated with a rise in sexual abuse against children?" We follow that with an emphatic "no" and a chart from the Crimes Against Children Research Center (CCRC) at the University of New Hampshire that actually shows a 51% decline in child sexual victimization in the US … [Read more...] about Continuing decline in child sexual abuse