The IMAGE study (the perceived Impact on the mental health of young women from their experiences of sexting)

About the study

We want to learn about how young women feel about sexting, how it may affect their mental health, how their mental health may affect their sexting behaviours, and what support they may find helpful. We hope that our research will make it easier for girls and young women to get help if sexting is affecting them. We also hope this research will help mental health staff to better understand how to help girls and young women who are affected by sexting.

What will it involve?

You will be invited to take part in an online focus group through Zoom, so we can hear about your views on sexting and mental health. A focus group is a conversation with researchers and a small group of people. The online focus group will include other young women between 16-19 years old. The focus group will last for an hour and a half. The meetings will be audio-recorded so that we don’t miss anything that is discussed.

Before the online focus group, we will ask for your background information, such as age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, past mental health difficulties, school / college if you are in school, through an online survey website called Qualtrics. Having this information can help us put participants into suitable focus groups and better understand the findings of the study.

We will also invite you individually to join us for a Zoom meeting after you have expressed interest to our study via Qualtrics. We will check your understanding of our study and fill out the consent form with you during the meeting.