A new study says that teenagers who frequently indulge in texting about delinquent topics are more likely to be involved in antisocial behavior later.
The study is the first of its kind to look naturally and unobtrusively at text messaging between adolescents and their peers, and how it relates to later involvement in antisocial activities. Researchers from the University of Texas noted that 172 ninth-grade students from 47 American schools sent and received nearly 6,000,000 text messages during the yearlong study via Blackberry devices. All these messages were archived, and for the study researchers analyzed four days of text messaging per participant for discussions about the purchase or use of illegal substances, property crime, physical aggression and rule breaking.
Lead researcher of the study, Samuel Ehrenreich, found that most of the participants used text messaging to coordinate antisocial activities, often occurring within the school. This led the researchers to reconfirm that text messages can provide easy access to information about illegal and antisocial behavior. Not, just that, findings of the study reconfirmed the notion that these activities are accepted within the peer group
Researchers also noted that teenagers who frequently indulge in antisocial texting may already be on a trajectory of increasing antisocial behavior. This includes activities that violate legal or societal rules, or which are harmful to the victims of these actions.
"Text messaging appeals to adolescents because they are able to discuss deviant topics in plain sight without adult supervision, and evade normal efforts to be monitored," said Ehrenreich in a press release. "SMS communication is a meaningful avenue for deviant peer affiliation, and may warrant increased parental monitoring."
