Running head: LIBIDO PROMISCUITY DRINKING ATTACHMENT AND SEXTING 1 Examining Libido, Promiscuity, Heavy Drinking, and Anxious Attachment as Predictors of Sexting in College Students LIBIDO PROMISCUITY DRINKING ATTACHMENT AND SEXTING

The current study used an online self-report survey to examine libido, promiscuity, heavy drinking, and anxious attachment as predictors of sexting in college students. Participants were 178 University of Rochester undergraduates (82% female) from the psychology subject pool. Before accounting for our controls of relationship status and unlimited texting, libido was significantly associated with sexting behavior. After accounting for controls the same pattern emerged, demonstrating libido was still significantly related to sexting. Thus, individuals’ sexual desire was positively associated with engaging in sexting behavior, and specifically higher libido levels predicted a higher frequency of sexting. Promiscuity and heavy drinking correlated with sexting, but did not provide unique predictive information. Attachment anxiety did not significantly predict sexting. Implications will be discussed. LIBIDO PROMISCUITY DRINKING ATTACHMENT AND SEXTING 3 Examining Libido, Promiscuity, Heavy Drinking, and Anxious Attachment as Predictors of Sexting in College Students Sexting, or the sending of sexually explicit messages or photographs via cell phone, is a new and popular behavior in modern society stemming from the ever increasing use of technology, especially amongst today’s adolescents and young adults. Due to the possible legal issues with minors involved in sexting, it is a topic of current concern in the media. This type of flirting in the 21 century is still a budding area in research, with not many studies indicating psychological factors that may predict sexting behaviors. The current study examined four potential predictors for sexting frequency among college students. Previous research on sexting has yielded some related findings to our current study. In a correlational study done by Henderson and Morgan (2011), they examined young adults’ sexual relationships and participation in sexting. The study used 468 students (234 female, 325 male) enrolled at Boise State University in general psychology courses, with an average age of 20.59 years and who were largely White/Caucasian (81.7%). Information was collected through selfreport questionnaires including sexting behaviors (frequency), attitudes, and beliefs, and sexual behaviors (frequency of sexual experiences and number of partners). Their results established 60% of participants had sent nude or semi-nude photograph messages, and 64% sent sexually explicit text messages via cell phones. A higher number of sexual intercourse and oral partners positively correlated with sexting behavior. Based on these findings, we wanted to see if similar results could be produced by assessing promiscuity as a predictor of sexting frequency, which may be a factor driving higher numbers of sexual partners that this study found. In a 2010 research article, Ferguson examined the relationship between sexting behaviors and risky sexual behaviors among young Hispanic women. The study consisted of 207 women LIBIDO PROMISCUITY DRINKING ATTACHMENT AND SEXTING 4 from a Hispanic Serving university in the south, having an average age of 20.70 years, with the majority being of Hispanic ethnicity (96.1%). A self-report survey was used to evaluate sexting behaviors (frequency of messages sent/received), attitudes towards sexting, and experience of pleasure in sexual behaviors (from kissing to intercourse). Also, a questionnaire of Histrionic Personality Disorder symptoms was developed from DSM-IV criteria and used in the study. Ferguson’s results found 20.5% of participants sent erotic/nude photographs, and 34.5% received such, at least once. Sexting behaviors correlated positively and significantly with reported pleasure in sex and with positive attitudes towards sexting; and Histrionic traits showed to be a significant predictor for sexting. To build upon this study, we wanted to see if their results would generalize to a predominately White sample of both men and women. Also, we wanted to see if higher libido levels could account for more reported pleasure in sex since those with higher sex drives may enjoy each sexual experience more than those with lower sex drives. Thus, people with higher libido levels may seek out more sexual experiences, such as by engaging in sexting behaviors. In addition, an article by Weisskirc and Delevi (2011) examined the relationship between sexting behaviors and adult romantic attachment styles, specifically anxious attachment. Their sample consisted of 128 students (22 males, 106 females) enrolled in human development and family studies classes from two public, state universities with an average age of 22.77 years, with most being Latino (55%) and Euroamerican/White (27%) ethnicities, and most being in a relationship at the time of data collection (58%). Participants completed an online survey which measured their adult attachment styles, sexting behaviors (frequency), and sexting attitudes. Results indicated that participants involved in a committed relationship were more likely to have sent a sexually suggestive text and to have sent a text message propositioning sexual activity, LIBIDO PROMISCUITY DRINKING ATTACHMENT AND SEXTING 5 than those who were single. Additionally, a statistically significant relationship was found between those individuals in relationships with anxious attachment styles and sending a text message propositioning sexual activity; anxiety may be related to viewing sexting as a normative behavior and the belief that their partner expects them to engage in such. Based on this data, we wanted to find out if similar results could be found in a predominately White sample. Current Study The current study was designed to investigate how predictor variables of libido, promiscuity, heavy drinking, and anxious attachment relate to sexting frequency, while controlling for relationship status and overall texting frequency due to having an unlimited texting cell phone plan. Our criterion variable, sexting frequency, described how often each student engaged in sexting, defined as the sending of sexually explicit messages or photographs via cell phone. To assess this, we included a sexting scale in the self-repot survey which asked the participants to indicate how often they send sexually provocative messages to another individual by text or email. We hypothesized higher libido levels, indicating the subjects’ general sexual desire, to be associated with a higher frequency of sexting. Based on Ferguson’s (2010) results linking pleasure in sexual behaviors and Histrionic traits with sexting, experiencing greater pleasure and being more sexually seductive may be due to individuals having higher libidos and greater promiscuous tendencies, respectively. In addition, we hypothesized higher levels of promiscuity to be linked to greater sexting frequency. Given that previous research by Henderson and Morgan (2011) supported a link between a higher number of sexual intercourse and oral sex partners among those who sexted, these types of individuals could be more naturally inclined to engage in sexual behaviors, such as sexting, with multiple partners. We also hypothesized heavy drinking, consuming large amounts of alcohol, to be correlated with higher LIBIDO PROMISCUITY DRINKING ATTACHMENT AND SEXTING 6 sexting frequency. Since alcohol tends to lower individuals’ inhibitions and reasoning skills, they may be more likely to sext while heavily intoxicated because they may be less fearful of possible consequences and/or believe it is a good idea (even when it’s not). Finally, we hypothesized having an anxious attachment style will be related to higher sexting frequency since individuals with this style are more prone to seek high levels of intimacy, approval, and responsiveness from their partners. Past research (Weisskirc & Delevi, 2011) has found data supporting the correlation between attachment anxiety and sexting among adults in committed relationships. Method Participants One hundred and Seventy-eight University of Rochester undergraduate students (82% female) from the psychology subject pool took part in the study. Participants had an average age of 20 years (SD=1) and were racially distributed as White/Caucasian (69.1%), Black/African American (4.5%), Latino (5.1%), Asian (18%), and Other (3.4%). The students received extra credit to be placed toward their psychology courses. Measures Sexting. The Sexting Scale (developed for the current study) is a 12-item self report scale that assesses an individual’s frequency of sending sexual messages via text or email. The items of the Sexting Scale ask participants to rate how often they send sexually provocative messages to another individual by text or email (e.g., “Talk dirty with someone via text/email,” “Send flirty/sexy text messages of yourself to people,” “Try to get someone sexually excited via text/email”). Participants responded to the items on a 6-point scale (1 = never, 2 = very rarely, 3 = rarely, 4 = occasionally, 5 = frequently, 6 = all of the time). Responses to the items were LIBIDO PROMISCUITY DRINKING ATTACHMENT AND SEXTING 7 summed so that higher scores indicated higher levels of sexting frequency and the scale demonstrated high levels of internal consistency (α = .93) in the current sample. Libido. The Libido Scale (developed for the current study) is a 9-item self-report scale that assesses an individual’s sex drive. The items of the Libido Scale ask respondents to rate the overall level of their sex drive (e.g., “I tend to be horny most of the time,” “My mind often wanders to sex,” “It doesn’t take much to turn me on”). Participant responded to the items on a 5-point scale (1 = not at all true, 2 = a little true, 3 = somewhat true, 4 = mostly true, 5 = very true). Responses to the items were summed so that higher scores indicated higher levels of libido and the scale demonstrated high levels of internal consistency (α = .92) in the current sample. Promiscuity. The revised Sociosexua