Sextortion is a phenomenon that has made an impact on the digital technology domain. Sexting is a transmission of sensual messages or performances, provocation, and schemes exhibited through an array of sexual behaviors. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the psychological effects experienced of sextortion and to uncover the willingness to seek help and report the incident to authorities. Arnett's emerging adulthood theory provided the framework for this study. The sample consisted of N = 27 responders between 18-24 years of age who have engaged in sexting behaviors and may or may not have experienced sextortion. Simple and multiple regressions were performed using convenience samples to test predictor variables, emotional distress, self-esteem, general help-seeking, reasons for calling the police, disclosure expectations, and self-stigma to seek help and outcome variable, sextortion. Statistically significant correlations existed among variables. Overall, the results displayed insignificant effects of the predictor variables on the outcome variable. The effect of sextortion on the difference in the level of emotional distress revealed no significance, F(1, 25) = 1.96, p = .174. The effect of sextortion on self-esteem exhibited no significance, F(1, 25) = .054, p = .818. The effects of sextortion on general help-seeking, reasons for calling the police, disclosure expectations, and self-stigma to seek help collectively uncovered no significance, F(1, 25) = 3.105, p =.109. The sample size used based on the respective predictor variable, presented challenges to achieve significance at acceptable levels. This study provided a foundation for the implementation of mental health services, prevention programs, and support for those who were found to have experienced sextortion.

African-born residents of the United States have a higher incidence of HIV than African Americans. Factors such as lifestyle, habits, behavior practices, and activities may predispose African-born residents to behave sexually in ways that place them at risk of becoming infected with HIV. This study used a qualitative narrative approach to understand the lived experiences first generation Sub-Saharan African-born men who are U.S. residents to analyze the behaviors that expose them to HIV. To analyze data, the study used the health-belief model as the conceptual framework and NVivo for data analysis to assist in identifying, categorizing, and analyzing common themes and grouping unstructured data. The study used a purposive convenience sampling of 14 first generation Sub-Saharan African-born men who are U.S. residents residing in the states of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania and discovered that they engage in sexual risk taking behaviors which include: having multiple sexual partners, preferring heterosexual relationships without a condom, have limited knowledge of HIV prevalence in the United States, and preferring to have sex with both African born females and American born women who are thought to be healthy. Their tendency to visit strip clubs, visit sex houses, and to abuse alcohol was also apparent in the study. Social change implications include adding new relevant knowledge in the understanding of how HIV spreads among Sub-Saharan African-born male U.S. residents by discovering the risk behaviors in which Sub-Saharan African men engage to expose themselves to contracting HIV disease. This knowledge can influence future health education efforts and target culture specific behaviors.

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Childhood Sexual Abuse (CSA), along with other Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES), has been linked to a range of adverse health outcomes among adults. However, there is paucity of research specifically studying CSA and sexual risk behaviors among adolescents. Even less is known for the population in Appalachia. The few researchers who study this topic have mostly focused on females or have failed to use advanced statistical techniques to generate evidence on causality. This research was undertaken to investigate the association between CSA and sexual risk behaviors of college students in Appalachia. College students enrolled in introductory psychology classes in the Appalachian region were administered an online questionnaire on CSA, ACES, and current sexual behaviors in 2015. Simple and multivariate logistic regressions were completed for CSA to predict illegal drug use before sex, use of condom during sex, and perceived risk of HIV. Age, gender, and other ACEs (physical, emotional, verbal abuse, substance abuse in family, family mental illness, and family incarceration) were considered as covariates. Only statistically significant covariates were included in the final model. All analyses were completed using STATA. Of the total 982 adolescents, 67% were female. The average age of the participants was 20 years. In the unadjusted model, CSA was significantly associated with illegal drug use before sex (OR 2.32, CI 1.46 - 3.68) and perceived risk of HIV (OR 2.19, CI 1.39 - 3.46). The association between CSA and illegal drug use before sex (OR 1.67, CI 1.03 - 2.73) was significant in the final model too. Further, based on the final model, CSA increased the odds of perceiving oneself at risk of HIV by 1.9 times (CI 1.19 - 3.03). Verbal abuse was also found to be significantly associated with illegal drug use before sex (OR 2.22, CI 1.55 - 3.19) and perceived risk of HIV (OR 1.8, CI 1.26 - 2.57). However, neither CSA (OR 1.02, CI 0.55 - 1.89) nor other covariates was associated with condom use among these adolescents. It is a noteworthy result and suggests the need of further investigation of the factors related to condom use among adolescents in order to understand the peculiar nature of this behavior. Finally, CSA was found to increase the odds of some risky sexual behaviors among college students in Appalachia. Consideration of this relationship can enrich the knowledge base required to design effective interventions targeted at sexual behaviors of adolescents. Additionally, further exploration can be useful to enhance the understanding of effects of other ACES like verbal abuse on sexual risk behaviors, and predictors of condom use among adolescents.

Risky sexual behaviors (RSB) have the potential to negatively impact individuals by increasing the risk of mental health issues, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and unwanted pregnancies. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and mental health disorders, such as anxiety, PTSD, and depression, have been known to increase RSB. The purpose of this study was to see if these mental health disorders mediate the relationship between ACEs and RSB. Participants (n = 342, mean age = 32) were recruited through social media to complete an online questionnaire. While history of ACEs significantly predicted engagement in RSB as well as all three of the mental health measures, none of the three measures of mental health emerged as a significant mediator of the relationship between ACEs and engagement in RSB (depression: b = .0060, SE = .0568, 95% CI[-.1175, .1148]; anxiety: (b = -.0136, SE = .0565, 95% CI[-.1393, .0904]; PTSD: (b = .1131, SE = .0807, 95% CI[-.0313, .2867]. Ultimately, this research showed that the history of ACEs exerts a strong, direct effect on engaging in RSB, and that in this sample, mental health symptoms are not sufficient to explain this relationship. Therefore, other factors should be explored as possible mechanisms maintaining this relationship. Furthermore, future research efforts should extend this exploration to young participants that may be more likely to participate in RSB.

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The United States has the highest teen pregnancy and adolescent STD rates of any industrialized nation. Numerous factors are involved in adolescent sexual decision-making and the social-ecological framework suggests that there are multiple levels of influence on adolescent development, including familial. Utilizing survey data from the Virginia Abstinence Education Initiative (VAEI), this project specifically explores paternal influences on adolescent sexual behavior and beliefs by examining paternal residence in the home, perceived paternal figure sexual beliefs, and father-child relationship factors. Results indicate that paternal figures influence their daughters' and sons' sexual behaviors as well as beliefs. Differences in paternal figure influence across gender were found as well. Those endeavoring to develop more effective teen pregnancy prevention and abstinence education programs may consider the involvement of paternal figures in future efforts.