Social Networking and Sex
The world is online. More and more people are now part of social networking for all reasons. Some good some bad. Sex is one of the most prominent topics in anybody’s life. And so it is online. The online worldprovides and opportunity to connect and easy access to sex. Those looking for sex or willing to provide sex are just a click away.
Social networking sites are now part of life. These have become a mode of instant connect with people even strangers. With availability of laptops and smart phones, internet and social networking sites are now everywhere including classroom and bedroom. People share many things and are finding it easy to come up with inner feelings, needs, desires and choices. This makes such platforms just more than fertile for sex proliferation. And this is not only between intimate friends but also with absolute strangers.
How social networking sites are playing a part in human sexuality?
These are:
- Easy connect and access to others intimate feelings
- Getting ‘exposed’ to sexual world at early age
- Sharing thoughts, pictures, videos with direct or indirect sexual reference
- Creating fake profiles to indulge in all forms of sexual behavior without risk of social disrepute.
- Online or virtual stalking
- Connecting with and exploring possibility of sex with new people. These could be in own network, friends of friends, new friends and even unknown people.
- Staying in touch with ‘ex’
- Joining such groups which helps people to find new ‘like minded’ partners
- Online or Cyber Sex
- Sex workers and sex business is now active on such sites looking for clients
- Sex tourism
The debate
The debate is about role of social networking sites in
- Sexual crimes like abuse, harassment and rape
- Early sexual exposure
- Unhealthy and high risk sexual behavior
- Complicating relationships
- Sex business
Those who defend says that all this was present even before arrival of online sites and is also there among those who are not active on such sites.
Those critical says that such sites facilitates and motivates such behavior. Such sites are bad for young minds that learn such wrong things unchecked.
What can be done?
- Site owners must check illegal and indecent content
- Fake profiles must be checked
- Children must be made aware of caution on such sites
- Observe child’s activity and connections
- Add connections with caution
- Do not share indiscreetly
- Report abuse