Contents
Background
Exchanging sexual images or messages is a way of experimenting with sexuality, at any time and at any age. So sexting can be part of healthy sexual development, where young people fully test and shape their (sexual) identity (Belgian Safer Internet Centre, 2025).
However, sexting carries several risks, and even when individuals believe they are in a trusting relationship, this is not always the case. This methods invites young people (ages 13+) to explore the opportunities and risks of digital intimacy through storytelling, role‑play, and critical reflection. Using realistic and age‑appropriate scenarios about romantic or sexual interactions online, participants examine emotional, social, and legal consequences related to trust, consent, and privacy in digital spaces.
Goals
This activity helps participants to:
- Explore how digital tools affect intimacy and relationships
- Understand the emotional and social consequences of sexting
- Reflect on values such as trust, respect, responsibility, and privacy
- Increase awareness of rights, risks, and protective strategies online
- Reduce stigma and promote empathy and open dialogue
Background: Sexting
Is a contraction of the words sex and texting, referring to the exchange of messages, pictures or videos of a sexual nature through a digital medium.
Aspects
The activity introduces and discusses several problematic phenomena that can emerge when intimacy goes digital:
- Non‑consensual image sharing — the distribution of private or intimate photos without permission, leading to humiliation, loss of control, and possible legal action.
- Revenge porn — the intentional sharing of another person’s intimate images to cause harm, often following a breakup or conflict. This constitutes a serious violation of consent, trust, and dignity, and may have criminal implications.
- Online grooming — when an adult gains a young person’s trust online for sexual exploitation, often by pretending to be a peer.
- Peer pressure and digital masculinity — social dynamics that can push young people, especially boys, to share or demand intimate content as a way to prove status or belonging.
- Bystander dynamics — situations in which peers witness harmful behaviours online and must decide whether and how to intervene supportively.
Digital communication often provides a space where young people feel safer exploring questions of sexuality, gender identity, and emotional intimacy — topics that may be difficult to discuss in everyday life due to stereotypes, prejudices, or normative assumptions about sex, sexual orientation, or gender roles.
Through group discussion and creative exercises, participants are invited to imagine multiple endings for each story, identify alternative actions, and reflect on responsibility, empathy, and digital ethics. The method helps young people understand that online intimacy can be meaningful, but it must be grounded in mutual respect, consent, and care — ensuring connection without regret.
Initial Remarks
Dealing with sexting can be stressful for some people. For this reason, before conducting the exercise, it must be ensured...
- that participation is voluntary and that no one who does not wish to participate has to justify themselves (whether in the group or to the trainers)
- Trigger warning and early announcement of what the topic of the exercise will be
- Rules of safe and respectful communication are observed
- Moderators are trained in dealing with triggered participants
- Moderators are prepared to address sexuality-related issues beyond the taboos that still exist in many social and cultural contexts.
- Moderators approach these conversations without judgment.
Steps
Preparation
Prepare short stories as print-outs (see template) or online.
- Template: Scenarios
1. Setting the Frame
Start by introducing the topic:
- How do we experience intimacy and relationships today?
- In what ways does digital technology change our emotional experiences?
- Is online intimacy “less real”? Why or why not?
Let participants share personal opinions without judgment. Clarify that the focus is not to shame but to understand and reflect.
2. Interactive Story Exploration: Scenarios
Read the following short stories based on real-life inspired situations (template). You may do this as a group, or divide into small teams (2–4 people). Read and discuss one or more stories.
- Scenario 0 — Respectful relationship, responsible use
- Scenario 1 — Non-consensual image sharing
- Scenario 2 — Revenge & social exclusion
- Scenario 3 — Grooming and manipulation
- Scenario 4 — Safe space or illusion?
It is possible to select and work on specific scenario according to the topic you want to tackle.
Encourage participants to imagine or create different endings for each story and reflect on the possible consequences of those choices.
Scenarios can also be expanded to include other characters such as friends, parents, coaches, or teachers, etc. This helps participants explore not only how individuals might react, but also how we expect others to behave in situations involving trust, boundaries, and harm. It invites reflection on how we can act when we are not the main characters in the story, but witnesses — and whether we choose to be supportive, passive, or even complicit in someone else’s experience.
Variation: A Creative Task
Let participants choose one scenario and:
- Create an alternative ending
- Write a letter from one character to another
- Role play conversation with a trusted adult
- Design an awareness-raising poster or meme about digital trust
Reflection
End with group dialogue:
- What emotions came up in these stories?
- What makes a relationship respectful, online or offline?
- What rules would you set for yourself?
- How can we protect ourselves and each other?
Strategies
Discuss practical strategies:
- Using phone security
- Not forwarding images
- Talking to a trusted person
- Reporting content or users
- Knowing when to stop or set limits
Wrap-Up & Takeaways
Ask participants to reflect individually:
- “What will you do differently after today?”
- “What advice would you give to a younger sibling or friend about digital intimacy?”
Remarks for educators
- Avoid moralistic language. Be empathetic and clear.
- Validate the need for intimacy and recognition.
- Create a safe space for discussion — no victim blaming.
- Use this activity to open ongoing conversations, not to close them.
Handbook: More than Go with the Flow
- A handbook on Digital Citizenship Education, created in the frame of the project DIYW-ROAD/Competendo. Digital Youth Work - rights-sensitive, open, accessible, democratic.
- Unless otherwise stated, authors and editors of the methods published in the project are Elisa Rapetti, Markus José Plasencia Kanzler, and Nils-Eyk Zimmermann
