The link between cell phone usage and teenage sex emerged in a recent survey of more than 10,000 Norwegians aged 13-18. The survey, backed by the University of Oslo, is part of a major research project called "Young in Norway."
Professor Willy Pedersen of the university's sociology institute, who has overall responsibility for the project, says the survey suggests that cell phone usage and text messaging represent a new form of contact that makes it easier for teenagers to approach one another.
Norwegians generally have a far more liberal attitude towards sex than people in many other countries, not least the US. Pedersen told newspaper Aftenposten that he and his colleagues nonetheless were "very surprised" by the survey's findings.
'Strong connection'
The professor claims there's "no doubt that there is a strong connection between use of mobile telephones and the probability that users will have debuted sexually."
Researchers asked the teenage survey participants how many times they talk on a cell phone during the course of a day, how many text messages they send and receive and how many different people they have contact with on their cell phones.
When their answers were compared to those given for whether they had debuted sexually, the numbers were clear. Results being published Thursday in Norway's major medical journal (Tidsskrift for Den norske lægeforening) show that:
Pedersen says the results were also "corrected" for other factors influencing sexual behaviour, including such things as parental guidance, alcohol usage and partying habits.
Lena Johansen, age 18, and Silje Bergh, 19, told newspaper Aftenposten that they think it's easier for boys and girls to make contact via text messages. Cell phones assist the flirting process as well.
"It's not so embarrassing," said Johansen. "If you blush, no one can see you."
