NC West Virginia News

A researcher at West Virginia University is working to prevent risky behaviors such as sexting and self-harm among rural youth.

With $343,719 in U.S. Department of Agriculture funding, assistant professor Kristine Ramsay-Seaner, a counseling expert at the WVU College of Applied Human Sciences, will oversee the development of trainings and other resources to support professionals who work with youth in rural communities across the United States. This initiative is in collaboration with the University of Georgia, South Dakota State University, and North Dakota State University.

“Poverty, social isolation, lack of access to mental health treatment — those factors and others contribute to rural youths’ heightened risk for behaviors like sexting, self-harm, substance use, bullying and disordered eating,” Ramsay-Seaner said.

“The average age of exposure to pornography is now 12 years of age, with some studies suggesting as early as 11. One 2021 analysis found 19.3% of youth had sent a sext, 34.8% had received one and 14.5% had forwarded one without consent.”

In West Virginia, schools have provided educators and students with trainings related to violence prevention; however, Ramsay-Seaner noted gaps remain on topics such as sexting, digital scams, and self-harm. She emphasized that kids' digital risk will only grow as society's reliance on technology increases.

She explained that parents and frontline youth service professionals in rural areas receive limited training on how to recognize and address problematic behaviors. To address this issue, she is developing virtual trainings and a podcast series aimed at teaching professionals and parents about risks to middle- and high-school-aged youth and how to respond.

Working closely with WVU Extension and other state Extension offices, Ramsay-Seaner will provide rural caregivers with evidence- and research-based tools which expand the Youth Mental Health First Aid program that is already the primary risk prevention program for rural communities.

The intensive trainings will be offered virtually to avoid time constraints and financial barriers posed by long onsite sessions.

The virtual trainings will comprise eight modules educating youth development professionals and parents about trends in risky youth behaviors and how to address them.

“Utilizing skills such as active listening and non-judgmental communication, we want to prepare youth service professionals to respond to the complex needs of today’s youth,” Ramsay-Seaner said.

Each module will be offered multiple times for maximum flexibility. Topics relevant to each session's particular audience will be highlighted. Attendees — including parents, school staff, 4-H professionals and volunteers, foster care system workers — will commit to at least four hours of training. Pre- and post-training assessments will allow Ramsay-Seaner and her colleagues to test whether the sessions are effective.

The team will also produce a 24-episode “how to talk to your teen” podcast series featuring half-hour interviews with national experts who offer practical guides for discussing risk behaviors comfortably for both youth and adults.

Ramsay-Seaner added that risks faced by rural youth are significant. She pointed out that emergency room visits for self-harm or self-inflicted firearm injuries are much higher among rural youth than those from metropolitan areas. In 2023 alone, about 16% of all U.S. emergency room visits for self-harm were made by rural youths.

“We also see e-cigarette use increasing more among rural youth than among youth in small or large cities," she said. "Almost 8% of rural U.S. youth have substance use disorders including 3.5% with alcohol use disorders — again higher than in urban areas." Additionally," Kids from rural places use methamphetamines more than kids from cities," she continued." They sniff inhalants like glue or aerosols more often." In one survey conducted among rural high schoolers in a southern state,"30% reported sending nude photos of themselves."