The role of pornography in the etiology of sexual aggression

Despite the public and scientific attention the topic has received, the evidence for a causal link between pornography use and sexual offending remains equivocal. This article critically examines the research literature on the association of pornography and sexual offending, focusing on relevant experimental work. The difficulty of this research is highlighted in a discussion of operational definitions of the term pornography, the choice of proxy measures for sexual offending in experimental research, and the emphasis given sexual assault of adult females over other kinds of criminal sexual behavior such as child molestation, exhibitionism, and voyeurism. We also review the major theoretical perspectives conditioning, excitation transfer, feminist, and social learning—and some of the hypotheses that can be derived from them. From the existing evidence, we argue that individuals who are already predisposed to sexually offend are the most likely to show an effect of pornography exposure and are the most likely to show the strongest effects. Men who are not predisposed are unlikely to show an effect; if there actually is an effect, it is likely to be transient because these men would not normally seek violent pornography. Finally, we present a Darwinian perspective on the possible relationship between pornography use and sexual aggression.     

Exposure to internet pornography among children and adolescents: a national survey.

Estimates suggest that up to 90% or more youth between 12 and 18 years have access to the Internet. Concern has been raised that this increased accessibility may lead to a rise in pornography seeking among children and adolescents, with potentially serious ramifications for child and adolescent sexual development. Using data from the Youth Internet Safety Survey, a nationally representative, cross-sectional telephone survey of 1501 children and adolescents (ages 10-17 years), characteristics associated with self-reported pornography seeking behavior, both on the Internet and using traditional methods (e.g., magazines), are identified. Seekers of pornography, both online and offline, are significantly more likely to be male, with only 5% of self-identified seekers being female. The vast majority (87%) of youth who report looking for sexual images online are 14 years of age or older, when it is developmentally appropriate to be sexually curious. Children under the age of 14 who have intentionally looked at pornography are more likely to report traditional exposures, such as magazines or movies. Concerns about a large group of young children exposing themselves to pornography on the Internet may be overstated. Those who report intentional exposure to pornography, irrespective of source, are significantly more likely to cross-sectionally report delinquent behavior and substance use in the previous year. Further, online seekers versus offline seekers are more likely to report clinical features associated with depression and lower levels of emotional bonding with their caregiver. Results of the current investigation raise important questions for further inquiry. Findings from these cross-sectional data provide justification for longitudinal studies aimed at parsing out temporal sequencing of psychosocial experiences.     

child pornography and the internet: perpetuating a cycle of abuse

Thirteen men convicted of downloading child pornography were interviewed with a view to understanding how these men talked about the photographs and the function such talk played in their accounts. The interviews were informed by earlier work with defended subjects and were analyzed within a discursive framework. Quotations are used from the interviews to illustrate the analysis. Six principal discourses emerged within these accounts in relation to child pornography: sexual arousal; as collectibles; facilitating social relationships; as a way of avoiding real life; as therapy; and in relation to the Internet. These are discussed in the context of previous research. The analysis illustrates the important role that the Internet plays in increasing sexual arousal to child pornography and highlights individual differences in whether this serves as a substitute or as a blueprint for contact offenses. It also draws our attention to the important role that community plays in the Internet and how collecting facilitates the objectification of children and increases the likelihood that in the quest for new images children continue to be sexually abused. Discourses focussing on both therapy and addiction serve to distance the respondent from personal agency and allow for continued engagement with child pornography.     

Reasons for Pornography Consumption: Associations with Gender,Psychological and Physical Sexual Satisfaction,and Attitudinal Impacts

The purpose of this investigation is to examine the associations among gender and reasons for pornography consumption as well as attitudinal impacts. One hundred and forty-three participants, ranging in age from 18 to 48 (M = 21.22), participated in an online study at a large, southwestern university. Seventy-six of these participants identified as current consumers of pornography and are the primary focus of the analyses. Findings indicate that regardless of gender, pornography is preferably consumed in a solitary fashion for masturbatory purposes with a perceived positive physical, but not psychological, sexual satisfying impact for the self as well as for the consuming partner. Further, regarding attitudinal impacts, current male consumers of pornography report significantly higher adversarial sexual beliefs, rape myth acceptance and sexual conservatism than do current female consumers of pornography. Discussion and future directions follow.     

The pleasure is momentary…the expense damnable?: The influence of pornography on rape and sexual assault

The effects of pornography, whether violent or non-violent, on sexual aggression have been debated for decades. The current review examines evidence about the influence of pornography on sexual aggression in correlational and experimental studies and in real world violent crime data. Evidence for a causal relationship between exposure to pornography and sexual aggression is slim and may, at certain times, have been exaggerated by politicians, pressure groups and some social scientists. Some of the debate has focused on violent pornography, but evidence of any negative effects is inconsistent, and violent pornography is comparatively rare in the real world. Victimization rates for rape in the United States demonstrate an inverse relationship between pornography consumption and rape rates. Data from other nations have suggested similar relationships. Although these data cannot be used to determine that pornography has a cathartic effect on rape behavior, combined with the weak evidence in support of negative causal hypotheses from the scientific literature, it is concluded that it is time to discard the hypothesis that pornography contributes to increased sexual assault behavior.     

Pornography use and sexual aggression: the impact of frequency and type of pornography use on recidivism among sexual offenders

In this study, we examined the unique contribution of pornography consumption to the longitudinal prediction of criminal recidivism in a sample of 341 child molesters. We specifically tested the hypothesis, based on predictions informed by the confluence model of sexual aggression that pornography will be a risk factor for recidivism only for those individuals classified as relatively high risk for re-offending. Pornography use (frequency and type) was assessed through self-report and recidivism was measured using data from a national database from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Indices of recidivism, which were assessed up to 15 years after release, included an overall criminal recidivism index, as well as subcategories focusing on violent (including sexual) recidivism and sexual recidivism alone. Results for both frequency and type of pornography use were generally consistent with our predictions. Most importantly, after controlling for general and specific risk factors for sexual aggression, pornography added significantly to the prediction of recidivism. Statistical interactions indicated that frequency of pornography use was primarily a risk factor for higher-risk offenders, when compared with lower-risk offenders, and that content of pornography (i.e., pornography containing deviant content) was a risk factor for all groups. The importance of conceptualizing particular risk factors (e.g., pornography), within the context of other individual characteristics is discussed.     

The Effect of Social-Comparison Feedback on Aggressive Responses to Erotic and Aggressive Films1

A study assessed the effects of social-comparison cues and filmed violence on aggression toward women. Under the auspices of validating some film clips for use in future research, males viewed either erotic, violent sexual, or violent nonsexual films. A male confederate provided social comparison feedback by indicating (or not indicating) that the film degraded women. Self-reports of sexual arousal, affective responses to the films, perceptions of violence, perceptions of pornography, and perceptions of portrayal of women were measured. In a purportedly unrelated learning experiment, males were given the opportunity to aggress toward a female confederate through electric shock. Intensity and duration of shock were measured. Social comparison information caused reductions in self-reports of sexual arousal, affect, and increased perceptions of violence in the erotic film condition only. Social-comparison information caused males to rate the depiction of women as more negative in both the erotic and violent nonsexual conditions. Regardless of film type, social comparison information caused a reduction in perceived realism of the films. Only film condition affected perceptions of pornography, with greater sexual content judged as more pornographic. Social-comparison information reduced the intensity of shocks delivered. Finally, social-comparison information led to reduced duration of shock in all film conditions; however, this effect appeared to dissipate in the violent sexual condition. Implications are discussed.     

Sexualit?t in Zeiten des Internet

The Internet shows several more or less specific characteristics, in particular accessibility, anonymity, affordability, worldwide connectivity and interactivity. These characteristics hold chances as well as risks for the development of sexuality and sexual relationships. Rarely stressed and investigated are the possible positive effects, such as easier sexual contacts especially for individuals with social deficits, for sexual minorities (e.g. gay, lesbian, transgender, sadomasochists or fetishists), reducing sexual prejudices and stereotypes, better partner matching and easy access to reliable information and counseling platforms about sexual issues. The psychotherapist more often encounters the problematic effects of Internet pornography and cybersex, such as avoiding real life (offline) sexual and non-sexual social contacts, the stress on relationships (e.g. through cyber infidelity), intensifying fantasies and impulses that are harmful to oneself or others up to criminal behavior (e.g. use and circulation of child pornography). Describing a case history this review discusses the role of the Internet in the development of sexual addictive or compulsive symptomatology, including treatment options. Only a differentiated analysis of the chances and risks can counterbalance the increasing tendencies to demonize and pathologize the use of the Internet for sexual purposes.     

Bent passions: Heterosexual masculinity, pornography, and gay male identity

Gay male pornography, as an expression of gay male sexuality, identity and desire requires a set of assumptions and questions different than those used in interrogating heterosexual pornography. Drawing upon Linda Williams’ argument that heterosexual pornography creates utopias of sexual abundance, this paper examines the manner in which gay male pornography likewise creates sexual utopias that both express gay male desire but which also, at the same time, attempt to confront and resolve the conflict between such desire and the overarching dominant heterosexual sex system.     

Between Platonic Love and Internet Pornography

The article sets out to show how an holistic approach in matters of sexuality is always more helpful than one-sided approaches. On the issue of internet pornography, the authors suggest that the recent anti-masturbation online movement ‘no fapping’ is based on wrong conclusions from insufficient evidence. We suggest that a holistic approach is called for, with emphasis on the embodied human. Abstinence or what is understood by ‘Platonic love’ is not a solution, according to Plato himself. From a phenomenological perspective, we suggest owning up to our strange bodies and habitualising sexual activity.     

Compiling a Lexicon of Pornography Using Web,WordNet and FrameNet to Develop an Individual Pornographic Index

Online pornography, hypersexuality, sexual compulsivity or impulsivity as well as preoccupation of sexual thoughts and behaviors are measured using diverse psychometric scales. The construct validity and applicability vary vastly among these scales. This paper introduces, therefore, a new index for measuring individual pornographic interests and underpins the literature of pornography. It also defines the necessary procedures required for compiling a dynamic lexicon of pornography, based on linguistic, cognitive and ontological facets, to allow for the development and evaluation of an Individual Pornographic Index (IPI). Such an index is ushered to replace the fidelity of a speaker (patient/applicant) by the fidelity of the spoken/written discourse (e.g., tweets and posts). WordNet and FrameNet are used to introduce all the semantically-related content words; boosting the selectional restrictions. Web-based exploration of online writings and database is also enabled to fetch the pertinent colloquial and slang pornographic lexical entries. Having compiling such a set of data, a working definition of ‘pornography’ is suggested. Results suggest that computational linguistics can be useful in measuring pornographic indices of individual written discourses. Moreover, WordNet’s definition of pornography needs to be revisited and so do its ontolexical relations. Interoperability between Web, WordNet and FrameNet is fruitful in enriching the ontolexical seeds of this introduced lexicon and in suggesting several missing frames in FrameNet. More important, the proposed IPI can interestingly help psychiatrists assess the (hyper)sexuality status of individuals through their free writings.     

Child pornography offenses are a valid diagnostic indicator of pedophilia

This study investigated whether being charged with a child pornography offense is a valid diagnostic indicator of pedophilia, as represented by an index of phallometrically assessed sexual arousal to children. The sample of 685 male patients was referred between 1995 and 2004 for a sexological assessment of their sexual interests and behavior. As a group, child pornography offenders showed greater sexual arousal to children than to adults and differed from groups of sex offenders against children, sex offenders against adults, and general sexology patients. The results suggest child pornography offending is a stronger diagnostic indicator of pedophilia than is sexually offending against child victims. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.     

Pornography and sexual aggression

This paper reviews work on the relation between pornography and sexual aggression, covering experimental research on arousal, attitudes, and laboratory aggression, and some correlational studies. The termpornography is intended to cover the materials used in the relevant research, although not all of these would necessarily be seen as “pornographic.” The main body of the review is divided between “aggressive” and “not specifically aggressive” pornography, with some consideration in the discussion of the nature of supposedly “nonaggressive” pornography. In the case of sexually aggressive pornography, a variety of undesirable effects have been observed. Males show equal sexual arousal to pornographic rape depictions and consenting intercourse depictions under certain “disinhibiting” circumstances, such as anger or depicted victim pleasure, and these disinhibitors can also produce increased laboratory aggression against female targets by males exposed to aggressive pornography. Aggressive and, to some extent, not specifically aggressive pornography have also been found to increase the endorsement of attitude statements that are supportive of sexual aggression. The paper concludes with a discussion of ethical considerations, possible psychological bases of the effects, and the question of censorship. It is concluded that although several types of materials may produce behavioral orientation toward, and/or attitudinal support for, sexual aggression, this is a function of aggression and dominance themes rather than the explicitness of the sexual cues. These themes extend beyond explicit pornography, through extremely violent stimuli that lack explicit sexual elements, to widely consumed “normal” films and reading matter.     

Porn,Peers, and Performing Oral Sex: The Mediating Role of Peer Norms on Pornography’s Influence Regarding Oral Sex

ABSTRACT

The goal of this study was to offer insights into how pornography use might be linked to young adults’ sexual experiences via the mediating role of peer norms (i.e., their perceptions of what same-sex peers do sexually). We focused on oral sex behavior, as it is common in pornography and among young people. Young adults (N = 349; ages 19–30; 54% female) were recruited through a crowdsourcing website. Participants completed an anonymous online survey about the frequency that they observed various sexual behaviors in online pornography, the frequency that they engaged in these behaviors, and their perceptions of the frequency that their peers engaged in these behaviors. Frequency of viewing cunnilingus (men) or fellatio (women) in pornography predicted how often they engaged in oral sex, and this association was mediated by their perceptions of how frequently their peers engaged in oral sex. Peer norms did not mediate how frequently they received oral sex. Findings are discussed in terms of implications for understanding how pornography may relate to young people’s social norms surrounding oral sex and their performance of sexual behaviors, as well as for understanding generally how media consumption relates to adoption of media behaviors through suggesting a social norm.     

Men's likelihood of sexual aggression: the influence of alcohol,sexual arousal,and violent pornography

Previous research findings have indicated that both alcohol intoxication and violent pornography exposure may contribute to increased sexual aggression by men. This study used an experimental paradigm to examine the effects of a moderate alcohol dose, alcohol‐related beliefs, and victim response on men's self‐reported likelihood of committing sexual aggression. A community sample of male social drinkers (N=84) participated in an experiment in which they read an eroticized rape depiction after completing an alcohol administration protocol. The stimulus story varied whether the victim, who initially expressed unwillingness to engage in sexual activity, expressed pleasure or distress in response to the man physically forcing her to perform several explicit sex acts. A path analytic model illustrated that participants' self‐reported likelihood of behaving like the sexual aggressor in the story was directly related to their own sexual arousal. Heightened sexual arousal was reported by participants who had consumed alcohol, those who read the victim‐pleasure story, and those who believed that drinking women are sexually vulnerable. Results suggest that sexual arousal to violent pornography, as influenced by acute alcohol intoxication and other factors, may be an important component of men's perceptions of their own sexual aggression likelihood. Aggr. Behav. 32:581–589, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

My Sexual Entertainment,My Vote: How Attitudes Toward Condom Use in Pornography Related to Support for California’s Condom Law

In 2016, Californians voted down Proposition #60, which aimed to mandate condom use in pornography. Using an online survey administered through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, this study assessed how California citizens’ sexual entertainment preferences and viewing behaviors relate to their support for regulation. Findings generally suggest some aversion to condom use in pornography, especially among heterosexual males. Data suggest the more pornography one watches, the more averse one is to condoms in pornography, as well more opposed to regulation. Results varied more by gender than sexual orientation. Implications for third-person effects in relation to highly stigmatized topics are discussed.     

Sex Talk: Discourses About Female Bodies in Hong Kong Media

Sex and Chinese culture appear to be at odds with one another. Sex talk, however, has been on constant supply in Hong Kong media in the past decade. Considering that Chinese culture prefers to conceal, rather than reveal, sexual matters, this study probes into the phenomenon which sees the proliferation of sex-related debates and controversies in news media in this predominantly Chinese society. Two cases about photobooks of female models were used to illuminate the dominant discourses regarding female bodies in Hong Kong media. Since 2009, photobooks featuring teenage models in sexy poses have become standard provisions in the annual Hong Kong Book Fair. In 2015, a 6-year old girl participated in the production of a photobook. It soon caught the attention of critics who questioned the sexual connotations of a few pictures. Despite the decision to recall all copies, the incident provoked debates on child pornography and a rare discussion about sexual agency. This study has identified various discourses in mainstream news media and social media. It was found that morality and money are two keywords that best summarize how Hong Kong responds to sex matters, while changing media technologies are opening up space for alternative views.     

“My iPhone Changed My Life”: How Digital Technologies Can Enable Women’s Consumption of Online Sexually Explicit Materials

Digital technologies continue to change the ways women can access and consume sexual materials online, including pornography. Yet, limited research has considered the possibilities of digital technologies to enhance women’s access and consumption of online pornographic materials. In this paper, we use a cyberfeminist lens to examine women’s experiences consuming online sexually explicit materials, which most women defined as pornography including videos and images. In particular, we consider the ways women who identify as porn consumers can use digital technologies to enable and enhance their consumption of these pornographic materials. Drawing on qualitative, in-depth interviews with 11 women, our findings illustrate the ways women can use digital technologies to consume pornography online in ways that help them to fulfill their sexual needs, embrace and explore their sexual selves, connect in sexual relationships, and normalize their sexual desires.     

The Embodied Self. Movement and psychoanalysis

Increasing numbers of patients presenting problems with internet pornography have led to changes in the culture and practice of group analytic therapy at the Portman Clinic. The addictive element of this new form of artificial, sexual stimulation has to be recognised as part of the harm it produces. Group members spontaneously develop some of the principles and practice of established methods of addiction treatment, especially the 12-step programme, by helping each other manage their compulsion. This self-help function of the group coexists alongside the psychodynamic perspective, in which the meaning of harmful sexual behaviour is explored and understood. Certain individuals are more vulnerable to excessive use of pornography because of early developmental problems and current difficulties in their sexual relationships, resulting from internal conflicts about their sexuality. The group provides intimacy without sexualisation, primarily through a sibling transference. The therapist embodies an ability to think about the complexity of the sexual abuse that the pornography portrays. He or she works towards a truer perception of reality for group members, in which the false solutions of compulsive sexual behaviour are seen to be what they are: impediments to healthy development.