Psychosocial Aspects of Pornography (2019)

The word “pornography” takes its origin from the Greek word which means “writing about harlots.” The females depicted in pornography are shown as submissive, pleasing their partners and not focusing on their own pleasures. The term is in contrast to “erotica” which refers to the term in which both the partners in the act are simultaneously enjoying their sexual plays and thus give obvious focus on sensuality.¹ Pornography is defined as the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purpose of sexual arousal using various means that includes books, magazines, drawings, videos, and video gaming. In other terms, it is the depiction of the act rather than the act itself. Peter and Valkenburg defined pornography as professionally derived or user-generated pictures or videos (clips) intended to sexually arouse the viewer. These include videos and pictures depicting sexual activities, such as masturbation, oral sex, as well as vaginal and anal penetration, in an unconcealed way, often with a close-up on genitals.² Soft-core and hard-core pornography are the two types which need tentative discrimination. Soft-core pornography involves the depiction of couples undressed in sexually intimate poses. The focus on genitals will be minimal in this type. In contrast, hard-core pornography, as the name suggests, involves stimulation of the other individual, penis-in-vagina penetration, anal penetration, or oral stimulation. Giving explicit focus on ejaculation, group sexual activities, bestiality, and child pornography are also part of hard-core pornography.¹ Pornography has appeared in some form or the other in many cultures around the world. A great deal of controversy revolves around the question regarding the consequences related to pornography and its addiction. Certain studies have shown that addiction to pornography may be associated with significant socio-functional and psychological impairment. Studies have shown that in Internet addiction, underlying neural processes are similar to substance addiction. Internet pornography addiction fits into this structural framework as it shares similar basic mechanisms with substance dependence.³

Although a number of different terms are used to describe problematic pornographic usage such as compulsive viewing, impulsive viewing, and hypersexual disorder,⁴ DSM-5 has not included sexual addiction as a definite criterion mainly because of the lack of evidence and empirical research in this field. There have been no nationally representative prevalence surveys using validated criteria like “Internet Gaming Disorder” which is now included in the appendix of DSM-5. Sexual addiction cannot be included until significant data have been obtained about the defining features, reliability and validity of the criteria, prevalence rates across the world, and regarding evaluation of the etiology and associated biological features. Researchers hence believe that even if pornography addiction, or more widely speaking sexual addiction, does eventually make into future editions of DSM, it will be one of the subcategories of Internet Addiction Disorders rather than a separate entity.⁵

Access to pornography is easy and a wide variety of material including images in magazines, televisions, and videos renders pornography to the public with minimal effort in procuring it. Videos provide images of sexual intercourse and other activities with clarity. Cable, closed-circuit television systems, CD-ROMS, and even movies with plain sexual content have become very popular. Owing the boom of technological advances, there is a great growth in the rate of people accessing pornography using the Internet. Pornography is said to be the first place boys get to know about sex and achieve an understanding of their own whims and desires. Boys begin to get a sense of what is out there and acts like a gateway to their sexual desires.⁶ In a survey conducted in 2004 by the MSNBC and Elle magazine studied 15 246 men and women: Three-fourths of the men said they had downloaded erotic films and videos from the Internet; 41% of the female population did as well. Those who said they abstained from pornography cited the following reasons for their disinterest: satisfactory sex life, feeling of disloyalty to the partner, and violation of moral beliefs. Pornography is considered as straightforward and easy process that provides a refuge from the tangle of sexual hassle that teenagers face in the real world. With women also taking in lessons from pornography, the way they construct their fantasies in the actual sex lives is fundamentally shifting.⁶ Many studies have been conducted across the world with regard to adolescents and pornography addiction. The access they have to the Internet is unmatched by any other medium.⁷ Thus, then advancements in technology and the expansion of Internet have both positively and negatively contributed to the society. The Internet is a priority which is irreplaceable in the lives of these adolescents. Variety and novelty in pornographic content awaits these youngsters at an unprecedented speed. A study conducted in the United States showed that 93% of all adolescents aged 12 to 17 years use the Internet; 63% go online daily and 36% are online several times a day. This uninterrupted access to the Internet can be positive in certain situations; for example, people of all ages obtain information on sexual education and sexual health, social connection, work, and entertainment. Research also indicates that adolescents are struggling with compulsive Internet use and other behaviors related to Internet pornography and cybersex. The frequent exposure to sexually explicit material has an impact on their social perceptions and the attitude toward reality. The more the exposure to such material, the greater is their instrumental attitudes toward sex.⁷

Sexual dysfunction associated with excess viewing of pornography has also been much debated. In a cross-sectional online study of Croatian, Norwegian, and Portuguese men, it was seen that 40% men from Portuguese sample and between 57% and 59% of men from Norwegian and Croatian samples, respectively, were found to be using pornography several times a week. About 14.2%-28.3% of the participants reported of erectile dysfunction, 16.3%-37.4% reported of hypoactive sexual dysfunction, and 6.2%-19.9% had delayed ejaculation.⁸ According to a study conducted among 299 undergraduate students (70.6% male) at the First Capital University of Bangladesh were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The use of pornography was significantly higher among students who gathered late nights with their friends which accounted to 58.4%. Furthermore, those who frequently argue or fight with their friends, frequently wasted time with their friends, and those who did not go to bed on time reported greater consumption of pornography. This study provides an overview of online pornography consumption. A significant proportion of male students consumed erotic materials more than females. Such behaviors can have negative impacts on studies, education outcomes as well as wider social and moral impacts for students and the society as a whole. It was also seen that such students had difficulty in concentration on studies and inability to go to bed on time. This might also be related to the addictive nature of the pornographic materials. It is said that pornography is an expression of fantasies that can rewire pleasure centers of the brain and alter structures and function. Pornography can stimulate the brain’s reward system intensively, which can bring about significant changes in the brain similar to what can be seen in drug addictions.⁹

Social and behavioral scientists express serious concerns about the impact of watching sexually aggressive pornography. Bausserman in 1996 reviewed the research exploring the relationship between hard-core pornography and sexual offences. The reaction of the recipients of aggressive sex is also of concern as it leads the viewers to think that violence and assault is justifiable.¹ Svedin et al in a recent study of male Swedish high school students (N = 2015) found that frequent male viewers of sexually explicit material had more liberal or positive attitudes toward sexually explicit material than those who viewed porn less frequently or not at all. The study also highlighted that those who viewed sexually explicit material more frequently believed that using such material could create a more stimulating sex life for those consumers.¹⁰

The relationship between adolescents’ exposure to sexually explicit material and sexual preoccupancy is defined as a strong cognitive engagement in sexual issues, sometimes at the exclusion of other thoughts. Peter and Valkenburg surveyed 962 Dutch adolescents three times over the course of 1 year and found that the more frequently adolescents used sexually explicit Internet movies, the more often they thought about sex, the stronger their interest in sex became, and the more frequently they became distracted because of thoughts regarding sex.¹¹ Studies by Haggstrom-Nordin et al¹² and Kraus and Russell¹³ suggested that early exposure to sexually explicit material increases the likelihood that both male and females adolescents will engage in oral sex and sexual intercourse earlier than their non-exposed peers. Brown and L’Engle’s study in 2009 supported the findings of these earlier studies.¹⁴ Marie-Pier and colleagues while profiling cyber pornography use and sexual well-being in adults found that recreational users reported higher sexual satisfaction and lower sexual compulsivity, avoidance, and dysfunction. On the other hand, compulsive users presented with lower sexual satisfaction and dysfunction with higher sexual compulsivity and avoidance.¹⁵

Internet pornography is a prevalent form of media that may facilitate problematic use and craving for engagement. Research suggests that certain cognitions and information processing, such as desire thinking and metacognition, are central to the activation and escalation of craving in addictive behaviors. Several studies have shown the clinical value of a metacognitive conceptualization of problematic pornography use. These metacognitive processes have to be explored and these may help in the development of new treatment and relapse prevention strategies.¹⁶

As far as Indian scenario is concerned, there is lack of research related to pornography and its adverse effects. Also there are no definitive laws regarding pornographic content in India. Watching porn in private is not a criminal offense; however, storing or publishing images of child sexual abuse is punishable. But since July 2015, there is a change in the government approach toward availability of online pornography. The Indian government issued an order to ban 857 sites in July 2015 with was later revoked the same year. Currently, the Indian government is reviving its efforts in its war on pornography and has ordered telecom companies and Internet service providers (ISPs) to ban 827 adult sites from their networks in November 2018. This directive follows an order from the Uttarakhand High Court, which found 857 sites to contain adult content—similar to an order issued back in 2015. However, upon inspection, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology found that 30 of them did not host any pornographic content, and so the list was cut down accordingly.

Increased access to the Internet by adolescents has created unprecedented opportunities for sexual education, learning, and growth. Conversely, it has also led to the emergence of various behaviors which are repeatedly reinforcing the reward; motivation and memory circuitry are all part of the disease of addiction. One such behavioral addiction is that for pornography. Research suggests that adolescents who use pornography, especially that found on the Internet, have lower degrees of social integration, increase in conduct problems, higher levels of delinquent behavior, higher incidence of depressive symptoms, and decreased emotional bonding with caregivers. Going forward, we need to build upon our framework for research, one that incorporates more sophisticated methodologies that move beyond simple correlation analysis and cross-sectional designs. For example, studies assessing mediating and moderating variables, as well as causal effects, will add significantly to the existing body of knowledge. The inclusion of greater specificity about the themes, content, and messages portrayed in pornography is needed and such studies may be conducted using qualitative methods that offer greater depth and rich data sources. Given the enormous developmental changes in adolescence, future research needs to pursue a developmental perspective on adolescents’ use of pornography. Comparisons with other age groups, such as young adults, may greatly advance our knowledge about whether adolescents’ pornography use and its implications may be specific for this age group or apply to other age groups as well. It will also be necessary to conduct research that provides greater understanding of differences related to gender, cultural factors, minority status, and understudied populations such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered adolescents.

In this digital era, technology has invaded every aspect of our lives, with increasing access to the Internet. Therefore, it is imperative to provide specifically designed pornography addiction education programs to educate students about the adverse effects of pornography. Furthermore, targeted treatment programs for sexual addiction, sexual abuse, and pornography abuse are needed to support the individuals who are addicted to pornography.

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.