Pornography

[Michael Scally MD]

Gola M, Wordecha M, Sescousse G, et al. Can Pornography be Addictive? An fMRI Study of Men Seeking Treatment for Problematic Pornography Use. Neuropsychopharmacology. Neuropsychopharmacology - Abstract of article: Can Pornography be Addictive[quest] An fMRI Study of Men Seeking Treatment for Problematic Pornography Use

Pornography consumption is highly prevalent, particularly among young adult males. For some individuals, problematic pornography use (PPU) is a reason for seeking treatment. Despite the pervasiveness of pornography, PPU appears under-investigated, including with respect to the underlying neural mechanisms.

Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we examined ventral striatal responses to erotic and monetary stimuli, disentangling cue-related 'wanting' from reward-related 'liking' among 28 heterosexual males seeking treatment for PPU and 24 heterosexual males without PPU.

Subjects engaged in an incentive delay task in the scanner, in which they received erotic or monetary rewards preceded by predictive cues. BOLD responses to erotic and monetary cues were analyzed and examined with respect to self-reported data on sexual activity collected over the 2 preceding months.

Men with and without PPU differed in their striatal responses to cues predicting erotic pictures, but not in their responses to erotic pictures. PPU subjects when compared to control subjects showed increased activation of ventral striatum specifically for cues predicting erotic pictures but not for cues predicting monetary gains.

Relative sensitivity to cues predicting erotic pictures versus monetary gains was significantly related to the increased behavioral motivation to view erotic images (suggestive of higher 'wanting'), severity of PPU, amount of pornography use per week and number of weekly masturbations.

Our findings suggest that, similar to what is observed in substance and gambling addictions, the neural and behavioral mechanisms associated with the anticipatory processing of cues specifically predicting erotic rewards relate importantly to clinically relevant features of PPU.

These findings suggest that PPU may represent a behavioral addiction and that interventions helpful in targeting behavioral and substance addictions warrant consideration for adaptation and use in helping men with PPU.

 

[Michael Scally MD]

Pornography Consumption, Modality and Function in a Large Internet Sample

Pornography consumption research often contains measurement inconsistencies that make the literature difficult to integrate.

We investigated measurement issues relating to four key areas of pornography research simultaneously in a single data set:

(a) differential endorsement across commonly used pornography consumption measures;

(b) common modalities of pornography use (e.g., pictures, videos);

(c) function of pornography use; and

(d) association of age and gender with the above.


The sample (n = 1,392) of adults in the United States was collected using Amazon Mechanical Turk and included a much wider age range (ages 18-73) than in typical pornography research.

Using all modalities of pornography, 91.5% of men and 60.2% of women herein reported having consumed pornography in the past month.

The three primary modalities of pornography consumed were
· written pornography,
· pictures, and
· videos.

Videos were consumed most often, but women were much more likely to consume written pornography than men. The primary function of viewing pornography was to enhance masturbation, but notably there was endorsement of many other uses.

Cross-sectional age trends and gender differences are discussed with suggestions for future research. Empirical concerns for research in pornography are addressed, with special attention to considerations for estimates of pornography consumption rates and research definitions of pornography.

Solano I, Eaton NR, O'Leary KD. Pornography Consumption, Modality and Function in a Large Internet Sample. Journal of sex research 2018:1-12. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00224499.2018.1532488?journalCode=hjsr20

 

[NorthMich]

Written pornography? That’s almost an oxymoron

 

[Michael Scally MD]

[OA] Evaluating Pornography Problems Due to Moral Incongruence Model

Introduction - To date, multiple models of problematic pornography use have been proposed, but attempts to validate them have been scarce.

Aim - In our study, we aimed to evaluate the Pornography Problems due to Moral Incongruence model proposing that self-appraisals of pornography addiction stem from

(i) general dysregulation,

(ii) habits of use, and

(iii) moral incongruence between internalized norms and behavior.

We investigated whether the model can be used to adequately explain the self-perceptions of addiction to pornography (model 1) and a broader phenomenon of problematic pornography use (model 2).

Methods - An online, nationally representative study was conducted on a sample of 1036 Polish adult participants, of whom, 880 declared a lifetime history of viewing pornography.

Main Outcome Measure - The outcomes were self-perceived pornography addiction, problematic pornography use, avoidant coping, frequency of pornography use, religiosity, moral disapproval of pornography, and related variables.

Results - Our results indicated that avoidant coping (an indicator of general dysregulation), frequency of pornography use (indicator of habits of use), and the distress connected with incongruence between own sexual behavior and internalized norms, attitudes and beliefs positively contributed to self-perceived addiction (model 1) as well as problematic pornography use (model 2). This broadly confirms the basic shape of the PPMI model.

There were, however, notable differences between the models. Moral incongruence related distress was only weakly related to self-perceived addiction (β = 0.15, P < .001), with a stronger relation for problematic pornography use (β = 0.31, P < .001).

When controlling for other factors, religiosity weakly predicted problematic pornography use (β = 0.13, P < .001), but not self-perceived addiction to pornography (β = 0.03, P = .368).

Frequency of pornography use was the strongest predictor of both self-perceived addiction (β = 0.52, P < .001) and problematic pornography use (β = 0.43, P < .001).

Clinical Implications - Factors proposed within the PPMI model are distinctly relevant intervention targets, and they should be considered in the process of diagnosis and treatment.

Strengths & Limitations - The presented study is the first to evaluate PPMI model. Its main limitation is that it has a cross-sectional design.

Conclusion - The PPMI model is a promising framework for investigating the factors related to self-perceived addiction and problematic pornography use. Despite the differences between the models and in the strength of specific predictors, (i) dysregulation, (ii) habits of use, and (iii) moral incongruence all uniquely contribute to self-perceived addiction and problematic pornography use.

Lewczuk, K., Glica, A., Nowakowska, I., et al. Evaluating Pornography Problems Due to Moral Incongruence Model. J Sex Med 2019. https://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(19)31783-7/fulltext

 

[johntt44]

Written pornography? That’s almost an oxymoron

That's for women!

 

[master.on]

Written pornography? That’s almost an oxymoron

That's for women!

Written pornography = erotic stories
not surprising that women find it alluring, they are reportedly less visual than men and more into feelings.

 

[kosp]

I completely stopped pornography about 3 months ago (maybe more I don´t remember), now I just use my imagination and I can tell my libido regularized and became steady as it feels now more healthy, I get horny easily with everyday stimulus like watching around hot girls at the gym. I feel more like myself, more clean-minded and owner of my sexual energy, stop the tyranny of the porn, it poisons your mind, letting porn go was one of the best decisions ever.

 

[Michael Scally MD]

Reading Pornography: Methodological Considerations in Evaluating Pornography Research

Introduction - With the emergence of rapidly expanding access to sexually explicit materials, research concerning pornography prevalence, pornography content, pornography users, and pornography effects has increased steadily among scientists and clinicians. Findings in this research area are often inconsistent and controversial.

Aim - The current discussion aims to assist scientists and clinicians to “read pornography—that is, pornography research—” from an appropriately rigorous scientific perspective, so that we may approach work in this area with a clearer understanding of the often contested evidence base and a clearer understanding of what science can, and cannot, tell us, at present, about pornography prevalence, content, users, and effects.

Methods - Discussion focuses on the critical implications, for scientific validity and clinical application, of variations in research design, participant sampling, conceptual and operational definitions of “pornography” and “use,” measurement of sexually violent content, and measurement of pornography use effects.

Results - Failure to acknowledge the implications of research design limitations and heterogeneity of conceptual and operational definitions of pornography have resulted in an inconsistent and contested evidence base in this area.

Clinical Implications - Clinicians must rigorously evaluate the published literature concerning pornography, according to classical principles of scientific research, before clinical application of diverse and inconsistent research claims.

Strength & Limitations - This analysis brings to bear classic scientific considerations in attempting to strengthen critical reading and research contributions in the area of pornography prevalence, content, users, correlates, and effects. Many of the assertions and suggestions contained in this discussion await empirical verification.

Conclusion - Rigorous application of basic scientific research principles should guide the evaluation and conduct of research concerning pornography prevalence, content, users, covariates, and effects.

Fisher WA, Kohut T. Reading Pornography: Methodological Considerations in Evaluating Pornography Research. J Sex Med 2019. https://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(19)31781-3/abstract

 

[NorthMich]

As much as I like porn, it’s like crack and not at all good for a real sex life. I’m really looking to quit it altogether as others have mentioned.

 

[master.on]

now I just use my imagination

If the urge to masturbate becomes too much
you can just fap thinking about the girls you just met.

'She was ugly but that's an ass'
(I'm an ass guy, not much into tits)
You'll be surprised how many girls are actually doable and easy to seduce if you lower your standards a bit.

 

[Michael Scally MD]

High-Frequency Pornography Use May Not Always Be Problematic

Background - Previously, variable-centered analytic approaches showed positive, weak-to-moderate associations between frequency of pornography use (FPU) and problematic pornography use (PPU). However, person-centered studies are sparse in the literature, and these could provide insight into whether there are individuals who use pornography frequently and do not experience problems or whether there are individuals with comparable high-frequency use who differ on reported experiencing of negative consequences.

Aim - The aims of the present study were (i) to identify profiles of pornography use based on FPU and PPU by applying a person-centered analytic approach and (ii) to examine whether the identified profiles could be distinguished based on theoretically relevant demographic and psychological constructs.

Methods - Latent profile analyses were conducted on 3 nonclinical samples recruited from general websites and a pornography site (study 1: N = 14,006; study 2: N = 483; study 3: N = 672).

Results - Results were consistent across all studies. 3 distinct pornography-use profiles emerged: nonproblematic low-frequency pornography use (68–73% of individuals), nonproblematic high-frequency pornography use (19–29% of individuals), and problematic high-frequency use (3–8% of individuals). Nonproblematic and problematic high-frequency-use groups showed differences in several constructs (ie, hypersexuality, depressive symptoms, boredom susceptibility, self-esteem, uncomfortable feelings regarding pornography, and basic psychological needs)

Clinical Translation - FPU should not be considered as a sufficient or reliable indicator of PPU because the number of people with nonproblematic high-frequency use was 3–6 times higher than that with problematic high-frequency use. These results suggest that individuals with PPU use pornography frequently; however, FPU may not always be problematic.

Strengths & Limitations - Self-report cross-sectional methods have possible biases that should be considered when interpreting findings (eg, underreporting or overreporting). However, the present research included 3 studies and involved large community samples and visitors of a pornography website. The present study is the first that empirically investigated pornography-use profiles with a wide range of correlates using both severity of PPU and FPU as profile indicators on specific and general samples.

Conclusion - The present study is a first step in the differentiated examination of pornography-use profiles, taking into consideration both PPU and FPU, and it provides a foundation for further clinical and large-scale studies. Different psychological mechanisms may underlie the development and maintenance of FPU with or without PPU, suggesting different treatment approaches. Therefore, the present results may guide clinical work when considering reasons for seeking treatment for PPU.

Bőthe B, Tóth-Király I, Potenza MN, Orosz G, Demetrovics Z. High-Frequency Pornography Use May Not Always Be Problematic. The Journal of Sexual Medicine. https://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(20)30032-1/fulltext

 

[master.on]

High-Frequency Pornography Use May Not Always Be Problematic

Background - Previously, variable-centered analytic approaches showed positive, weak-to-moderate associations between frequency of pornography use (FPU) and problematic pornography use (PPU). However, person-centered studies are sparse in the literature, and these could provide insight into whether there are individuals who use pornography frequently and do not experience problems or whether there are individuals with comparable high-frequency use who differ on reported experiencing of negative consequences.

Aim - The aims of the present study were (i) to identify profiles of pornography use based on FPU and PPU by applying a person-centered analytic approach and (ii) to examine whether the identified profiles could be distinguished based on theoretically relevant demographic and psychological constructs.

Methods - Latent profile analyses were conducted on 3 nonclinical samples recruited from general websites and a pornography site (study 1: N = 14,006; study 2: N = 483; study 3: N = 672).

Results - Results were consistent across all studies. 3 distinct pornography-use profiles emerged: nonproblematic low-frequency pornography use (68–73% of individuals), nonproblematic high-frequency pornography use (19–29% of individuals), and problematic high-frequency use (3–8% of individuals). Nonproblematic and problematic high-frequency-use groups showed differences in several constructs (ie, hypersexuality, depressive symptoms, boredom susceptibility, self-esteem, uncomfortable feelings regarding pornography, and basic psychological needs)

Clinical Translation - FPU should not be considered as a sufficient or reliable indicator of PPU because the number of people with nonproblematic high-frequency use was 3–6 times higher than that with problematic high-frequency use. These results suggest that individuals with PPU use pornography frequently; however, FPU may not always be problematic.

Strengths & Limitations - Self-report cross-sectional methods have possible biases that should be considered when interpreting findings (eg, underreporting or overreporting). However, the present research included 3 studies and involved large community samples and visitors of a pornography website. The present study is the first that empirically investigated pornography-use profiles with a wide range of correlates using both severity of PPU and FPU as profile indicators on specific and general samples.

Conclusion - The present study is a first step in the differentiated examination of pornography-use profiles, taking into consideration both PPU and FPU, and it provides a foundation for further clinical and large-scale studies. Different psychological mechanisms may underlie the development and maintenance of FPU with or without PPU, suggesting different treatment approaches. Therefore, the present results may guide clinical work when considering reasons for seeking treatment for PPU.

Bőthe B, Tóth-Király I, Potenza MN, Orosz G, Demetrovics Z. High-Frequency Pornography Use May Not Always Be Problematic. The Journal of Sexual Medicine. https://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(20)30032-1/fulltext

Frequently watching porn DOES decrease performance and productivity a lot lot.

The problem is that those liberals lowered the performance bar from what's expected from young men, that they are not able to tell any difference.

 

[Michael Scally MD]

 

[Rule_88]

I believe a fellow “Bostonian”- Dr. Morgentaler, did a write up about porn and ED some years ago. Cant remember where I read it

 

[Michael Scally MD]

The Effect of Porn Watching on Erectile Function

Introduction & Objectives: More and more young men present with erectile dysfunction (ED)(1). This study was undertaken to see if the amount of porn watching has an effect on erectile function in men.

Materials & Methods: A 118-item questionnaire about male sexual health was created on Qualtrics® and published online (www.malesexualhealth.be). The link to the anonymous questionnaire was spread through (social) media, posters and flyers. Apart from standard demographic questions, participants were asked about their frequency of sexual intercourse and masturbation, frequency and duration of watching. IIEF-5 score(2) was also included. Because IIEF can be falsely low in men who don’t have penetrative sex(3), we also used MSHQ-ED(4) (including ED bother item) alongside IIEF. Hours of watching per week of each participant were calculated and a scatter plot correlating hours of watching with IIEF and MSHQ-ED was created. Assumptions for linear trendline analyses were checked.

Results: 3267 men responded to the necessary questions. Age distribution was as follows: 38.1% between 16 and 25, 29% between 26 and 35, 22.5% between 36 and 45, 10.4% above 45 years of age. 28.4% of our participants was single, 5.7% was in a new relationship (<6 months), 35,4% was in a longstanding relationship (>6 months), 29.2% engaged or married and 1.3% was divorced or widowed. Frequency of watching was on average 70 minutes per week with a minimum of 0 and a maximum of 1575 minutes (SD 119). 2.2% watched more than 7 hours per week. A watching session lasted on average below 5 min in 7.5% of participants, between 5 to 10 minutes in 28.0%, between 10 to 15 minutes in 27.7%, between 15 and 30 minutes in 22.8%, 30 min to 1 hour in 10.7% and more then 1 hour in 3.1%. Assumptions for a linear trend line were confirmed. A clear negative trendline was observed showing lower IIEF-5 and MSHQ-ED scores with more watching with R2=0.009 for the correlation with IIEF-5 and R2=0.005 for MSHQ-ED.

Conclusions: This analysis indicates an inverse correlation between amount of watching and Erectile Function. The R2 values indicate that ED is not only explained by watching but is of course multifactorial. More analyses are necessary to find out from which threshold watchers are at risk.

Jacobs T, Fog-Poulsen K, Vermandel A, Wood D, De Wachter S, De Win G. 730 - The effect of porn watching on erectile function. European Urology Open Science 2020;19:e1121-e2. The effect of porn watching on erectile function - ScienceDirect

 

[KingCahoot3627]

You'll be surprised how many girls are actually doable and easy to seduce if you lower your standards a bit.

If we only learn one thing from this thread...

 

[Michael Scally MD]

Perry SL. Does Low-Cost Sexual Gratification Make Men Less Eager to Marry? Pornography Use, Masturbation, Hookup Sex, and Desire to Be Married Among Single Men [published online ahead of print, 2020 Aug 5]. Arch Sex Behav. 2020;10.1007/s10508-020-01793-w. doi:10.1007/s10508-020-01793-w Does Low-Cost Sexual Gratification Make Men Less Eager to Marry? Pornography Use, Masturbation, Hookup Sex, and Desire to Be Married Among Single Men

Coinciding with declining rates of marriage and coupled sex in the U.S., some scholars have proposed that the growing availability of "low-cost sexual gratification" or "cheap sex"-sexual activities such as hookups, pornography use, and masturbation that demand little effort or investment-will lead men to find marital commitment less appealing.

Using data from two nationally representative surveys of American adults (2012 New Family Structures Study, N = 349; 2014 Relationships in America Survey, N = 1402), the current study tested the thesis that unmarried men's pornography use, masturbation habits, or frequency of recent hookup sex would be associated with a lower likelihood of them finding marriage desirable.

This thesis was unsupported. In both surveys, masturbation and hookup sex were not associated with unmarried men wishing to be married, while pornography use was robustly and linearly associated with a higher likelihood of wanting to be married. This association was apparent at both the bivariate level and after taking into account sexual satisfaction, relationship status, beliefs about marriage, and a host of other potential confounds. Findings suggest that, rather than making marriage less desirable, some forms of "low-cost sexual gratification" such as pornography use to predict a comparatively higher desire for marriage.

The implications of these findings are considered in light of sex-exchange theories of marital commitment and the large body of previous research connecting pornography use to more liberal, non-monogamous sexual attitudes.

Notes

1. Along with these three indicators of “cheap sex,” Regnerus (2017) also proposed that timing of first sex in a romantic relationship would also lead to lower interest in marriage among unmarried men. Specifically, when men can access sex earlier in the relationship without demonstrating commitment, Regnerus theorized they would be less compelled to make long-term commitments. Unfortunately, the available data did not have measures to assess the timing of sex in romantic relationships. Thus, the study focused on pornography use, masturbation, and hookup sex among single men.

2. Because the data for this study were collected in 2011–2012 and 2014, generalizability 6–9 years later should be kept in mind. However, both surveys were obviously fielded well within the Internet and smartphone eras, and thus, the extent to which the associations observed here might have changed is minimized.

3. The analysis was not limited to only heterosexual men because the thesis simply states that greater access to low-cost sex substitutes like hookup sex, pornography use, and masturbation will be associated with a lower interest in marriage among single men. This could be the case for both heterosexual men and men who are not strictly heterosexual. Nevertheless, when only heterosexual men are included in multivariate models, the findings are virtually identical substantively and in statistical significance. Models are available upon request.

4. Ultimately, while this measure is associated with desire to be married in both the NFSS and the RIA (Tables 3 and 4) and with the “low-cost” sex measures (Table 2), omitting that this variable from the analysis did not change the findings in the full models either substantively or in statistical significance. Models available upon request.

5. While this is a large number of controls to include for the NFSS models with an N of 349 in full models, these were all maintained in order to make the analyses between the NFSS and the RIA as similar as possible to provide close replication. Because the findings in the NFSS were substantively identical to what was found in the RIA at both the bivariate and multivariate level, this suggests that the large number of controls was not necessarily a problem.

 

[wedorecover]

I completely stopped pornography about 3 months ago (maybe more I don´t remember), now I just use my imagination and I can tell my libido regularized and became steady as it feels now more healthy, I get horny easily with everyday stimulus like watching around hot girls at the gym. I feel more like myself, more clean-minded and owner of my sexual energy, stop the tyranny of the porn, it poisons your mind, letting porn go was one of the best decisions ever.

I recently stopped all porn or even running out out was hard at first blue balls like a mf but honestly life is better this way

 

[kosp]

I recently stopped all porn or even running out out was hard at first blue balls like a mf but honestly life is better this way

I went back to it.

Now I only see lesbic porn, not interested at all in watching other dicks.

 

[Michael Scally MD]

Women in Relationships and Their Pornography Use

A systematic review and thematic synthesis were conducted on the motivations, purposes, and influence of pornography use among women who are in committed relationships.

Pornography use was identified as having both positive and negative outcomes for women's sexual and relationship lives.

Women watched pornography for diverse reasons: to feel sexually empowered, to enhance sexual arousal, and for masturbation purposes.

Shared use of pornography with partners provided variety in sexual activities, could aid communication about sexual issues and helped improve intimacy.

Pornography use can help some women feel sexually empowered, relaxed and better able to enjoy their sexual lives.

Litsou K, Graham C, Ingham R. Women in Relationships and Their Pornography Use: A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis. J Sex Marital Ther. 2021 Feb 24:1-34. doi: 10.1080/0092623X.2021.1885532. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33627043. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0092623X.2021.1885532?journalCode=usmt20