The ups and downs of porn: sexism, relationships and sexual aggression
David Cameron's repeated
initiatives to regulate access to
online pornography reflect an
ongoing moral panic that society as
we know it is being torn apart by
smut. Yet this contrasts sharply
with apparently widespread
enjoyment and consumption of
sexually explicit material. Actual
statistics on pornography use are
difficult to pin down and often
misused, but general patterns
suggest that internet users in the UK
deliberately access online
pornography more frequently than
they access all social networking
sites put together.
In fact, despite the concerns of
politicians and conservative media,
psychological research into the
negative consequences of
pornography is surprisingly
ambivalent. One reason is that it's
tricky – most studies rely on honest
responses to surveys about an
activity that many people are
reluctant to talk openly about.
Controlled lab-based studies that
compare responses after watching
pornography are also difficult to
interpret – forced exposure to
pornography under laboratory
conditions likely produces very
different reactions than viewing by
choice in the comfort of one's own
home.
The impact of pornography is also
complicated by a host of variables
including the type of material
being viewed, the amount of
exposure and the individual
characteristics of the viewer.
Nevertheless, converging studies
are pointing to certain consistent
and reliable impacts of
pornography use. For instance, on
the dark side, prolonged use of
violent pornography has been
associated with increased
acceptance of coercion and
aggression in sexual relationships
and numerous studies have shown
a strong association between
viewing pornography and sexual
aggression in those who are
already prone to acts of criminal
behavior.
However, it is estimated that only
8-17% of internet pornography
users experience addiction or
regularly access violent materials.
Indeed, even compulsive use is
commonly characterised by intense
early involvement followed by a
natural decline . This means that
the vast majority (83-92%) of
online pornography consumers are
non-compulsive, recreational
users.
One of the common concerns
related to pornography use is that
it's damaging to relationships . Most
studies focus on heterosexual
couples and find that some women
whose husbands or boyfriends are
heavy users experience profound
personal distress, negative views of
the relationship and diminished
self-worth. However, this is not
necessarily the case for non-
compulsive users. A survey of 650
young men in Croatia found no
difference between users and non-
users of mainstream, non-violent
pornography in terms of their
levels of sexual satisfaction, degree
of intimacy in current or recent
relationships or range of sexual
experiences.
Another common concern with
regards to pornography is that it
encourages oppression and
degradation of women. If this were
the case, we might expect
significant differences between gay
and heterosexual pornography but
comparison of the most popular
pornographic DVDs revealed no
significant differences in the
treatment of male or female sexual
partners by male protagonists. Nor
has any association been found
between the amount of
pornography used and negative
attitudes towards women. In 2007,
Alan McKee included a survey in
mail-order pornographic materials
to which 1,023 Australian men
responded. The type and amount of
pornography purchased bore no
relation to sexist attitudes, although
age, political leaning and level of
education did.
Even within a relatively
homogenous population such as
undergraduate students (same age,
same level of education),
pornography use did not predict
sexist attitudes. A study of 295
American male and female students
revealed that although consumers
of pornography did not display
any more negative attitudes
towards women than non-
consumers, they were more likely
to believe that women should be
protected from harm. The authors
refer to this as "benevolent
sexism".
And it is a misconception that it is
only men who watch pornography .
In the UK 30% of women report
regularly accessing explicit sexual
materials and a Swedish survey of
1,835 respondents revealed that
women aged 35-49 years had
significantly more experience of
pornography and cybersex than
men of the same age. The authors
suggest that rather than oppressing
women , the anonymity of online
pornography might offer a forum
in which women are more
comfortable expressing and
exploring their sexuality, freed
from the restrictions and attitudes
of wider society.
Finally, perhaps the most serious
challenge leveled at pornography is
that it encourages sexual
aggression. There has been some
support of this idea in lab-based
studies, especially with regards to
violent pornography, but global
statistics are contradictory. For
instance, decriminalisation of
pornographic material in Denmark
in the 1960s was associated with
significant declines in sexual
assaults and as access to
pornography has grown in
previously prohibitive countries
such as Japan and China, rape
statistics have plummeted. Sexual
crimes have dropped by 85% in the
USA over the past 40 years but this
decrease is not consistent across
the whole country. In those states
with the least access to the internet
between 1980 and 2000, and
therefore to internet pornography,
the incidence of rape increased by
53% while those states with the
most access to the internet
experienced a 27% drop.
Governments have been attempting
to regulate access to pornography
for decades with little success. It is
unlikely that Cameron's current
initiatives will work as they follow
a very similar format. But society
might not go to hell in a
handbasket after all. What
psychological research is showing
repeatedly is that many of the
assumptions about mainstream
pornography use – that it ruins
relationships, denigrates women
and leads to sexual aggression –
might be wrong. Which just goes to
show, perhaps there is a sunny side
to smut after all.
