Studies linking porn use to poorer mental-emotional health & poorer cognitive outcomes
Many individuals who cease using porn for an extended period of time report mental and cognitive benefits, such as improved concentration and focus, better grades, increased energy and motivation, social anxiety improved or gone, increased confidence, improved mood, depression reduced or gone, greater desire to be social, more intense or vibrant emotions, and increased desire to be in a loving relationship.
Relevant YBOP FAQs with hundreds of first-person accounts:
- Is porn use making my social anxiety/confidence/depression worse?
- Can porn use blunt my emotions?
- Can porn use affect memory and concentration?
- What benefits do people see as they reboot?
Some studies have looked at (1) porn use and mental & emotional health, and (2) porn use and cognitive functioning. Below are the two lists of these studies.
List one: Studies reporting links between porn use and poorer mental and emotional health:
Students who did not participate in either online sexual activity were more satisfied with their offline life and more connected to friends and family. Those who engaged in both online sexual activities were more dependent on the Internet and reported lower offline functioning.
Despite students’ common participation in online sexual activities (OSA) as a venue for social and sexual development, those relying on the Internet and the affiliations it provides appear at risk of decreased social integration.
Internet Pornography and Loneliness: An Association? (2005) – Excerpt:
Results showed a significant association between Internet pornography usage and loneliness as evidenced by the data analysis.
Use of Internet Pornography and Men’s Well-Being (2005) – Excerpt:
Although most individuals utilize the Internet for occupational, educational, recreational, and shopping purposes, a sizable male minority exists, known as Cybersex compulsives and at-risk users, who invest an inordinate amount of their time, money, and energy in the pursuit of Cybersex experiences with negative intrapersonal ramifications in terms of depression, anxiety, and problems with felt intimacy with their real-life partners.
Exposure to internet pornography among children and adolescents a national survey (2005) – Excerpts:
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.
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.
Compared to non-pornographic Internet site users, infrequent pornographic Internet site users were twice as likely to have abnormal conduct problems; frequent pornographic Internet site users were significantly more likely to have abnormal conduct problems. Thus, both infrequent and frequent pornographic Internet site use are prevalent and significantly associated with social maladjustment among Greek adolescents.
Social bonds and Internet pornographic exposure among adolescents (2009) – A summary from a review:
The study found that adolescents with higher degrees of social interaction and bonding were not as likely to consume sexually explicit material as were their less social peers (Mesch, 2009). Additionally, Mesch found that greater quantities of pornography consumption were significantly correlated with lower degrees of social integration, specifically related to religion, school, society, and family. The study also found a statistically significant relationship between pornography consumption and aggressiveness in school….
Frequent use was also associated with many problem behaviours. High frequent viewing of pornography may be seen as a problematic behaviour that needs more attention from both parents and teachers and also to be addressed in clinical interviews.
Participants were 192 emerging-adult men ages 18–27 attending a religious university in the Western United States. While they all believed pornography to be unacceptable, those who did not use pornography (compared to those who did) reported (a) higher levels of past and recent individual religious practices, (b) past family religious practices, (c) higher levels of self-worth and identity development regarding dating and family, and (d) lower levels of depression.
Mental-and physical-health indicators and sexually explicit media use behavior by adults (2011) – Excerpt:
After adjusting for demographics, Pornography (SEMB) users, compared to nonusers, reported greater depressive symptoms, poorer quality of life, more mental- and physical-health diminished days, and lower health status.
Watching Pornographic Pictures on the Internet: Role of Sexual Arousal Ratings and Psychological-Psychiatric Symptoms for Using Internet Sex Sites Excessively (2011) – Scores on a porn addiction questionnaire (IATsex) correlated with higher levels of psychological problems such as: interpersonal sensitivity, depression, paranoid thinking and psychoticism. Excerpts:
We found a positive relationship between subjective sexual arousal when watching Internet pornographic pictures and the self-reported problems in daily life due to the excessiveness of cybersex as measured by the IATsex. Subjective arousal ratings, the global severity of psychological symptoms, and the number of sex applications used were significant predictors of the IATsex score, while the time spent on Internet sex sites did not significantly contribute to explanation of variance in the IATsex score.
In our sample, the global symptom severity (SCL GSI), as well as interpersonal sensitivity, depression, paranoid thinking and psychoticism, were correlated particularly with the IATsex score.
The current study examined the relationship of Internet pornography viewing and experiential avoidance to a range of psychosocial problems (depression, anxiety, stress, social functioning, and problems related to viewing) through a cross-sectional online survey conducted with a non-clinical sample of 157 undergraduate college males. Results indicated that frequency of viewing was significantly related to each psychosocial variable, such that more viewing was related to greater problems.
Women, Female Sex and Love Addicts, and Use of the Internet (2012) – This study compared female cybersex addicts to female sex addicts, and female non-addicts. The cybersex addicts experienced higher levels of depression. An excerpt:
For each of these variables, the pattern was that participants in the cybersex group and participants in the addicted/no cybersex group were more likely to experience depression, attempt suicide, or have withdrawal symptoms than participants in the non-addicted/no cybersex group. Participants in the cybersex group were more likely to report being depressed than participants in the addicted/no cybersex group.
The study sought to investigate the relationship between pornography addiction and psychosocial and academic adjustment of students in universities in Lagos State. In order to achieve this objective, five research questions were formulated and two hypotheses postulated. The subjects for the study consisted of 616 full-time third-year undergraduate students from two universities in Lagos State.
The findings show that university students in Lagos State experienced high level of pornography addiction. The results also show that university students in Lagos State experienced moderate level of psychosocial and academic adjustment. There is a significant but negative relationship between pornography addiction and psychosocial adjustment. There is a slight positive relationship between pornography addiction and academic adjustment.
Consumption of Pornographic Materials among Hong Kong Early Adolescents: A Replication (2012) – Excerpts:
In general, higher levels of positive youth development and better family functioning were related to a lower level of pornography consumption. The relative contribution of positive youth development and family factors to consumption of pornographic materials was also explored.
The present study attempted to explore the linkage between family functioning and pornography consumption. Three features of family functioning, mutuality, communication and harmony were negatively related to pornography consumption.
Emerging Adult Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors: Does Shyness Matter? (2013) – Excerpt:
Shyness was positively associated with solitary sexual behaviors of masturbation and pornography use for men.
Compulsive sexual behavior in young adults (2013) – Excerpts:
Compared with respondents without CSB, individuals with CSB reported more depressive and anxiety symptoms, higher levels of stress, poorer self-esteem, and higher rates of social anxiety disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, compulsive buying, pathological gambling, and kleptomania.
CSB is common among young adults and is associated with symptoms of anxiety, depression, and a range of psychosocial impairments.
Narcissism & Internet Pornography Use (2014) – Excerpt:
The hours spent viewing Internet pornography use was positively correlated to participant’s narcissism level. Additionally, those who have ever used Internet pornography endorsed higher levels of all three measures of narcissism than those who have never used Internet pornography.
Pornography and Marriage (2014) – Porn use correlated with less overall happiness. An excerpt:
We found that adults who had watched an X-rated movie in the past year were more likely to be divorced, more likely to have had an extramarital affair, and less likely to report being happy with their marriage or happy overall. We also found that, for men, pornography use reduced the positive relationship between frequency of sex and happiness.
Pornography consumption, psychosomatic health and depressive symptoms among Swedish adolescents (2014) – Excerpts:
The aims of the study were to investigate predictors for frequent use of pornography and to investigate such use in relation to psychosomatic and depressive symptoms among Swedish adolescents. …..we found that being a girl, living with separated parents, attending a vocational high school program, and being a frequent user of pornography at baseline had major effects on psychosomatic symptoms at follow-up
Frequent use of pornography at baseline predicted psychosomatic symptoms at follow-up to a higher extent compared to depressive symptoms.
In the longitudinal analyses frequent use of pornography was more associated to psychosomatic symptoms compared with depressive symptoms.
Male frequent users of pornography more often reported peer-relationship problems than their peers.
Psychological, Relational, and Sexual Correlates of Pornography Use on Young Adult Heterosexual Men in Romantic Relationships (2014) – Higher porn use and problematic porn use was linked to more avoidant and anxious attachment styles. Excerpt:
Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine theorized antecedents (i.e., gender role conflict and attachment styles) and consequences (i.e., poorer relationship quality and sexual satisfaction) of men’s pornography use among 373 young adult heterosexual men. Findings revealed that both frequency of pornography use and problematic pornography use were related to greater gender role conflict, more avoidant and anxious attachment styles, poorer relationship quality, and less sexual satisfaction.
Neural Correlates of Sexual Cue Reactivity in Individuals with and without Compulsive Sexual Behaviours (2014) – Even though Voon et al., 2014 excluded individuals with major psychiatric conditions, the porn addicted subjects scores higher on depression and anxiety assessments. Excerpt:
CSB subjects [porn addicts] had higher depression and anxiety scores (Table S2 in File S1) but no current diagnoses of major depression
No Harm in Looking, Right? Men’s Pornography Consumption, Body Image, and Well-Being (2014) – Excerpt:
Path analyses revealed that men’s frequency of pornography use was (a) positively linked to muscularity and body fat dissatisfaction indirectly through internalization of the mesomorphic ideal, (b) negatively linked to body appreciation directly and indirectly through body monitoring, (c) positively linked to negative affect indirectly through romantic attachment anxiety and avoidance, and (d) negatively linked to positive affect indirectly through relationship attachment anxiety and avoidance.
Patient Characteristics by Type of Hypersexuality Referral: A Quantitative Chart Review of 115 Consecutive Male Cases (2015) – Study placed “hypersexuals” into 2 categories: “chronic adulterers” and “avoidant masturbators” (who were chronic porn users). Excerpts:
The avoidant masturbator subtype was operationalized as those cases who reported more than 1 hr (or one episode) of masturbation per day or more than 1 hr of pornography viewing per day, or more than 7 hr (or episodes) per week.
With respect to the mental health and sexological variables, the avoidant masturbator subtype [compulsive porn users] was significantly more likely to report a history of anxiety problems and of sexual functioning problems (71% vs. 31%) with delayed ejaculation being the most commonly reported sexual functioning problem.
Perceived Addiction to Internet Pornography and Psychological Distress: Examining Relationships Concurrently and Over Time (2015) – Ignore the phrase “perceived addiction, as it really means the total score on the Grubbs’s CPUI-9, which is an actual porn addiction questionnaire (see YBOP full critique of the perceived porn addiction nonsense). Put simply, porn addiction is correlated with psychological distress (anger, depression, anxiety, stress). An excerpt:
At the outset of this study, we hypothesized that “perceived addiction” to Internet pornography would be positively associated with psychological distress. Using a large cross-sectional sample of adult web users and a large cross-sectional sample of undergraduate web users, we found consistent support for this hypothesis. Additionally, in a 1-year longitudinal analysis of undergraduate pornography users, we found links between perceived addiction and psychological distress over time. Collectively, these findings strongly underscore the claim that “perceived addiction” to Internet pornography likely contributes to the experience of psychological distress for some individuals.
An Online Assessment of Personality, Psychological, and Sexuality Trait Variables Associated with Self-Reported Hypersexual Behavior (2015) – Porn/sex addiction was not only related to fear of experiencing erectile dysfunction, it was also linked to depression and anxiety. An excerpt:
Hypersexual” behavior represents a perceived inability to control one’s sexual behavior. To investigate hypersexual behavior, an international sample of 510 self-identified heterosexual, bisexual, and homosexual men and women completed an anonymous online self-report questionnaire battery. In addition to age and sex (male), hypersexual behavior was related to higher scores on measures of sexual excitation, sexual inhibition due to the threat of performance failure, trait impulsivity, and both depressed mood and anxiety.
This study investigated whether factors from three distinct psychosocial domains (i.e., psychological well-being, sexual interests/behaviors, and impulsive-psychopathic personality) predicted symptoms of compulsive use of sexually explicit Internet material among adolescent boys. Longitudinally, higher levels of depressive feelings and, again, excessive sexual interest predicted relative increases in compulsive use symptoms 6 months later.
Psychological, Relational, and Biological Correlates of Ego-Dystonic Masturbation in a Clinical Setting (2016) – The original paper (here) used the phrase “Compulsive Masturbation” to describe the subject’s activity. The paper’s publisher (Sexual Medicine Open) changed “Compulsive Masturbation” to “Ego-Dystonic Masturbation”. In 2016 compulsive masturbation, in a clinical setting, is synonymous with compulsive porn use. An excerpt:
Our data confirm previous observations that psychiatric comorbidities, especially mood, anxiety, and personality disorders, are the rule rather the exception for people with compulsive sexual behaviors. 21, 22, 23, 24 However, EM could be associated with a non-specific anxious activation.
Men’s pornography consumption in the UK: prevalence and associated problem behaviour (2016) – Excerpt:
Those who reported pornography addiction were much more likely to engage in a variety of risky antisocial behaviours, including heavy drinking, fighting, and weapon use, using illegal drugs gambling and viewing illegal images to name but a few. They also reported poorer physical and psychological health.
In this study, the frequent visitation of Internet pornography showed a high association of vulnerabilities towards mental health indicators. Lower levels of happiness and higher levels of stress, sadness, and hopelessness (possibly connected to the higher rates of suicidal ideation and suicidal attempts) seemed to be increasing factors for the frequent use of Internet pornography by adolescents.
Internet-pornography-viewing disorder (IPD) is considered one type of Internet-use disorder. For IPD’s development, it was assumed theoretically that a dysfunctional use of Internet pornography to cope with depressive mood or stress might be considered as a risk factor. Data showed that tendencies towards IPD were associated negatively with feeling generally good, awake, and calm and positively with perceived stress in daily life and using Internet pornography for excitation seeking and emotional avoidance. Moreover, tendencies towards IPD were negatively related to mood before and after Internet-pornography use.
Problematic sexual behavior in young adults: Associations across clinical, behavioral, and neurocognitive variables (2016) – Individuals with Problematic Sexual Behaviors (PSB) exhibited several neuro-cognitive deficits and psychological problems. A few excerpts:
This analysis also indicated that PSB was associated with worse quality of life, lower self-esteem, and higher rates of comorbidities across several disorders. Furthermore, the PSB group showed deficits across several neurocognitive domains, including motor inhibition, spatial working memory, and an aspect of decision making. Thus, it is possible that PSB gives rise to a host of secondary problems, ranging from alcohol dependence and depression to deteriorations in quality of life and self-esteem.
A Preliminary Model of Motivation for Pornography Consumption Among Men Participating in Zoophilic Virtual Environments (2016) – Maybe this study shouldn’t be included in this list, but here it is. Excerpts:
This study aimed to confirm the factorial validity of the Pornography Consumption Inventory in an online sample of men with sexual interest in animals, and to construct an association model between motivations for pornography consumption and the following psychological variables: depression, sexual impulsiveness, and strength of sexual interest in animals. Results support the 4-factor model of the Pornography Consumption Inventory. Sexual impulsiveness was positively associated with the emotional avoidance, excitement seeking, and sexual pleasure factors. Depression and sexual impulsiveness were positively correlated.
Problematic internet pornography use: The role of craving, desire thinking, and metacognition (2017) – While not so clear in the text, this study found correlations between cravings for pornography and scores on depression & anxiety questionnaires (negative affect). An excerpt:
The present study tested the metacognitive model of desire thinking and craving for problematic pornography use, and expanded upon the same model to include negative affect related to desire thinking.
Visiting porn sites were associated with interest in sex, low mood, lack of concentration, and unexplained anxiety.
Pornography was significantly associated with several psychological problems in adolescents. Due to the structural immaturity of the adolescent brain and relative inexperience, they are unable to process the myriad nature of sexual content online which may lead to attention problems, anxiety, and depression.
Pornography Use and Loneliness: A Bi-Directional Recursive Model and Pilot Investigation (2017) – Excerpt:
Theoretically and empirically, we examine loneliness as it relates to pornography use in terms of pornography’s relational scripting and its addictive potential. Results from our analyses revealed significant and positive associations between pornography use and loneliness for all three models. Findings provide grounds for possible future bidirectional, recursive modeling of the relation between pornography use and loneliness.
How Abstinence Affects Preferences (2016) [preliminary results] – Excerpts from the article:
Results of the First Wave – Main Findings
- The length of the longest streak participants performed before taking part in the survey correlates with time preferences. The second survey will answer the question if longer periods of abstinence render participants more able to delay rewards, or if more patient participants are more likely to perform longer streaks.
- Longer periods of abstinence most likely cause less risk aversion (which is good). The second survey will provide the final proof.
- Personality correlates with length of streaks. The second wave will reveal if abstinence influences personality or if personality can explain variation in the length of streaks.
Results of the Second Wave – Main Findings
- Abstaining from pornography and masturbation increases the ability to delay rewards
- Participating in a period of abstinence renders people more willing to take risks
- Abstinence renders people more altruistic
- Abstinence renders people more extroverted, more conscientious, and less neurotic
Gay and bisexual men (GBM) have reported viewing significantly more sexually explicit media (SEM) than heterosexual men. There is evidence that viewing greater amounts of SEM may result in more negative body attitude and negative affect. However, no studies have examined these variables within the same model.
Greater consumption of SEM was directly related to more negative body attitude and both depressive and anxious symptomology. There was also a significant indirect effect of SEM consumption on depressive and anxious symptomology through body attitude. These findings highlight the relevance of both SEM on body image and negative affect along with the role body image plays in anxiety and depression outcomes for GBM.
A sample of 2733 sexual minority males living in Australia and New Zealand completed an online survey that contained measures of pornography use, body dissatisfaction, eating disorder symptoms, thoughts about using anabolic steroids and quality of life. Almost all (98.2%) participants reported pornography use with a median use of 5.33 hours per month.
Multivariate analyses revealed that increased pornography use was associated with greater dissatisfaction with muscularity, body fat and height; greater eating disorder symptoms; more frequent thoughts about using anabolic steroids; and lower quality of life.
Young Australians’ use of pornography and associations with sexual risk behaviours (2017) – Excerpt:
Younger age at first pornography viewing was associated with … recent mental health problems.
Objective – To investigate the current situation of pornography use among male seniors from Chongqing colleges and universities, and to analyze the correlation of pornography use with negative emotions.
In the cohort, 99.98% students had exposed to pornographic information, and 32.2% of them had a tendency to addiction.
The ratio of depression was 2.8% in the subjects who used pornography less than 1 time/week, and was 14.6% in those with a frequency of more than 3 times/week. The distribution of negative emotions in the senior students was positively correlated with pornography exposure time, frequency of use, duration and addiction. After adjustment with physical activity and sleep quality, the frequency of pornography use was still positively correlated with the scores of depression, anxiety and stress.
Understanding and predicting classes of college students who use pornography (2017) – Porn use is related to poorer self-esteem. Excerpt:
As expected, results indicated participants that reported higher self-esteem scores had lower odds being placed in the Complex or Auto-Erotic Porn User Classes compared with the class of Porn Abstainers. In one notable study, Nelson et al. (2010) suggested that higher levels of self-worth were related to lower pornography use patterns. The present study’s findings reinforce the negative correlation of self-esteem and pornography use. Due to the present study only offering statistical associations we cannot state cause and effect, however, our results corroborate that they are linked in some capacity.
Gender difference, class level and the role of internet addiction and loneliness on sexual compulsivity among secondary school students (2017) – Compulsive porn use strongly linked to loneliness. Excerpts:
Correlational analyses revealed significant direct relationships between internet addiction and sexual compulsivity. This suggests that the more secondary school children are addicted to internet use, the more they are predisposed to sexual compulsive behaviours
It was further revealed that a significant direct relationship between loneliness and sexual compulsivity exists. This means that the more secondary school students feel lonely or isolated, the more they are preoccupied with sexual thoughts that could predispose them to sexual compulsive behaviours.
Consequences of Pornography Use (2017) – Excerpts:
The objective of this study is to obtain a scientific and empirical approximation to the type of consumption of the Spanish population, the time they use in such consumption, the negative impact it has on the person and how anxiety is affected when it is not possible to access to it. The study has a sample of Spanish internet users (N = 2.408). An 8-item survey was developed through an online platform that provides information and psychological counselling on the harmful consequences of pornography consumption. To reach diffusion among the Spanish population, the survey was promoted through social networks and media.
The results show that one third of the participants had suffered negative consequences in family, social, academic or work environment. In addition, 33% spent more than 5 hours connected for sexual purposes, using pornography as a reward and 24% had anxiety symptoms if they could not connect.
Relationships between Exposure to Online Pornography, Psychological Well-Being and Sexual Permissiveness among Hong Kong Chinese Adolescents: a Three-Wave Longitudinal Study (2018) – Longitudinal study found that porn use was related to depression, lower life satisfaction and permissive sexual attitudes. Excerpts:
As hypothesized, adolescents’ exposure to online pornography was associated with depressive symptoms, and was in line with previous studies (e.g., Ma et al. 2018; Wolak et al. 2007). Adolescents, who were intentionally exposed to online pornography, reported a higher level of depressive symptom. These results are in line with past studies on the negative impact of internet usage on psychological well-being, such as depressive symptoms (Nesi and Prinstein 2015; Primack et al. 2017; Zhao et al. 2017), self-esteem (Apaolaza et al. 2013; Valkenburg et al. 2017), and loneliness (Bonetti et al. 2010; Ma 2017). Additionally, this study provides empirical support for the long-term effects of intentional exposure to online pornography on depression over time. This suggests that early intentional exposure to online pornography might lead to later depressive symptoms during adolescence…..
The negative relationship between life satisfaction and exposure to online pornography was in line with earlier studies (Peter and Valkenburg 2006; Ma et al. 2018; Wolak et al. 2007). The present study shows that adolescents who are less satisfied in their lives at Wave 2 may lead them to be exposed to both types of pornographic exposure at Wave 3.
The present study shows the concurrent and longitudinal effects of permissive sexual attitudes on both types of exposure to online pornography. As expected from previous research (Lo and Wei 2006; Brown and L’Engle 2009; Peter and Valkenburg 2006), sexually permissive adolescents reported higher levels of exposure to both types of online pornography.
Drawing on a representative survey of German internet users, we therefore analyze how women and men use SEIM to satisfy escapist needs. Lower life satisfaction, the lack of a committed relationship, and feelings of loneliness contribute to predicting the frequency of using SEIM among men. Loneliness likewise fosters the consumption of SEIM among women, yet the effect is less pronounced. For female internet users, consumption of SEIM even increases in committed relationships and rather indicates a comparably high level of life satisfaction than dissatisfaction with life circumstances. Gender hence substantially moderates the connection between need structures and the consumption of SEIM.
The above study said that higher porn use in women is related to both greater loneliness and greater life satisfaction. Very odd finding. When evaluating the research, it’s important to know that a relatively small percentage of all coupled females regularly consumes internet porn. Large, nationally representative data are scarce, but the General Social Survey reported that only 2.6% of married women had visited a “pornographic website” in the last month. The question was only asked in 2002 & 2004 (see Pornography and Marriage, 2014). The takeaway is that studies reporting positive or neutral effects on relationship satisfaction (or other variables) are deriving this correlation from the small percentage of females who are: (1) regular porn users, and, (2) in long-term relationships (perhaps 3-5% of adult females). With small samples inconsistent findings are bound to occur.
Understanding Associations between Personal Definitions of Pornography, Using Pornography, and Depression (2018) – Greater porn use was correlated with higher levels of depression, even after controlling for all sorts of variables, including perceptions of porn. Excerpts:
Therefore, even after controlling for a variety of demographic factors, impulsivity, pornography acceptance, and the general perception of sexual content as pornographic, the accumulated total viewing of sexual content was still significantly linked to higher levels of depressive symptoms as found in previous studies.
Results suggested that viewing sexual material that is not considered pornography was consistently associated with more depressive symptoms. In other words, when individuals tended to regularly view images of women without any clothing and did not perceive this as pornography, they were more likely to report higher depressive symptoms. Conversely, when individuals reported not viewing such images and believed such images to be pornographic, reports of depressive symptoms tended to be lower.
The Use of Online Pornography as Compensation for Loneliness and Lack of Social Ties Among Israeli Adolescents (2018) – Participants were ages 14-18. Excerpt:
The analyses also revealed that the higher the prevalence of pornography use, the higher the prevalence of sexually related online activities, and the higher the loneliness and insecure attachment orientations (anxiety and/or avoidance).
The dark side of internet: Preliminary evidence for the associations of dark personality traits with specific online activities and problematic internet use (2018) – Study finds that “online sexual use” is related to dark personality traits (machiavellianism, psychopathy, narcissism, sadism, and spitefulness).
Question: how would these traits differ after an extended period of time without porn & gaming?
Major Motivators and Sociodemographic Features of Women Undergoing Labiaplasty (2018) – Excerpts:
Half of the patients reported that they had an idea about the female genitalia (50.7%) and they were influenced through the media (47.9%). The majority of those (71.8%) stated that they did not have normal genitalia and considered labiaplasty more than 6 months ago (88.7%). The pornography consumption rate in the last month was 19.7% and was significantly related with lower genital self-image and self-esteem.
Self-evaluation of young people using erotic content on the Internet (2018) – Translated from Polish:
Young people who do not have sexually explicit content on the Internet have a higher level general self-assessment than young people using this content with frequency several times a month. This translates into more confidence yourself and a better opinion about yourself and a stronger sense of your own values.
Students who do not use erotic sites, experience more social support, they feel more loved and accepted by relatives than their colleagues reaching for erotic content on the Internet. This translates into their more optimistic assessment of theirs future relationships.
Subjects who do not use erotic content have a greater sense of self-control than their peers from group three and four who use from erotic sites several times a month and more often. As a result, it translates It’s about greater control over your emotions and perseverance and discipline.
Test subjects shunned by erotica on the Internet are also characterized higher level of identity integration than other participants in the research. This is expressed by the more mature structures of the “I” and the greater internal structures a sense of continuity and cohesion.
Perceptions of male partner pressure to be thin and pornography use: Associations with eating disorder symptomatology in a community sample of adult women (2019) – Study on porn’s effects on the female partner of a porn user.
The present study examined two partner-specific variables that were hypothesized to be linked to women’s ED symptoms: perceived male partner thinness-related pressures and pornography use.
Current and previous partner pornography use were related to higher ED symptomatology, adjusting for age and women’s reports of being bothered by this use. Partner thinness-related pressure and previous partner pornography use were associated with ED symptomatology both directly and through thin-ideal internalization, whereas current partner pornography use was directly associated with ED symptomatology.
Perceptions of male partner thinness-related pressure and pornography use constitute unique factors associated with women’s ED symptomatology that may operate indirectly by positioning women to endorse thinness as a personal standard and directly (e.g., by trying to accommodate their partner’s appearance preferences).
An increasing number of studies are concerned with various aspects of cybersex addiction, the difficulty some persons have in limiting cybersex use despite a negative impact on everyday life.
A sample of 145 subjects completed the study. Addictive cybersex use was associated with higher levels of sexual desire, depressive mood, avoidant attachment style, and male gender but not with impulsivity.
Our finding of an association between addictive cybersex use and depressive mood is congruent with other studies that showed the importance of links between addictive cybersex and diverse assessments of psychological distress and mood [,]. This finding is also in line with other reports of the association between excessive internet gaming [] or internet gambling [] and depressive mood. Such associations suggest that addictive cybersex is at least partly a coping behavior that aims to regulate negative emotions [,,,]. This finding opens the debate, as has occurred for other internet addictive-like behaviors, about an appropriate diagnostic framework [] and adequate understanding of such an association [].
The possible development of psychopathological distress, which could lead to a more pronounced depressive mood secondary to the negative impact of addictive cybersex (interpersonal isolation and reduction of offline sexual activities), cannot be ruled out [], and thus, further prospective studies are warranted.
Examining sexual motivation profiles and their correlates using latent profile analysis (2019) – The write-up of this 2019 study leaves a lot to be desired. That said this figure #4 from the full paper reveals a lot: problematic porn use is strongly related to poorer scores on (1) harmonious sexual passion (HSP); (2) obsessive sexual passion (OSP); (3) sexual satisfaction (SEXSAT); (4) life satisfaction (LIFESAT). Simply put, problematic porn use was linked to far lower scores on lower sexual passion, sexual satisfaction & life satisfaction (group to the right). In comparison, the group that scored highest on all these measures had the least problematic porn use (group to left).
The Effects of Pornography on Unethical Behavior in Business (2019) – Excerpts:
Given the pervasive nature of pornography, we study how viewing pornography affects unethical behavior at work. Using survey data from a sample that approximates a nationally representative sample in terms of demographics, we find a positive correlation between viewing pornography and intended unethical behavior. We then conduct an experiment to provide causal evidence. The experiment confirms the survey—consuming pornography causes individuals to be less ethical. We find that this relationship is mediated by increased moral disengagement from dehumanization of others due to viewing pornography. Combined, our results suggest that choosing to consume pornography causes individuals to behave less ethically.
What Is the Relationship Among Religiosity, Self-Perceived Problematic Pornography Use, and Depression Over Time? (2019) – Longitudinal study reporting that greater porn use results in higher levels of depression down the road. Excerpts:
Men who reported more depressive symptoms at baseline were more likely to use pornography excessively at 3 months and then to report more depressive symptoms at 6 months.
The relationship between self-perceived problematic pornography use and depressive symptoms was more straightforward in women, as depressive symptoms at baseline did not predict excessive pornography use or compulsive pornography use at 3 months. Our findings suggest temporal precedence of self-perceived problematic pornography use before increased depressive symptoms in women. In other words, women who reported depressive symptoms at baseline were not more or less likely to report self-perceived problematic pornography use at 3 months, but women who reported higher self-perceived problematic pornography use at 3 months reported more depressive symptoms at 6 months. Likewise, excessive pornography use at 3 months predicted higher depressive symptoms at 6 months for males.
Largely overlooked in the literature, this study investigated factors influencing women’s use of sexual coercion. Specifically, pornography use and personality disorder traits linked with poor impulse control, emotional regulation, and superior sense of sexual desirability were considered.
Multiple regression analyses revealed that pornography use (interest, efforts to engage with pornography, and compulsivity), narcissistic traits, and histrionic traits significantly predicted the use of nonverbal sexual arousal, emotional manipulation and deception, and exploitation of the intoxicated. Effort to engage with pornography was a significant individual predictor of nonverbal sexual arousal and emotional manipulation and deception, while histrionic traits were a significant individual predictor of exploitation of the intoxicated.
Cybersex use and problematic cybersex use among young Swiss men: Associations with sociodemographic, sexual, and psychological factors (2019) – Pretty much every negative personality trait was correlated with porn use (Cybersex Use or “CU”), or greater porn use (FCU). Excerpts:
Dysfunctional coping strategies and all the personality trait variables except denial were significantly associated with CU (Cybersex Use) and FCU (frequency of CU). Specifically, self-distraction, behavioral disengagement, self-blame, neuroticism–anxiety, aggression–hostility, and sensation seeking were significantly associated with higher odds of CU and higher FCU. By contrast, sociability was associated with lower odds of CU and lower FCU.
Mental health of university male students Viewing internet pornography: A qualitative study (2019) – Excerpts:
This research was carried out to explore psychosocial and mental health issues of adults viewing pornography on the internet. In- depth interviews were conducted with twenty five university male students to explore the psychosocial issues in cases of internet pornography.
Results: After data analysis, main three categories generated on psychosocial issues associated with viewing internet pornography which were psychological issues, social issues and mental illness.
Conclusion: Findings of the study indicate that males viewing internet pornography can be affected with psychosocial and mental health issues.
Are adolescents who consume pornography different from those who engaged in online sexual activities? (2020) – Ages 14-18. Porn use related to myriad negative personality traits and poorer mental health. Excerpts:
Israeli adolescents (N=2112; 788 boys and 1,324 girls), age 14-18 (M = 16.52, SD = 1.63), participated in an online study. Each participant completed a randomly ordered battery of self-report questionnaires on frequency of pornography use, sexually related online activities, personality traits, narcissism, emotion regulation strategies, individualism, social intimacy and socio-demographic factors. Adolescents who consumed pornography (i.e., solo online activity) are mostly boys, introvert, neurotic, less agreeable, and with less conscientious judgement. In addition, they are more overt narcissist, use more suppression and less reappraisal to regulate emotions, are high on vertical individualism, low on social intimacy.
Pornography and Purpose in Life: A Moderated Mediation Analysis (2020) – Used the CPUI-9 to assess problematic porn use. Excerpts:
Significant negative correlations were reported between purpose in life and all CPUI-9 factors (compulsivity, efforts, and negative affect) as well as overall CPUI-total score. While these results were not predicted by research hypotheses, they are in line with current research. Purpose in life has been shown to be negatively related to addictions (García-Alandete et al., 2014; Glaw et al., 2017; Kleftaras & Katsogianni, 2012; Marco et al., 2015), lack of motivation, and overall life dissatisfaction (Frankl, 2006; Hart & Cary, 2014).
For our six-month longitudinal study, we recruited a sample of adults from Turkprime.com. Contrary to our hypothesis, religiosity was not related to self-perceived problematic pornography use in any of the models.
For both men and women, excessive pornography use at three months was associated with increased depression at six months. For men, depression at baseline was associated with self-perceived problematic pornography use at three months.
Problematic online sexual activities in men: The role of self‐esteem, loneliness, and social anxiety (2020) – Excerpts:
Hence, the goal of this study was to test a theoretical model in which self‐esteem, loneliness, and social anxiety are hypothesized to predict the type of OSAs favored and their potential addictive use. To this end, an online survey was conducted in a sample of self‐selected men who used OSAs on a regular basis (N = 209). Results showed that low self‐esteem is positively associated with loneliness and high social anxiety, which were in turn positively related to involvement in two specific OSAs: use of pornography and the search for online sexual contacts. Higher engagement in these OSA activities was related to symptoms of addictive usage.
Exploring the Lived Experience of Problematic Users of Internet Pornography: A Qualitative Study (2020) – A few relevant excerpts (this paper is listed in both sections):
Participants described symptoms of anxiety and depression, poor concentration, and an inability to focus on essential tasks. They also reported feelings of shame, low self-worth, and guilt. Many also reported that their use of IP led to reduced sleep and, as a consequence, low mood and feeling unmotivated or lethargic during the day. This seems to have had an adverse flow-on effect, influencing their engagement with work or study, social activities, and significant others. Many participants reported feelings of loneliness and alienation as well as self-imposed isolation.
Participants reported experiencing symptoms of both social and general anxiety, symptoms of depression, including amotivation, isolating behaviors, and low mood, which they attributed to their ongoing use of IP over time. As one participant stated, “It has caused me to be lonely, depressed, and decreased my motivation to try and do things I care about or that require some willpower. It has contributed to my social anxiety”. Another wrote that “it slowly made me depressed since the age of 17-18. I couldn’t find out what’s wrong with me the whole time. But since I quit, I more and more realized how lonely I really am and that isolating myself has had to do with it”. The following participant expressed his confusion about the relationship of IP use to his symptoms of poor mental health and his suspicion that it may have negatively influenced his perception of women.
Participants reported reduced sleep affecting their mood and ability to perform normal tasks after engaging in IP use for long hours. Many participants reported feeling lethargic and having “no energy” during normal waking hours.
The Dark Triad and Honesty-Humility: A Preliminary Study on the Relations to Pornography Use – Excerpts:
The present article reports on a preliminary study exploring the relationships between Dark Triad (narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy) and honesty-humility personality traits and pornography craving and deviant pornography use in a sample of 121 participants (46 men and 75 women) who completed an online survey. Narcissism and psychopathy were positively related to pornography craving and deviant pornography consumption, while honesty-humility appeared to be negatively associated with these pornography-related variables. Furthermore, the data suggested that these relationships were only present in men and not in women.
Studies have shown that viewing internet pornography is like addiction. Addictions have been implicated in the development of psychosocial issues. It is important to develop an indigenous tool for the assessment of psychosocial issues in individuals viewing internet pornography. The current study was aimed to develop a scale for the assessment of psychosocial issues associated with internet pornography in male university students.
Our study briefly concludes that pornography has negative impact on social, psychological and mental health of the individuals. Further, it would be useful in creating awareness in society related to psychosocial issues due to internet pornography that may pose a threat for the development of mental health in adults. In Pakistan, according to our knowledge, no study has been conducted on this topic so far.
Validation of a Brief Pornography Screen across multiple samples (2020) – Excerpts:
To address current gaps around screening for problematic pornography use (PPU), we initially developed and tested a six-item Brief Pornography Screen (BPS) that asked about PPU in the past six months
In support of prior work, BPS scores were moderately correlated with measures of generalized feelings of distress and depression; we also found moderate correlations between BPS scores and measures of feeling addicted to pornography and prioritizing pornography viewing over other activities.
A pilot study of mindfulness-based relapse prevention for compulsive sexual behaviour disorder (2020) – Intervention study employing mindfulness-based techniques on compulsive porn users reported:
As expected, we found that after mindfulness-based relapse prevention (MBRP) participants spent significantly less time engaging in problematic pornography use and exhibited a decrease in anxiety, depression and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms…. In conclusion, MBRP leads to a decrease in time spent watching porn and a decrease in emotional distress in CSBD patients.
The Psychological Impacts of Internet Pornography Addiction on Adolescents (2020) – Excerpts:
Participants were 18-25 years old, there were six adolescents who were obtained based on the initial screening, namely self-reporting through a pornography internet addiction questionnaire… The results show that adolescents experience changes in cognition and affection for sexual stimulation caused by the internet with pornographic content. The impact of cognition is shown from their obsessive-compulsive thoughts on sexual content. They always have the desire to see those photos or video over again, which leads them to trouble sleeping due to visualizing scenes of sexual intercourse. The impact of affection can be seen from their desire to act in sexual activity, their being so passionate and pleased after seeing pornographic content, and their expectation to feel such immense affection. Furthermore, they might find difficulty in establishing interpersonal relationships with other people and tend to withdraw themselves from the social environment.
The Pornography “Rebooting” Experience: A Qualitative Analysis of Abstinence Journals on an Online Pornography Abstinence Forum (2021) – Excellent paper analyzes more than 100 rebooting experiences and highlights what people are undergoing on recovery forums. Contradicts much of the propaganda about recovery forums (such as the nonsense that they’re all religious, or strict semen-retention extremists, etc.). Paper reports tolerance and withdrawal symptoms in men attempting to quit porn. Relevant excerpts:
Third, for some members (n = 31), abstinence was motivated by a desire to alleviate perceived negative psychosocial consequences attributed to their pornography use. These perceived consequences included increased depression, anxiety and emotional numbness, and decreased energy, motivation, concentration, mental clarity, productivity, and ability to feel pleasure (e.g., “I know it has tremendous negative effects on my concentration, motivation, self-esteem, energy level” [050, 33 years].” Some members also perceived negative impacts of their pornography use on their social functioning. Some described a sense of decreased connection with others (e.g., “(PMO)…makes me less interested and friendly to people, more self-absorbed, gives me social anxiety and makes me just not care about anything really, other than staying home alone and jerking off to porn” [050, 33 years]), while others reported a deterioration of specific relationships with significant others and family members, especially romantic partners.
Many members reported experiencing various positive cognitive-affective and/or physical effects that they attributed to abstinence. The most common positive effects related to improvements in day-to-day functioning, including improved mood, increased energy, mental clarity, focus, confidence, motivation, and productivity (e.g., “No porn, no masturbation and I had more energy, more mental clarity, more happiness, less tiredness” [024, 21 years]). Some members perceived that abstaining from pornography resulted in feeling less emotionally numb and in an ability to feel their emotions more intensely (e.g., “I just ‘feel’ on a deeper level. with work, friends, past times, there have been waves of emotions, good & bad, but it’s a great thing” [019, 26 years]). For some, this resulted in enhanced experiences and an increased ability to feel pleasure from ordinary day-to-day experiences (e.g., “My brain can get so much more excited about little things and things that aren’t pure pleasure…like socializing or writing a paper or playing sports” [024, 21 years]). Of note, more members in the 18–29 age group reported positive affective effects during abstinence (n = 16) compared to the other two age groups, 30–39 (n = 7) and ≥ 40 (n = 2).
Additionally, 17.0, 20.4, and 13.5% of students reported severe or extremely severe levels of depression, anxiety and stress, respectively, with compulsive pornography use significantly affecting all three mental health parameters in both sexes. Exploratory Factor Analysis identified three factors suggesting emotional coping, dependence and preoccupation for the mCIUS items and three factors reflecting interoceptive, impotent, and extrinsic characteristics for the EmSS items. Regression analysis indicated that various demographics, items pertaining to reduced control and social impairment, and other variables pertaining to pornography use predicted mental health outcomes.
Conclusion: Our analyses indicate a significant relationship between mental health and pornography use, including behaviors reflecting behavioral addictions, highlighting the necessity for a better understanding and consideration of the potential contribution of internet pornography to negative mental health among university students.
List two: Studies finding links between porn use and poorer cognitive outcomes:
The first 3 studies demonstrate that either chronic porn use or exposure sexual stimuli decrease one’s ability to delay gratification.
Exposure to Sexual Stimuli Induces Greater Discounting Leading to Increased Involvement in Cyber Delinquency Among Men (2017) – In two studies exposure to visual sexual stimuli resulted in: 1) greater delayed discounting (inability to delay gratification), 2) greater inclination to engage in cyber-delinquency, 3) greater inclination to purchase counterfeit goods & hack someone’s Facebook account. Taken together this indicates that porn use increases impulsivity and may reduce certain executive functions (self-control, judgment, foreseeing consequences, impulse control). Excerpt:
These findings provide insight into a strategy for reducing men’s involvement in cyber delinquency; that is, through less exposure to sexual stimuli and promotion of delayed gratification. The current results suggest that the high availability of sexual stimuli in cyberspace may be more closely associated with men’s cyber-delinquent behavior than previously thought.
Trading Later Rewards for Current Pleasure: Pornography Consumption and Delay Discounting (2015) – The more pornography that participants consumed, the less able they were to delay gratification. This unique study also had porn users reduce porn use for 3 weeks. The study found that continued porn use was causally related to greater inability to delay gratification (note that the ability to delay gratification is a function of the prefrontal cortex). Excerpt from the first study (median subject age 20) correlated subjects’ pornography use with their scores on a delayed gratification task:
“The more pornography that participants consumed, the more they saw the future rewards as worth less than the immediate rewards, even though the future rewards were objectively worth more.”
Put simply, more porn use correlated with less ability to delay gratification for larger future rewards. In the second part of this study researchers assessed the subjects’ delayed discounting 4 weeks later and correlated with their porn use.
“These results indicate that continued exposure to the immediate gratification of pornography is related to higher delay discounting over time.”
A second study (median age 19) was performed to assess if porn use causes delayed discounting, or the inability to delay gratification. Researchers divided current porn users into two groups:
- One group abstained from porn use for 3 weeks,
- A second group abstained from their favorite food for 3 weeks.
All participants were told the study was about self-control, and they were randomly chosen to abstain from their assigned activity. The clever part was that the researchers had the second group of porn users abstain from eating their favorite food. This ensured that 1) all subjects engaged in a self-control task, and 2) the second group’s porn use was unaffected. At the end of the 3 weeks, participants were involved in a task to assess delay discounting. Important note: While the “porn abstinence group” viewed significantly less porn than the “favorite food abstainers,” most did not completely abstain from porn viewing. The results:
“As predicted, participants who exerted self-control over their desire to consume pornography chose a higher percentage of larger, later rewards compared to participants who exerted self-control over their food consumption but continued consuming pornography.”
The group that cut back on their porn viewing for 3 weeks displayed less delay discounting than the group that simply abstained from their favorite food. Put simply, abstaining from internet porn increases porn users’ ability to delay gratification. From the study:
Thus, building on the longitudinal findings of Study 1, we demonstrated that continued pornography consumption was causally related to a higher rate of delay discounting. Exercising self-control in the sexual domain had a stronger effect on delay discounting than exercising self-control over another rewarding physical appetite (e.g., eating one’s favorite food).
The take-aways:
- It wasn’t exercising self-control that increased the ability to delay gratification. Reducing porn use was the key factor.
- Internet porn is a unique stimulus.
- Internet porn use, even in non-addicts, has long-term effects.
Probability and delay discounting of erotic stimuli (2008) – Excerpts:
Erotica users were disproportionately male, scored higher on several psychometric measures of sexuality-related constructs, and exhibited more impulsive choice patterns on the delay discounting for money task than erotica non-users did. These findings suggest that discounting processes generalize to erotic outcomes for some individuals.
Bikinis Instigate Generalized Impatience in Intertemporal Choice – Not porn, but similar results. Excerpts:
We show that exposure to sexy cues leads to more impatience in intertemporal choice between monetary rewards. Highlighting the role of a general reward circuitry, we demonstrate that individuals with a sensitive reward system are more susceptible to the effect of sex cues, that the effect generalizes to nonmonetary rewards, and that satiation attenuates the effect.
[This one also appears above in first section of this page, and is repeated here due to its “delayed discounting” finding.] How Abstinence Affects Preferences (2016) [preliminary results] – Excerpts from the article:
Results of the First Wave – Main Findings
- The length of the longest streak participants performed before taking part in the survey correlates with time preferences. The second survey will answer the question if longer periods of abstinence render participants more able to delay rewards, or if more patient participants are more likely to perform longer streaks.
- Longer periods of abstinence most likely cause less risk aversion (which is good). The second survey will provide the final proof.
- Personality correlates with length of streaks. The second wave will reveal if abstinence influences personality or if personality can explain variation in the length of streaks.
Results of the Second Wave – Main Findings
- Abstaining from pornography and masturbation increases the ability to delay rewards
- Participating in a period of abstinence renders people more willing to take risks
- Abstinence renders people more altruistic
- Abstinence renders people more extroverted, more conscientious, and less neurotic
Viewing sexual images is associated with reduced physiological arousal response to gambling loss – Excerpt:
People should be aware that sexual arousal could reduce their attention and physiological sensitivity to monetary losses. In other words, people should pay extra attention to the losses and gains of financial decisions when they are sexually aroused.
Is students’ computer use at home related to their mathematical performance at school? (2008) – Excerpt:
Also, students’ cognitive abilities were positively linked to their achievement in mathematics. Finally, watching television had a negative relationship with students’ performance. Particularly, watching horror, action, or pornographic films was associated with lower test scores.
Self-reported differences on measures of executive function and hypersexual behavior in a patient and community sample of men (2010) – “Hypersexual behavior” was correlated with poorer executive function (arising primarily from the prefrontal cortex). An excerpt:
Patients seeking help for hypersexual behavior often exhibit features of impulsivity, cognitive rigidity, poor judgment, deficits in emotion regulation, and excessive preoccupation with sex. Some of these characteristics are also common among patients presenting with neurological pathology associated with executive dysfunction. These observations led to the current investigation of differences between a group of hypersexual patients (n = 87) and a non-hypersexual community sample (n = 92) of men using the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Adult Version.
Hypersexual behavior was positively correlated with global indices of executive dysfunction and several subscales of the BRIEF-A. These findings provide preliminary evidence supporting the hypothesis that executive dysfunction may be implicated in hypersexual behavior.
Pornographic picture processing interferes with working memory performance (2013) – German scientists have discovered that Internet erotica can diminish working memory. In this porn-imagery experiment, 28 healthy individuals performed working-memory tasks using 4 different sets of pictures, one of which was pornographic. Participants also rated the pornographic pictures with respect to sexual arousal and masturbation urges prior to, and after, pornographic picture presentation. Results showed that working memory was worst during the porn viewing and that greater arousal augmented the drop. An excerpt:
Results contribute to the view that indicators of sexual arousal due to pornographic picture processing interfere with working memory performance. Findings are discussed with respect to Internet sex addiction because working memory interference by addiction-related cues is well known from substance dependencies.
Working memory is the ability to keep information in mind while using it to complete a task or deal with a challenge. It helps people hold their goals in mind, resist distractions and inhibit impulsive choices, so it’s critical to learning and planning. A consistent research finding is that addiction-related cues hinder working memory, which is a function of the prefrontal cortex.
Sexual Picture Processing Interferes with Decision-Making Under Ambiguity (2013) – Study found that viewing pornographic imagery interfered with decision making during a standardized cognitive test. This suggests porn use might affect executive functioning, which is a set of mental skills that help with meeting goals. These skills are controlled by an area of the brain called the prefrontal cortex. Excerpts:
Decision-making performance was worse when sexual pictures were associated with disadvantageous card decks compared to performance when the sexual pictures were linked to the advantageous decks. Subjective sexual arousal moderated the relationship between task condition and decision-making performance. This study emphasized that sexual arousal interfered with decision-making, which may explain why some individuals experience negative consequences in the context of cybersex use.
Arousal, working memory capacity, and sexual decision-making in men (2014) – Excerpts:
This study investigated whether working memory capacity (WMC) moderated the relationship between physiological arousal and sexual decision making. A total of 59 men viewed 20 consensual and 20 non-consensual images of heterosexual interaction while their physiological arousal levels were recorded using skin conductance response. Participants also completed an assessment of WMC and a date-rape analogue task for which they had to identify the point at which an average Australian male would cease all sexual advances in response to verbal and/or physical resistance from a female partner.
Participants who were more physiologically aroused by and spent more time viewing the non-consensual sexual imagery nominated significantly later stopping points on the date-rape analogue task. Consistent with our predictions, the relationship between physiological arousal and nominated stopping point was strongest for participants with lower levels of WMC. For participants with high WMC, physiological arousal was unrelated to nominated stopping point. Thus, executive functioning ability (and WMC in particular) appears to play an important role in moderating men’s decision making with regard to sexually aggressive behavior.
Early Adolescent Boys’ exposure to Internet pornography: Relationships to pubertal timing, sensation seeking, and academic performance (2015) – This rare longitudinal study (over a six-month period) suggests that porn use decreases academic performance. Excerpt:
Moreover, an increased use of Internet pornography decreased boys’ academic performance six months later.
Getting stuck with pornography? Overuse or neglect of cybersex cues in a multitasking situation is related to symptoms of cybersex addiction (2015) – Subjects with a higher tendency towards porn addiction performed more poorly of executive functioning tasks (which are under the auspices of the prefrontal cortex). A few excerpts:
We investigated whether a tendency towards cybersex addiction is associated with problems in exerting cognitive control over a multitasking situation that involves pornographic pictures. We used a multitasking paradigm in which the participants had the explicit goal to work to equal amounts on neutral and pornographic material. [And] we found that participants who reported tendencies towards cybersex addiction deviated stronger from this goal.
The results of the current study point towards a role of executive control functions, i.e. functions mediated by the prefrontal cortex, for the development and maintenance of problematic cybersex use (as suggested by Brand et al., 2014). Particularly a reduced ability to monitor consumption and to switch between pornographic material and other contents in a goal adequate manner may be one mechanism in the development and maintenance of cybersex addiction
Problematic sexual behavior in young adults: Associations across clinical, behavioral, and neurocognitive variables (2016) – Individuals with Problematic Sexual Behaviors (PSB) exhibited several neuro-cognitive deficits. These findings indicate poorer executive functioning (hypofrontality) which is a key brain feature occurring in drug addicts. A few excerpts:
From this characterization, it is be possible to trace the problems evident in PSB and additional clinical features, such as emotional dysregulation, to particular cognitive deficits…. If the cognitive problems identified in this analysis are actually the core feature of PSB, this may have notable clinical implications.
Effects of Pornography on Senior High School Students, Ghana. (2016) – Excerpt:
The study revealed that majority of the students admitted to watching pornography before. Furthermore, it was observed that majority of them agreed that pornography affects students’ academic performance negatively…
Executive Functioning of Sexually Compulsive and Non-Sexually Compulsive Men Before and After Watching an Erotic Video (2017) – Exposure to porn affected executive functioning in men with “compulsive sexual behaviors,” but not healthy controls. Poorer executive functioning when exposed to addiction-related cues is a hallmark of substance disorders (indicating both altered prefrontal circuits and sensitization). Excerpts:
This finding indicates better cognitive flexibility after sexual stimulation by controls compared with sexually compulsive participants. These data support the idea that sexually compulsive men do not to take advantage of the possible learning effect from experience, which could result in better behavior modification. This also could be understood as a lack of a learning effect by the sexually compulsive group when they were sexually stimulated, similar to what happens in the cycle of sexual addiction, which starts with an increasing amount of sexual cognition, followed by the activation of sexual scripts and then orgasm, very often involving exposure to risky situations.
Frequency and Duration of Use, Craving and Negative Emotions in Problematic Online Sexual Activities (2019) – Excerpts:
In a sample of over 1,000 Chinese college students, we tested a model that pornography craving would operate through quantity and frequency measures of usage of OSAs to lead to problematic use of OSAs, and this then would lead to negative academic emotions. Our model was largely supported.
Results indicated that higher pornography craving, greater quantity and frequency of use of OSAs, and more negative academic emotions were associated with problematic OSAs. The results resonate with those of previous studies reporting a high level of pornography craving in association with other negative health measures.
Perception of Pornography Impacts on Social Studies’ Students in University of Jos, Nigeria (2019) – Excerpt:
The study was backed with four research questions sand two hypotheses, the research design adopted for the study was survey research and the population was the entire social studies students in university of Jos having the total of 244 population size and from which 180 were randomly selected as sample of the study. The study revealed that, most students who are involved in pornographic activities do not do well in academics and most times even procrastinate on their works.
Impaired Recent Verbal Memory in Pornography-Addicted Juvenile Subjects (2019) – Excerpts:
We found lower RAVLT A6 score in the pornography addiction group when compared to the nonaddiction group, by 1.80 point of mean difference (13.36% of nonaddiction score). As A6 signifies recent memory capability after disruption (in B1), our results showed diminishing memory capability on pornography addiction. Working memory is known to have an important role in maintaining goal-oriented behavior [24, 25]; therefore, our findings suggested that pornography-addicted juveniles may have problem to do so.
Exploring the Lived Experience of Problematic Users of Internet Pornography: A Qualitative Study (2020) – A few relevant excerpts (this paper is listed in both sections):
Participants described symptoms of anxiety and depression, poor concentration, and an inability to focus on essential tasks. They also reported feelings of shame, low self-worth, and guilt. Many also reported that their use of IP led to reduced sleep and, as a consequence, low mood and feeling unmotivated or lethargic during the day. This seems to have had an adverse flow-on effect, influencing their engagement with work or study, social activities, and significant others.
Participants reported experiencing symptoms of “brain fog,” an inability to focus, and “ADHD” like symptoms. A number of participants reported a reduced ability to perform complicated tasks such as homework or work-related tasks, even when to not do so would cause significant consequences as one participant noted, “ADHD, Brain Fog, lack of concentration, stumbling about porn even when doing important work.” One participant remarked that his use of IP has affected his ability to concentrate and has “interrupted my ability to focus on lengthy tasks, including reading and writing.” A participant discussed the effects of his IP use as resulting in a “lack of motivation, clarity, and brain fog. Like I said before, dealing with drug/alcohol abuse has played a role, but I experience a hungover feeling now after watching porn”. This was echoed by the other participants, as exemplify.
Finally, a unique study examining subjects with recently developed ADHD-like symptoms. The authors strongly believe that internet use is causing ADHD like symptoms: The links between healthy, problematic, and addicted Internet use regarding comorbidities and self-concept-related characteristics (2018). An excerpt from the discussion:
To our knowledge, this was the first study to attempt at including the assessment of the impact of recently developed ADHD symptoms in addition to the ADHD diagnosis in Internet addicts. Participants with ADHD as well as those with only recently developed ADHD-like symptoms showed significantly higher lifetime and current Internet use severity compared with those who did not fulfill these conditions. Furthermore, addicted participants with recently developed ADHD symptoms (30% of the addicted group) exhibited increased lifetime Internet use severity compared with those addicted participants without ADHD symptoms.
Our results indicate that recently developed ADHD symptoms (without fulfilling the diagnostic criteria for ADHD) are associated with Internet addiction. This may lead to a first indication that the excessive Internet use has an impact on the development of cognitive deficits similar to those found in ADHD. A recent study of Nie, Zhang, Chen, and Li (2016) reported that adolescent Internet addicts with and without ADHD as well as participants with ADHD alone showed comparable deficits in inhibitory control and working memory functions.
This assumption seems to also be supported by certain studies reporting reduced gray matter density in the anterior cingulate cortex in addictive Internet users as well as in ADHD patients (Frodl & Skokauskas, 2012; Moreno-Alcazar et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2015; Yuan et al., 2011). Nevertheless, to confirm our assumptions, further studies assessing the relationship between the onset of excessive Internet use and ADHD in Internet addicts are needed. In addition, longitudinal studies should be applied to clarify causality. If our findings are confirmed by further studies, this will have clinical relevance for the diagnostic process of ADHD. It is conceivable that the clinicians would be required to carry out a detailed assessment of possible addictive Internet usage in patients with suspected ADHD.
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