Fast Facts

(International Andrology London, 2017)

A 2017 poll found that the more porn a man consumes, the more likely he is to be dissatisfied with his penis size. And the same goes for women with male partners— the more porn they consume, the less satisfied they are with their partner’s penis size.

Citations

International Andrology London. (2017). The porn hypothesis – findings prove porn consumption fuels the desire for penis enlargement surgery in the UK. Retrieved from https://london-andrology.co.uk/news/the-porn-hypothesis-findings-prove-porn-consumption-fuels-the-desire-for-penis-enlargement-surgery-in-the-uk/

How Porn Can Harm Consumers’ Sex Lives

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(Fernandez, Kuss, & Griffiths, 2020)

Even quitting porn for a short time can lessen its negative effects and have positive effects on consumers' lives and relationships.

Citations

Fernandez, D. P., Kuss, D. J., & Griffiths, M. D. (2020). Short-term abstinence effects across potential behavioral addictions: A systematic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 76, 101828. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2020.101828

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(Szymanski & Stewart-Richardson, 2014)

Despite porn’s promise of improving consumers’ sex lives, research shows that consuming porn is associated with decreased sexual satisfaction.

Citations

Szymanski, D. M., & Stewart-Richardson, D. N. (2014). Psychological, Relational, and Sexual Correlates of Pornography Use on Young Adult Heterosexual Men in Romantic Relationships. The Journal of Men’s Studies, 22(1), 64–82. https://doi.org/10.3149/jms.2201.64

How Porn Can Harm Consumers’ Sex Lives

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(Maddox, Rhoades, & Markman, 2011)

In comparison to couples who never viewed porn, a 2011 study found that those who watched porn alone reported twice the rate of cheating, and individuals who viewed porn alone and with their partners reported three times the rate of cheating.

Citations

Maddox, A. M., Rhoades, G. K., & Markman, H. J. (2011). Viewing sexually-explicit materials alone or together: Associations with relationship quality. Archives of sexual behavior, 40(2), 441–448. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-009-9585-4

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(Ezzell, Johnson, Bridges, & Sun, 2020)

Increased pornography consumption is linked to men’s enjoyment of degrading, uncommon, or aggressive sexual behaviors.

Citations

Ezzell, M. B., Johnson, J. A., Bridges, A. J., & Sun, C. F. (2020). I (dis)like it like that: Gender, pornography, and liking sex. J.Sex Marital Ther., 46(5), 460-473. doi:10.1080/0092623X.2020.1758860

How Porn Can Harm Consumers’ Sex Lives

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(Maddox, Rhoades, & Markman, 2011)

Research has shown that those who don’t consume porn report higher relationship quality—on every measure— than those who viewed pornography alone.

Citations

Maddox, A. M., Rhoades, G. K., & Markman, H. J. (2011). Viewing sexually-explicit materials alone or together: Associations with relationship quality. Archives of sexual behavior, 40(2), 441–448. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-009-9585-4

How Porn Can Negatively Impact Love And Intimacy

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(Lambert, Negash, Stillman, Olmstead, & Fincham, 2012; Rasmussen, 2016)

Porn consumers tend to be less committed to their partners.

Citations

Lambert, N. M., Negash, S., Stillman, T. F., Olmstead, S. B., & Fincham, F. D. (2012). A love that doesn't last: Pornography consumption and weakened commitment to one's romantic partner. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 31(4), 410-438. doi:10.1521/jscp.2012.31.4.410
Rasmussen, K. (2016). A historical and empirical review of pornography and romantic relationships: Implications for family researchers. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 8(2), 173-191. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12141

How Porn Can Negatively Impact Love And Intimacy

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(Carroll, Busby, Willoughby, & Brown, 2017)

In a study of casually dating adults, zero women reported that their partner consumed pornography daily or every other day. But in reality, 43% of casually dating men in the study reported this level of heavy porn consumption.

Citations

Carroll, J. S., Busby, D. M., Willoughby, B. J., & Brown, C. C. (2017). The porn gap: Differences in men's and women's pornography patterns in couple relationships. 16(2), 146-163. doi:10.1080/15332691.2016.1238796

How Porn Can Hurt A Consumer’s Partner

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(Wright, Tokunaga, Herbenick, & Paul, 2021)

Research suggests that pornography can make young people more sexually illiterate —in other words, it’s actively spreading harmful misinformation about sex.

Citations

Wright, P. J., Tokunaga, R. S., Herbenick, D., & Paul, B. (2021). Pornography vs. sexual science: The role of pornography use and dependency in U.S. teenagers’ sexual illiteracy. Communication Monographs, 1-22. doi:10.1080/03637751.2021.1987486

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(Butler, Pereyra, Draper, Leonhardt, & Skinner, 2018)

Porn consumption is linked to increased loneliness.

Citations

Butler, M. H., Pereyra, S. A., Draper, T. W., Leonhardt, N. D., & Skinner, K. B. (2018). Pornography Use and Loneliness: A Bidirectional Recursive Model and Pilot Investigation. Journal of sex & marital therapy, 44(2), 127–137. https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2017.1321601

How Porn Can Impact Mental Health and Fuel Loneliness

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(Rothman, Kaczmarsky, Burke, Jansen, & Baughman, 2015)

Research indicates that young people often feel pressured to imitate porn when having sex.

Citations

Rothman, E. F., Kaczmarsky, C., Burke, N., Jansen, E., & Baughman, A. (2015). "Without Porn … I Wouldn't Know Half the Things I Know Now": A Qualitative Study of Pornography Use Among a Sample of Urban, Low-Income, Black and Hispanic Youth. Journal of sex research, 52(7), 736–746. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2014.960908

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(Rothman, Beckmeyer, Herbenick, Fu, Dodge, & Fortenberry, 2021)

Results of a survey of young adults show that 1 in 4 (24.5%) listed pornography as the most helpful source to learn how to have sex.

Citations

Rothman, E. F., Beckmeyer, J. J., Herbenick, D., Fu, T. C., Dodge, B., & Fortenberry, J. D. (2021). The Prevalence of Using Pornography for Information About How to Have Sex: Findings from a Nationally Representative Survey of U.S. Adolescents and Young Adults. Archives of sexual behavior, 50(2), 629–646. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-020-01877-7

How Porn Can Distort Consumers’ Understanding Of Healthy Sex

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