Fast Facts

(Vera-Gray, McGlynn, Kureshi, & Butterby, 2021)

Researchers have found that representations of step-relationships in porn titles were actually less common than depictions of blood relationships, with the majority of incest-themed titles describing sexual activity between immediate family members.

Citations

Vera-Gray, F., McGlynn, C., Kureshi, I., & Butterby, K. (2021). Sexual violence as a sexual script in mainstream online pornography. The British Journal of Criminology, doi:10.1093/bjc/azab035

How Porn Can Promote Sexual Violence

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(Foubert, Brosi, & Bannon, 2011)

Research suggests that frequent porn consumers are more likely to express an intent to rape.

Citations

Foubert, J. D., Brosi, M. W., & Bannon, R. S. (2011). Pornography viewing among fraternity men: Effects on bystander intervention, rape myth acceptance and behavioral intent to commit sexual assault.18(4), 212-231. doi:10.1080/10720162.2011.625552

How Porn Can Promote Sexual Violence

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(Fritz, Malic, Paul, & Zhou, 2020; Bridges, Wosnitzer, Scharrer, Sun, & Liberman, 2010)

According to studies analyzing the content of popular porn videos, at least 1 in 3 and as many as 9 in 10 porn videos depict sexual violence or aggression.

Citations

Fritz, N., Malic, V., Paul, B., & Zhou, Y. (2020). A descriptive analysis of the types, targets, and relative frequency of aggression in mainstream pornography. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 49(8), 3041-3053. doi:10.1007/s10508-020-01773-0
Bridges, A. J., Wosnitzer, R., Scharrer, E., Sun, C., & Liberman, R. (2010). Aggression and sexual behavior in best-selling pornography videos: a content analysis update. Violence against women, 16(10), 1065–1085. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801210382866

How Porn Can Promote Sexual Violence

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(Ruvalcaba & Eaton, 2020)

1 in 12 U.S. adults report that they have been victims of image-based abuse —sometimes called “revenge porn—and 1 in 20 report that they have been perpetrators of image-based abuse.

Citations

Ruvalcaba, Y., & Eaton, A. A. (2020). Nonconsensual pornography among U.S. adults: A sexual scripts framework on victimization, perpetration, and health correlates for women and men. Psychology of Violence, 10(1), 68–78. https://doi.org/10.1037/vio0000233

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

Qualitative research reveals that young women often feel pressured to play out the “scripts” their male partners had learned from porn —they feel badgered into having sex in uncomfortable positions, faking sexual responses, and consenting to unpleasant or painful acts.

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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(TVPA, 2000)

Sex trafficking is a commercial sex act that is brought about by force, fraud, or coercion, or where someone under 18 is involved.

Citations

Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000, Pub. L. No. 106–386, Section 102(a), 114 Stat. 1464. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-106hr3244enr/pdf/BILLS-106hr3244enr.pdf

How Porn Can Fuel Sex Trafficking

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(Wright, Tokunaga, & Kraus, 2016)

While not all porn features physical violence, even non-violent porn has been shown to be associated with negative effects like increased sexual aggression

Citations

Wright, P. J., Tokunaga, R. S., & Kraus, A. (2016). A meta-analysis of pornography consumption and actual acts of sexual aggression in general population studies. Journal of Communication, 66(1), 183-205. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12201

How Porn Can Promote Sexual Violence

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(Fritz, Malic, Paul, & Zhou, 2020)

Research shows that women are almost always the targets of violence or aggression in porn —about 97% of the time.

Citations

Fritz, N., Malic, V., Paul, B., & Zhou, Y. (2020). A descriptive analysis of the types, targets, and relative frequency of aggression in mainstream pornography. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 49(8), 3041-3053. doi:10.1007/s10508-020-01773-0

How Porn Can Promote Sexual Violence

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(TVPA, 2000)

If a porn performer is tricked, manipulated, or coerced during the production of porn, that is legally defined as sex trafficking.

Citations

Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000, Pub. L. No. 106–386, Section 102(a), 114 Stat. 1464. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-106hr3244enr/pdf/BILLS-106hr3244enr.pdf

How Porn Can Fuel Sex Trafficking

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(Walker, Makin, & Morczek, 2016)

Research shows that “teen” is one of the most consistently popular porn themes, and that this theme is 1) becoming increasingly popular, and 2) includes the portrayal of underage characters.

Citations

Walker, A., Makin, D. A., & Morczek, A. L. (2016). Finding Lolita: A comparative analysis of interest in youth-oriented pornography. Sexuality & Culture: An Interdisciplinary Quarterly, 20(3), 657–683. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-016-9355-0

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(International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, 2017; Lanning, 2010)

Reports show that those who sexually abuse children often show their victims porn to groom them or normalize sexual abuse.

Citations

International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children. (2017). Online grooming of children for sexual purposes: Model legislation & global review. ( No. 1). Retrieved from https://www.icmec.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Online-Grooming-of-Children_FINAL_9-18-17.pdf
Lanning, K. V. (2010). Child molesters: A behavioral analysis for professionals investigating the sexual exploitation of children. (No. 5). National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Retrieved from https://www.missingkids.org/content/dam/missingkids/pdfs/publications/nc70.pdf

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(Bouché, 2018)

Of domestic minor trafficking victims who had been forced into porn production, the average age they began being filmed was 12.8 years old.

Citations

Bouché, V. (2018). Survivor insights: The role of technology in domestic minor sex trafficking. Thorn. Retrieved from https://www.thorn.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Thorn_Survivor_Insights_090519.pdf

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