Subscribe
The latest psychology and neuroscience discoveries.
My Account
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Psychopharmacology
No Result
View All Result
PsyPost
PsyPost
No Result
View All Result
Home Exclusive Social Psychology

Study links porn use to lower sexual and relationship satisfaction — but only among men

by Eric W. Dolan
April 16, 2017
in Social Psychology
(Photo credit: Adobe Stock)

(Photo credit: Adobe Stock)

[Follow PsyPost on LinkedIn to stay up-to-date on the latest developments in psychology and neuroscience]

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

New research suggests that pornography can adversely affect men’s satisfaction with their romantic relationships.

The researchers conducted a meta-analysis — a method of statistically summarizing previous research — of 50 studies conducted between 1973 and 2014, with a combined total of 50,000 participants.

The meta-analysis found higher levels of pornography use were associated with lower levels of sexual and relational satisfaction — but only among men. In other words, the more often men viewed pornography, the more likely they were to say they were dissatisfied with their sex life or their romantic relationship. However, pornography consumption was not positively or negatively linked to body satisfaction or self-esteem among either men or women.

The study was published in the peer-reviewed journal Human Communication Research on March 2, 2017.

PsyPost interviewed the study’s corresponding author, Paul J. Wright of Indiana University, Bloomington. Read his responses below:

PsyPost: Why were you interested in this topic?

Wright: We became interested in this topic because the questions of whether consuming pornography has any discernible impact on consumers’ satisfaction, and if so, whether the impact is negative or positive, have stimulated a large number of studies, but uncertainty about their answers had remained among communication scholars.

What should the average person take away from your study?

Contrary to the statements of consumers when asked directly about how pornography has positively impacted them, it seems unlikely that an increase in the frequency and intensity of consumption would, on the average, lead to a corresponding increase in satisfaction with oneself or one’s sexual or romantic relationships. The results of the studies analyzed in our paper, whose designs seem less likely to trigger defensive and rationalizing responses, suggest that women’s satisfaction would on the average be unaffected while men’s sexual and relational satisfaction would on the average be adversely affected.

Are there any major caveats? What questions still need to be addressed?

There are many important questions that remain unaddressed by the extant literature. As one example, too few studies included mechanism tests for any type of mediational meta-analysis. Mediation tests are needed to evaluate the appropriateness of the theories that have been proposed. Additional moderation analysis is also needed. That the average associations between women’s satisfaction and pornography consumption were not significant does not mean that certain subsets of women less frequently studied are not impacted, for example.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

While there may be a reciprocal element to these dynamics (i.e., lower sexual and relational satisfaction leading to pornography consumption), the convergence of results across cross-sectional survey, longitudinal survey, and experimental results points to an overall negative effect of pornography on men’s sexual and relational satisfaction.

The study, “Pornography Consumption and Satisfaction: A Meta-Analysis“, was also co-authored by Robert S. Tokunaga, Ashley Kraus, and Elyssa Klann.

ShareTweetSendScanShareSharePinSend
Previous Post

Merely thinking about sex encourages self-disclosure, study finds

Next Post

Study finds stair walking can be more energizing than caffeine in sleep deprived women

STAY CONNECTED

TRENDING

New psychology research shows how narcissistic tendencies influence perceptions of intellectual humility

Brain stimulation technique combined with cognitive training reduces ADHD symptoms in children

2016 election study uncovers surprising unconscious memory shifts among voters

Childhood maltreatment among depressed adults linked to difficulty in interpreting facial emotions

Mindfulness study: Practicing self-compassion reduces impulse buying

New study highlights psilocybin’s promise for major depressive disorder treatment

RECENT

Infidelity motivated by sexual dissatisfaction may lead to stronger negative emotions than infidelity due to emotional dissatisfaction

Childhood maltreatment among depressed adults linked to difficulty in interpreting facial emotions

New psychological insights: Unraveling the dating app experiences of incels

2016 election study uncovers surprising unconscious memory shifts among voters

New study highlights psilocybin’s promise for major depressive disorder treatment

Neuroimaging study reveals hate speech dulls brain’s empathy responses

Most Americans think that other people view pornography more often than they do, study finds

Pandemic lockdowns amplified smartphone mimicry, study reveals

Currently Playing

New psychology research shows how narcissistic tendencies influence perceptions of intellectual humility

New psychology research shows how narcissistic tendencies influence perceptions of intellectual humility

New psychology research shows how narcissistic tendencies influence perceptions of intellectual humility

Narcissism
Unintended pregnancies take a toll on the mental health of new fathers

Unintended pregnancies take a toll on the mental health of new fathers

Mental Health
New study provides insight into the psychological core of dark personality traits

Four distinct trajectories of psychopathic traits identified among youth in the legal system

Psychopathy
Social working memory abnormalities may be a neurocognitive mechanism underlying poorer social connection in PTSD

Exposure to wood smoke leads to complex and long-lasting neuroinflammatory and neurometabolomic alterations

Mental Health
People who were better supervised by parents as early adolescents tend to have higher earnings as adults

People who were better supervised by parents as early adolescents tend to have higher earnings as adults

Business
People who consume more ultra-processed foods are more likely to experience psychological distress later in life

People who consume more ultra-processed foods are more likely to experience psychological distress later in life

Mental Health
  • Cognitive Science
  • COVID-19
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Drug Research
  • Conspiracy Theories
  • Meditation
  • Psychology of Religion
  • Aviation Psychology and Human Factors
  • Relationships and Sexual Health
  • Evolutionary Psychology
  • Neuroimaging
  • Psychedelic Drugs
  • Dark Triad
  • Political Psychology

About

PsyPost is a psychology and neuroscience news website dedicated to reporting the latest research on human behavior, cognition, and society. (READ MORE...)

  • Contact us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms and Conditions
Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Cognitive Science Research
  • Mental Health Research
  • Social Psychology Research
  • Drug Research
  • Relationship Research
  • About PsyPost
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist