Frequent pornography use linked to altered brain connectivity and impaired cognitive performance

A recent study published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience offers new insights into how frequent internet pornography consumption may affect brain function, emotional response, and cognitive performance. The researchers found that college students who reported high levels of pornography use showed altered patterns of brain connectivity while viewing explicit material, heightened physiological and emotional responses, and performed worse on a cognitive control task compared to those who used pornography less frequently.

The study was designed to investigate how repeated exposure to internet pornography might influence brain function and behavior in ways that resemble patterns observed in substance use. While many researchers have speculated that problematic pornography use shares similarities with addiction, the specific neural mechanisms have not been fully understood. This research aimed to bridge that gap using a non-invasive neuroimaging technique called functional near-infrared spectroscopy, or fNIRS.

fNIRS measures brain activity by tracking changes in blood oxygen levels. It works by shining near-infrared light into the scalp and detecting how much light is absorbed by oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin in the brain. These changes reflect neural activity, allowing researchers to monitor how different brain regions function during tasks or stimuli, such as watching videos or solving problems. Unlike MRI, fNIRS is portable, quiet, and allows for more natural behavior during testing.

Sixteen healthy college students who reported low-frequency pornography use and five students who met criteria for problematic pornography use were recruited to participate. All participants were right-handed, heterosexual, and free of any substance use, color blindness, or medical illness. To minimize potential confounds, participants were also instructed to abstain from masturbation during the experimental period.

The experiment involved a sequence of steps. First, participants completed the Stroop Color and Word Test—a common measure of cognitive control and reaction time. Then, they watched a 10-minute internet pornographic video selected for its high view count. During this time, researchers used fNIRS to monitor changes in brain blood flow and connectivity.

Physiological measures, including heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation, were recorded alongside facial expressions using automated software. After watching the video, participants completed the Stroop test again and filled out three psychological questionnaires measuring pornography use, anxiety, and depression.

The results showed notable differences between the two groups. The low-frequency users showed stronger functional connectivity in brain areas related to language processing, movement coordination, and sensory processing, such as Broca’s area, the premotor cortex, and the somatosensory cortex. In contrast, the high-frequency users exhibited greater connectivity in regions tied to executive functions, including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and frontopolar areas—regions often implicated in both addiction and emotional regulation.

Participants in the high-frequency group also demonstrated stronger signs of physiological and emotional arousal. Their facial expressions indicated higher levels of pleasure and happiness, but also greater emotional fluctuation, including signs of anger and sadness. Their parasympathetic nervous system activity was elevated during the video, as reflected in measures like lower heart rate and increased heart rate variability. These changes are similar to patterns seen in individuals using opioid drugs, which are known to produce feelings of euphoria, calm, and blunted awareness.

After watching the pornography, cognitive performance declined in both groups—but the drop was steeper in the high-frequency group. Their accuracy on the Stroop test dropped more sharply, and their reaction times were slower compared to both their own baseline and the low-frequency group. This suggests that pornography exposure may have disrupted their ability to regulate attention and manage conflicting information, at least in the short term.

In addition to these cognitive effects, the high-frequency group scored significantly higher on questionnaires measuring anxiety and depression. While the study cannot determine whether pornography use causes these symptoms or whether they co-occur for other reasons, the findings echo previous research linking heavy pornography consumption to emotional distress.

The researchers highlighted that certain patterns of brain activity observed in the high-frequency group resemble those seen in individuals with substance use disorders and even schizophrenia. Specifically, the increased connectivity in prefrontal areas, combined with altered physiological states and impaired cognitive performance, suggest that frequent pornography consumption may lead to neural and behavioral patterns that mimic other forms of addiction.

The study also explored how watching pornography affected emotional expression. The low-frequency group showed more diverse and reactive expressions—including surprise, fear, and disgust—while the high-frequency group appeared more emotionally flat, with more vacant or neutral expressions. This finding supports the idea that repeated exposure to explicit content may blunt emotional responsiveness.

The authors note that while psychotherapy remains the most common treatment for problematic pornography use, other interventions have been proposed, including hormone-based medications and drugs typically used to treat obsessive-compulsive behavior. Their findings raise the possibility that treatments developed for substance addiction might also be relevant in managing internet pornography addiction, although this remains a topic of debate.

As with all research, there are some limitations that should be taken into account. The sample size was small, especially in the high-frequency group, which included only five individuals. This limitation may reduce the generalizability of the findings and increases the possibility of random error. Additionally, some of the observed differences in brain connectivity did not remain statistically significant after correcting for false discovery rate, a procedure used to account for the large number of comparisons made in brain imaging studies.

Another challenge was recruitment. Due to ethical and practical constraints, it was difficult to find participants with very high levels of pornography consumption who were willing to take part in a laboratory-based experiment. As a result, even the high-frequency group in this study may represent relatively moderate users compared to populations in broader surveys.

“The effects of internet pornography addiction on brain functional connectivity in the prefrontal lobe exhibit characteristics similar to those of drug addiction,” the researchers concluded. “Moreover, individuals who frequently consume internet pornography report that they experience stronger sexual arousal and heightened pleasure while viewing, which subsequently adversely affects their cognition and emotions. Further research is needed to follow up on these preliminary findings.”

The study, “The impact of internet pornography addiction on brain function: a functional near-infrared spectroscopy study,” was authored by Qicheng Shu, Shiyu Tang, Zhenhua Wu, Jiahuan Feng, Wenhao Lv, and Min Huang.