Porn and sexual violence
Learn how pornography connects with sexual violence.
When the adults in your life are uncomfortable having the ‘sex talk’, many young people find answers to those questions online. This means that you might have learned about sex by looking at porn. There are problems with learning from porn.
From the website: Fight the new drug
It’s no secret that much of porn is violent, but many people don’t understand the extent to which porn’s underlying messages influence behavior. Porn is full of people, particularly women, being disrespected, coerced, and physically and verbally abused, and that’s shaping how society thinks and acts.
A few years ago, a team of researchers looked at 50 of the most popular porn films—the ones purchased and rented most often.[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. See the article for complete list of references.] Of the 304 scenes the movies contained, 88% contained physical violence and 49% contained verbal aggression. On average, only one scene in 10 didn’t contain any aggression, and the typical scene averaged 12 physical or verbal attacks. One particularly disturbing scene managed to fit in 128!
The amount of violence shown in porn is astonishing but equally disturbing is the reaction of the victims. In the study, 95% of the victims (almost all of them women) either were neutral to the abuse or appeared to respond with pleasure.
In other words, in porn, people are getting beaten up and they’re smiling about it.
Of course, not all porn features physical violence, but even non-violent porn has been shown to have effects on consumers. The vast majority of porn—violent or not—portrays men as powerful and in charge; while women are submissive and obedient. Watching scene after scene of dehumanizing submission makes it start to seem normal. It sets the stage for lopsided power dynamics in couple relationships and the gradual acceptance of verbal and physical aggression against women.
Research has confirmed that those who consume porn (even if it’s nonviolent) are more likely to support statements that promote abuse and sexual aggression toward women and girls.
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But porn doesn’t just change attitudes; it can also shape actions. Study after study has shown that consumers of violent and nonviolent porn are more likely to use verbal coercion, drugs, and alcohol to coerce individuals into sex. And multiple studies have found that exposure to both violent and nonviolent porn increases aggressive behavior, including both having violent fantasies and actually committing violent assaults.
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In 2016, a team of leading researchers compiled all the research they could find on the subject. After examining twenty-two studies they concluded that the research left, “little doubt that, on the average, individuals who consume pornography more frequently are more likely to hold attitudes conducive [favorable] to sexual aggression and engage in actual acts of sexual aggression.”
If you’re wondering how sitting in a chair consuming porn can actually change what a person thinks and does, the answer goes back to how porn affects the brain (See How Porn Changes The Brain). Our brains have what scientists call “mirror neurons”—brain cells that fire not only when we do things ourselves, but also when we watch other people do things. This is why movies can make us cry or feel angry or scared.
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In one of the most comprehensive studies on porn use ever conducted, researchers found that after being exposed to softcore sexual material, both men and women were significantly less happy with their partner’s looks and sexual performance. Studies also have shown the porn users feel less love for their partner or spouse compared to those who don’t use porn.[Zillmann, D. and Bryant, J. (1988). Pornography’s Impact on Sexual Satisfaction. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 18, 5: 438–53. Bridges, A. J. (2010). Pornography’s Effect on Interpersonal Relationships. In J. Stoner and D. Hughes (Eds.) The Social Costs of Pornography: A Collection of Papers (pp. 89–110). Princeton, NJ: Witherspoon Institute.]
Essentially, mirror neurons let us share the emotion of other people’s experiences as we watch. So when a person is looking at porn, he or she naturally starts to respond to the emotions of the actors seen on the screen. As the consumer becomes aroused, his or her brain gets to work wiring together those feelings of arousal to what is seen happening on the screen, almost as if he or she was actually having the experience.
So if a person feels aroused watching a man or woman get kicked around and called names, that individual’s brain learns to associate that kind of violence with sexual arousal.
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To make matters worse, when porn shows victims of violence who seem to accept or enjoy being hurt, the viewer is fed the message that people like to be treated that way, giving porn consumers a sense that it’s okay to act aggressively themselves.
Consumers might tell themselves that they aren’t personally affected by porn, that they won’t be fooled into believing its underlying messages, but studies suggest otherwise. There is clear evidence that porn makes many consumers more likely to support violence against women, to believe that women secretly enjoy being raped, and to actually be sexually aggressive in real life. The aggression may take many forms including verbally harassing or pressuring someone for sex, emotionally manipulating them, threatening to end the relationship unless they grant favors, deceiving them or lying to them about sex, or even physically assaulting them.
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For porn users, even those who manage to avoid violent material, it’s difficult not to be influenced. Study after study has found that watching even non-violent porn is correlated with the user being more likely to use verbal coercion, drugs, and alcohol to push women into sex. And those who consistently look at non-violent porn are more likely to support statements that promote abuse and sexual aggression of both women and girls. Much of even non-violent porn portrays a power difference between partners where men are in charge and women are submissive and obedient.[Boeringer, S. B. (1994). Pornography and Sexual Aggression: Associations of Violent and Nonviolent Depictions with Rape and Rape Proclivity. Deviant Behavior 15, 3: 289–304
And remember that porn use frequently escalates over time, so even if consumers don’t start out watching violent porn, that may change. The longer they consume, the more likely they’ll find themselves seeking out increasingly shocking, hardcore content.
Not surprisingly, the more violent the porn they consume, the more likely they will be to support violence and act out violently. In fact, one study found that those with higher exposure to violent porn were six times more likely to have raped someone than those who had low past exposure.
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Of course, not every porn consumer is going to turn into a rapist. But that doesn’t change the fact that pornography is hitting us with a tidal wave of dehumanizing violence. It makes no sense for our society to accept the messages of porn, while at the same time calling for full gender equality and an end of sexual assault. A large portion of the porn consumed by millions of people every day is reinforcing the message that humiliation and violence are normal parts of what sex is supposed to be. It’s wiring the minds and expectations of the upcoming generation, making it harder for many young people to prepare for loving, nurturing relationships and leaving both women and men feeling like they can’t express the pain it’s causing them.
Saying no to porn is helping to build a less violent world; one that’s more loving, connected, humane, sexy, and safe.
Also on Fight the New Drug website:
- Article: Why consuming porn is an escalating behaviour
- Article: How porn changes the brain
- Article: Why porn leaves consumers lonely
- Article: How porn hurts a partner
- Article: Why porn is full of lies
- Article: How porn kills love
- Article: How consuming porn can lead to violence
- Article: How porn warps ideas about sex
- Article: How porn fuels sex trafficking
Article:
- Parent tip sheet for how to have the porn talk with young people
