Porn-user study to flesh out male views on web content

A researcher is set to peer inside the minds of porn users for one of the most in-depth New Zealand studies yet on the controversial subject.

University of Auckland psychology doctoral researcher Kris Taylor aims to capture the views of hundreds of male porn users through surveys and interviews, covering ground lacking from previous work.

“Access to pornography has only increased in recent years with so much available on the internet, so given this high level of consumption, we need to know more about how men are consuming pornography and how they feel about it.”

Over recent years, a major focus has been on whether porn can be addictive.

A 2015 study of internet porn users suggested a person’s own feeling of being “addicted” to online porn drove mental health distress, while another recent study showed how porn could trigger brain activity in people with underlying compulsive sexual behaviours.

Yet researchers say there’s still no conclusive evidence to show porn addiction exists.

Research also tended to point to either positive or negative effects, including whether it re-inforced sexist attitudes toward women, lowered intimacy or contributed to divorce rates. “Depending on what view you have on pornography, you can marshal research that either aligns with your position of it being bad or of it being good.”

Instead, his study would attempt to go “between” the two camps.

“That’s why we want to talk to as wide a range of men as possible, from those who unabashedly enjoy pornography to those who’ve had ethical or moral questions around pornography use, and anyone in between.”

Key questions the research aimed to answer included what reservations men have over representations of men and women in pornographic material and how men might feel about some of the content of contemporary pornographic material.

While there had been some studies on porn use in New Zealand, Taylor said there was relatively little data and information to work with.

What was known was that the large majority of porn users were men.

Taylor is seeking men who have consumed pornography for the research and all respondents will remain anonymous. People interested in participating in the study can contact Taylor at kris.taylor@auckland.ac.nz