The experience of consuming pornography has become a lot more intense
- Nearly 40 million hungry, American eyes regularly search for porn. This is an American reality. Over 75% of people describe themselves as recreational porn users.
By Nazarul Islam |USA
Exactly, what causes pornography addiction in society? That’s a question we like to ask, because addiction is a complicated issue—filled with misconceptions—that many people grapple with in everyday life.
However, there isn’t one primary factor that leads to porn addiction, nor does it necessarily come from a high sex drive or an addictive personality. While past trauma can often be one of the main root causes of pornography addiction, many additional culprits can lead someone down this wayward path.
As we unfold the causes of porn addiction, and you, my dear reader is wondering whether someone you know is addicted to porn, well—he is not alone. This malaise is not as uncommon as you’d think and can happen to anyone. In fact millions of people can spend countless hours (and money) consuming porn, at the expense of their own well-being. Just take a look at these eye-opening stats about porn addiction:
In the United States, 3% of women and 11% of men self-reported an addiction to porn, according to a study by the Journal of Behavioral Addictions. In that same study, 46% of men and 16% of women reported they used pornography within the past week.
Over 75% of people describe themselves as recreational porn users, and among those, nearly 12% would consider their porn consumption as compulsive, shares a study by The Journal of Sexual Medicine.
A person who has a porn addiction, reflects that he or she has reached the point of emotional dependence on pornography so much that the pursuit cannot stop and , and needs to view pornography compulsively.
A habitual pornography addict would just consider this to be an infrequent habit. But, had never anticipated it would become uncontrollable. However, if in the pursuit of addiction a person notices that porn gets in the way of his relationships, work, and daily responsibilities—yet he or she still keeps watching it—leading to the stage we call ‘a porn addiction’.
Joe is a typical American teenager. He describes himself as a horny young man, like others in his school. Unlike his peers, he does not have a porn addiction. In contrast my neighbor Bob is a professional and a functional family man (maybe in that order, maybe in reverse). He does however, tiptoe into the seedier corners of the internet from time to time, like porn. He is not alone. Nearly 40 million hungry, American eyes regularly search for porn. This is an American reality.
The question is: How does this adult habit impact mental health? How much porn is too much? Can you be addicted to porn? And can it take a toll on your family? The answers are harder to find than footage of the most acrobatic carnal acts. But, thanks to new research, they are finally coming into focus
It’s worth prefacing this discussion by clarifying that porn is neither new nor, from a scientific perspective, necessarily bad. Most studies have shown that men who view pornography only occasionally, and with the consent of a significant other, suffer no adverse outcomes.
Nevertheless, once someone is sneaking around, or clicking through pornographic sites when supposed to be picking up his kids from soccer practice, psychological and relationship, fallout inevitably follows.
Men who watch porn compulsively tend to have lower self-esteem, researchers have found, as well as trouble connecting with loved ones. And women who discover their husbands watching porn behind their backs report feeling betrayed — as if cheated on.
Meanwhile, women who suspect their partners of regular porn consumption behind their backs report lower self-esteem and relationship satisfaction. And some fathers like my neighbor Bob, who watch porn have reported feeling less close to their kids after partaking. “It seems like guilt and shame may cause fathers to back away from the relationship,” he says.
The negative consequences of porn use may have for intimate relationships, are more pronounced for people of faith. There are several reasons for this. Religious men are more likely to feel shame about their pornography use, so they’re more likely to lie about it to their spouse and try to hide it, which hurts their relationships.
Again, Perry who is parish minister in the community church says religious women tend to be less understanding about their partner’s porn use. In his research, Perry has found that “Christian women who’ve been divorced are twice as likely as other women to say they divorced their husband because of his pornography use,” he says.
And while studies have never reliably linked porn consumption to rape or assault, experts suspect that adult media may exacerbate latent violent tendencies.
“Porn consumption has been linked to harmful behaviors like greater approval of violence,” the church minister likes to share “And I think there’s enough data at this point to suggest that there may be some causation involved.”
Still, Perry suspects those predisposed to violence are most at-risk. “It’s not like violent pornography can turn Ned Flanders from The Simpsons into a rampaging sex predator,” he says. “If pornography is connected to anti-social behavior, it’s among those who are already inclined that way.”
How, then, is a family man to relate to pornography? All things in moderation, the experts suggest. And, despite porn’s potential pitfalls when misused, it helps to avoid demonizing the medium. “Having a healthy appreciation for porn as not inherently good or bad, but rather fantasy material that can be part of healthy sexuality is a good place to start,” Kanaris says. “Do not accept or support hysterical proclamations regarding the alleged evils of pornography.”
At the same time, the public’s relationship with porn has changed rapidly in the last decade substantively with the advent of widespread internet access.
Consumption habits have changed and, as the research lags behind, it is hard to know what this may mean for modern men, from a sociological perspective. My coworker James once confided “People may swipe through content with rapid-fire ease, taking in a much larger number and variety of images much more quickly and less in-depth than was previously even possible, much less widely done,”
The experience of consuming pornography has, in other words, become a lot more intense, even as viewing sessions have gotten longer. If some of this can be chalked up to desensitization, some can also, of course, be chalked up to the rise of sites that work quickly and offer access to millions of hours of digital footage.
However, there isn’t one primary factor that leads to porn addiction, nor does it necessarily come from a high sex drive or an addictive personality. While past trauma can often be one of the main root causes of pornography addiction, many additional culprits can lead someone down this wayward path.
As we unfold the causes of porn addiction, and you’re wondering whether you’re addicted to porn, well—you’re not alone. This malaise is not as uncommon as you’d think and can happen to anyone. In fact millions of people can spend countless hours (and money) consuming porn, at the expense of their own well-being. Just take a look at these eye-opening stats about porn addiction:
All this has made it more likely for porn consumption, easy as it is, to detract from genuine sexual interest or engagement. When men feel this happening and continue to consume pornography — perhaps feeling shame while doing so — they wind up suffering.
“Addressing these issues lies in addressing the stigma related to sex and variable forms of sexual expression,” James had remarked one afternoon. “Additionally, interpersonal communication and our difficulty with it on a societal level contribute to the problematic mix.”
Indeed, communication is key. Particularly, when a spouse gets caught, literally, with his or her pants down. “The worst situations I’ve seen are when a wife will discover her husband’s been using pornography and, rather than talk about it, it becomes an occasion to blast him for his betrayal,” remarked the Church minister. “Most husbands don’t see it that way.”
Men often view porn as a casual activity, or a safe way of releasing sexual tension without committing adultery. They may know that it would bother their wives if they were caught, but they are often blindsided when their spouses equate the act of watching an adult film to bonafide cheating.
Getting past that sort of rough patch, requires mutual understanding. “If the relationship is worth fighting for,” Perry says, “it goes a lot better if both spouses can open up and process, together.
The concept of “addiction” is largely a matter of semantics. If it’s affecting one’s relationship negatively and he or she suspects it’s an issue that needs to be dealt with, the labeling of “addiction” or “not addiction” becomes irrelevant. If it’s negatively affecting marriages, relationships, or family life. It needs to be treated, by all means.
Like other chronic diseases, addiction often involves cycles of relapse and remission. But there is help, and there is hope available in society.
Read: The future lies in our re-imagination
___________________
The Bengal-born writer Nazarul Islam is a senior educationist based in USA. He writes for Sindh Courier and the newspapers of Bangladesh, India and America. He is author of a recently published book ‘Chasing Hope’ – a compilation of his articles.
