A study into pornography use among Ireland’s young adults has returned very interesting results that merit public discussion, not least among them the fact that 64% of young men report using it.
Other stand-out findings included the fact that male users were found to have poorer wellbeing than non-users, being less satisfied with their lives, and reported having a poorer self-image and more depressive symptoms.
Meanwhile, 13% of young women in Ireland were found to use pornography, representing a ‘gender gap’ that has been observed in other countries, too.
4,500 young people were surveyed when they reached 20 years of age as part of the ‘Growing up in Ireland’ (GUI) study. While the research was undertaken five years ago, it was only recently examined by the ESRI who have produced the report in question.
The study examined a number of factors linked to pornography use, at an individual, family and schooling level.
Among the main findings, men from more advantaged backgrounds were found to be more likely to use pornography while there was little “systemic variation” by social background when it came to women.
Men from lone-parent families were less likely than others to use pornography while women from lone-parent families reported higher rates of use.
While pornography use didn’t vary significantly according to various individual and family background factors – such as urban or rural living, having a disability or special education need or migrant status – some “family socialisation” processes were found to make a difference.
For example, pornography use was lower among those who were religious and where there was greater parental monitoring during adolescence. This parental monitoring related to internet use for men and not spending time at home alone for women.
On the sex-ed front, no strong links were found between the provision of sex education at school and pornography use. What the study did find was that young people who relied on the internet or – in the case of men in particular – their friends over and above their parents were more likely to use pornography at 20 years of age.
The study did note that LGBT groups, especially women, were more likely to use pornography, which the study said “may reflect information-seeking among this group or their lack of contact with other LGBTQ+ youth”.
The study also looked at the relationship between pornography use and sexual behaviour and wellbeing, cautioning that the relationships “cannot be regarded as causal” due to measuring pornography use and the outcomes at the same point in time. That said, it revealed some remarkable differences in outcomes between those who use pornography and those who don’t.
For example, as mentioned above, men who use pornography have poorer wellbeing than those who don’t – being less satisfied with their lives –, report more depressive symptoms and have a poorer self-image.
Higher levels of aggression was found among both men and women who use pornography, as was a likeliness to cope with stress using negative strategies like drinking alcohol and taking drugs, as well as taking to bed.
Interestingly, the study found that while pornography users and non-users don’t differ in their use of contraception in general, users are significantly less likely to use condoms regularly. This was described as a “sizeable difference,” as regular condom use is reduced “by around half” among male pornography users.
There’s a lot in all of this, and the study highlights a number of policy areas that might take these findings into account.
While that would be welcome, my wish is simpler: that this report might start a conversation that other jurisdictions have been having for some time now about the obvious effects of pornography use on a population, and on the young in particular.
Take for example a 2020 UK report which found an association between pornography usage and harmful attitudes and behaviours towards women and girls. Multiple studies, from a variety of countries including the US, Canada, the Czech Republic and far, far more have found links between watching violent pornography and the normalisation of such sexual behaviour for users.
Research has indicated that pornography users are more likely to sexually objectify others, more likely to forward sexts without consent and were more likely to commit actual acts of sexual violence.
If it seems as though I’m picking and choosing research to support a certain perspective, a 2016 meta-analysis of studies examining the connection between pornography use and sexual violence found that the body of research left “little doubt that, on the average, individuals who consume pornography more frequently are more likely to hold attitudes conducive to sexual aggression and engage in actual acts of sexual aggression”.
The only point I’m attempting to argue here with this slew of studies is simply that it reveals a powerful connection between pornography use and negative outcomes – and that’s surely something we should be interested in discussing. This is only bolstered by the ESRI’s recent report which, if not establishing a causal connection between pornography usage and poorer wellbeing, at least indicated that they go hand-in-hand in many users’ cases.
However, there has been relative silence on this issue in Ireland thus far, bar Aontú’s efforts to end access to pornography for children. While individual states in the US and other countries have attempted to introduce, and been successful in some cases, similar measures, it remains open season here. Whether this latest study makes waves in Leinster house or with those who have its ear remains to be seen.