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O RI G I N A L P A PE R
Pornography and the Male Sexual Script: An Analysis of
Consumption and Sexual Relations
Chyng Sun •^ Ana Bridges •^ Jennifer A. Johnson • Matthew B. Ezzell
Received: 17 July 2013 / Revised: 26 August 2014 / Accepted: 3 September 2014 / Published online: 3 December 2014 Ó Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014
Abstract Pornography has become a primary source of sexual education. At the same time, mainstream commercial pornog- raphy has coalesced around a relatively homogenous script involv- ing violence and female degradation. Yet, little work has been done exploring the associations between pornography and dyadic sexual encounters: What role does pornography play inside real- world sexual encounters between a man and a woman? Cognitive script theory argues media scripts create a readily accessible heu- ristic model for decision-making. The more a user watches a par- ticular media script, the more embedded those codes of behavior become in their worldview and the more likely they are to use those scripts to act upon real life experiences. We argue pornogra- phy creates a sexual script that then guides sexual experiences. To test this, we surveyed 487 college men (ages 18–29 years) in the United States to compare their rate of pornography use with sex- ual preferences and concerns. Results showed the more pornog- raphy a man watches, the more likely he was to use it during sex, request particular pornographic sex acts of his partner, delib- erately conjure images of pornography during sex to maintain
arousal, and have concerns over his own sexual performance and body image. Further, higher pornography use was nega- tively associated with enjoying sexually intimate behaviors with a partner. We conclude that pornography provides a powerful heuristic model which is implicated in men’s expectations and behaviors during sexual encounters.
Keywords Pornography Male sexuality Sex education Cognitive script theory Relationships
Introduction
The explosion of pornography online as wellas its infiltration into the popular culture has raised questions about its influence on the sexual lives of adolescents and emerging adults. Pornography is a multi-billion dollar industry and is easily accessible to all ages by virtue of its affordability, accessibility, and anonymity (Cooper, 1998). As such, a majority of boys and girls will be exposed to pornography before age 16 (Sabina, Wolak, & Finkelhor, 2008), before the average age of first intercourse of 17.1 years (Centers for Disease Control, 2012). These high rates of pornography exposure come at a time when federally mandated abstinence- only sexual education programs have been shown to be inef- fective at helping adolescents make informed and healthy sexual choices (Kohler, Manhart, & Lafferty, 2008). The absence of an effective sexual health narrative coupled with the growing proliferation of pornography raises important questions about pornography and its associations with sexual experiences and expectations. Does pornography inform sexual choices? Spe- cifically, we ask how pornography use, particularly frequent use, is associated with intimate dyadic heterosexual sexual behavior in college men. By age 17, an overwhelming majority of boys (93 %) and girls (62 %) have been exposed to pornography (Sabina et al.,
C. Sun (&) School of Professional Studies, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA e-mail: [email protected]
A. Bridges Interpersonal Systems Laboratory, Department of Psychological Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA
J. A. Johnson College of Humanities and Sciences, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
M. B. Ezzell Department of Sociology & Anthropology, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA, USA
DOI 10.1007/s10508-014-0391-
2008), with 66 % of boys and 39 % of girls having seen at least one form of pornography within the past year (Brown & L’Engle, 2009). A majority of those exposures (66 %) were accidental or unwanted (Wolak, Mitchell, & Finkelhor, 2007). Another report indicated that 87 % of men and 31 % of women report using pornography for sexual purposes, with 11 % of users viewing pornography once a week or more (Boies, 2002; Carroll et al., 2008). Rates of exposure and use are relatively uncommon among children under the age of 13 (Sabina et al., 2008). Research shows that these rates represent increases in exposure and arenotlimitedto theUnited States (Flood,2007;Ha¨ggstro¨m- Nordin, Sandberg, Hanson, & Tyde´n, 2006; Lo & Wei, 2005; Wolak et al., 2007). High rates of pornography exposure and use are due in part to the leading role the internet plays in the sexual education of teens and young adults (Buhi, Daley, Fuhrmann, & Smith, 2009). Adolescents are online about 12.5 h per week (Chartier, 2008), with 75 % of ‘‘online youth’’ using the Internet to find health information, often with a sexual focus (Rideout, 2001). Research shows that online pornography is a significant source of sex education for young people (Alexy, Burgess, & Prentky, 2009; Ha¨ggstro¨m-Nordinetal.,2006;Ha¨ggstro¨m-Nordin,Tyde´n,Han- son, & Larsson, 2009; Hunter, Figueredo, & Malamuth, 2010), that it is lacking in information about the consequences of risky sexual choices (Pardun, L’Engle, & Brown, 2005), and that it portrays inaccurate and unrealistic expectations about sexual encounters (Tsitsika et al., 2009). Research shows that increased pornography exposure is asso- ciated with earlier and/or quicker onset of sexual activity, more permissive attitudes toward casual sex, and a higher likelihood of engaging in risky sexual behaviors such as anal sex, sex with multiple partners, and using drugs or alcohol during sex (Braun- Courville & Rojas, 2009; Brown & L’Engle, 2009; Peter & Valkenburg, 2006). Exposure is also associated with less pro- gressive gender roles, an acceptance of more negative gender stereotypes including a sexual hierarchy of dominant men and subservient women, more acceptance of sexual violence, as well as more sexual harassment perpetration among male adoles- cents (Brown & L’Engle, 2009; Ha¨ggstro¨m-Nordin et al., 2006; Malamuth & Impett, 2001; Villani, 2001). Pornography use has also been shown to have a negative impact on the self-esteem of girls (Stewart & Szymanski, 2012) and an increase in physical insecurities related to sexual performance and body image among both men and women (Lofgren-Ma˚rtenson & Ma˚nsson, 2010). On the other hand, some researchers have found evidence that pornography is associated with neutral (Garos, Bettan, Kluck, & Easton, 2004) or potentially positive (Kimmel, 1990; McKee,
- outcomes. For example, pornography has been found to function as a form of sex education for young people that can provide information about the human body and sexual practices, thus increasing a sense of sexual competence and liberalization and decreasing sexual shame (Brown et al., 2006; Huston,
Wartella, & Donnerstein, 1988; Johansson & Hammare´n, 2007; MacDonald, 1990; McKee, Albury, & Lumby, 2008). Nevertheless, with online mainstream pornography over- whelmingly centered on acts of violence and degradation toward women, the sexual behaviors exemplified in pornography skew away from intimacy and tenderness and typify patriarchal con- structions of masculinity and femininity. Content analysis of best-selling pornographic videos, for example, reveals that over 88 % of scenes involve acts of physical aggression, with 70 % of theaggressive actsbeingperpetrated by men,and 87 %oftheacts being committed against women (Bridges, Wosnitzer, Scharrer, Sun, & Liberman, 2010). Such acts stand in sharp relief against moreintimateacts,whichwere relativelyinfrequent, suchas issu- ing verbal compliments, embracing, kissing, and laughing. These forms of violent mainstream pornography have been shown to have negative associations with relationship quality and feelings of intimacy. Stewart and Szymanski (2012) found that pornography was negatively associated with relationship quality, particularly in longer-term relationships, and that female consumers of pornography experienced feelings of inadequacy and lower self-esteem compared to women who did not use pornography. Additionally, other research on women has docu- mented a decrease in self-esteem and feelings of sexual desir- ability associated with the male partner’s use of pornography (Bergner & Bridges, 2002; Shaw, 2010; Zitzman, 2007). Por- nography use, particularly among men, also increases the amount of non-relational,‘‘isolated and solitary’’(Cooper, Putnam, Planchon, & Boies, 1999, p. 82; see also Ferree, 2003) sexual activity, creates harsher judgments among men regarding their female partner’s physical attractiveness (Zillmann & Bryant, 1988), thus exacerbating women’s feelings of insecurity (Berg- ner & Bridges, 2002) and is associated with decreased sexual satisfaction in partnered men (Bridges & Morokoff, 2011; Stack, Wasserman, & Kern, 2004). Additional research is considering the ways in which the increasing use of pornography translates into perceptions of reality regarding actual sexual encounters. Tsitsika et al. (2009) found that among Greek adolescents, exposure to‘‘sexually explicit material’’fosters‘‘unrealistic attitudes about sex and misleading attitudes toward relationships’’ (p. 549). Peter and Valkenburg (2008a, b, 2010a, b) found that the more por- nography adolescents watch, the more likely they are to believe the material reflects real-world sexual practices and the more instrumental(lessrelational)theyareintheirapproachtosex.The authors hypothesized that the vast and contradictory information about sexuality portrayed in pornography creates dissonance and sexual uncertainty, particularly when it differs from information presented by families and schools. Frequently, the use of por- nography leads to a greater preoccupation with sex and more frequent distractions by sexual thoughts. Peter and Valkenburg (2008a) concluded that‘‘sexual arousal as a result of exposure to SEM [sexually explicit material] may cue sex-related cognitions
non-monogamous relationship were not considered to be in committed relationships, whereas participants who reported being in a committed relationship, married, or cohabiting with a partner were coded as being in committed relationships. One- third (33.1 %) of participants were in committed relationships and 66.1 % were not. Most participants (88.1 %) reported having had prior dyadic sexual experiences, including being naked, touching genitals, engaging in oral sex, or having sexual intercourse (vaginal or anal). More specifically, 75.4 % of participants reported having engaged in sexual intercourse. Of the 367 respondents who reported having engaged in sexual intercourse, 12.5 % had done so prior to the age of 16, 68.1 % first had intercourse between 16 and 18 years of age, and the remaining 19.4 % first had inter- course at 19 years of age or later. Most (82.0 %) sexually expe- rienced respondents reported 3 or fewer prior sexual partners.
Measures
Frequency of Pornography Use
Two questions assessed the frequency of current pornography use: (a) On average, how often do you use pornography for masturbation? and (b) How often do you view pornography but not for masturbation? Each item was answered on an 8-point Likert scale (1 = never, 2 = less than once a year, 3 = a few times a year, 4 = once a month, 5 = a few times a month, 6 = 1 – 2 days a week, 7 = 3 – 5 days a week, 8 = daily or almost daily). The two items were significantly correlated, r = .28, p.001. Both items loaded significantly onto a single factor (standardized loadings were .54 and .38, respectively).
Other Aspects of Pornography Use
In addition to assessing frequency of use, for descriptive pur- poses we asked participants to indicate what kind of pornogra- phy they consumed most often (magazines or books, video on demand or pay per view, cable television channels such as Playboy, pornographic digital video disks, and the internet) and to estimate, in dollars, how much money they spent on por- nography per month. We also asked the respondents their age at
Table 1 Demographic information for the full sample
N (%) M (SD)
Age (years) – 19.98 (1.88) Ethnicity White 445 (91.4 %) – Black/African American 18 (3.7 %) – Asian 17 (3.5 %) – Hispanic/Latino 10 (2.1 %) – Native American 12 (2.5 %) – Pacific Islander 1 (.2 %) – White (non-biracial) 426 (87.5 %) – Geographic region Midwest 3 (.6 %) – Northeast 39 (8.0 %) – South 419 (86.0 %) – West 0 (.0 %) – Religion Protestant 169 (34.7 %) – Catholic 164 (33.7 %) – Jewish 19 (3.9 %) – Other 11 (2.3 %) – No religion 80 (16.4 %) – Religiosity a^ – 3.46 (1.76) Relationship status Not in a relationship 291 (59.8 %) – In a relationship but not monogamous 31 (6.4 %) – Committed relationship but not cohabiting 139 (28.5 %) – Cohabiting 12 (2.5 %) – Married 10 (2.1 %) – Prior sexual experience 429 (88.1 %) – Age at first sexual intercourse Never had intercourse 61 (12.5 %) – Younger than 12 years 3 (.6 %) – 13–15 years 43 (8.8 %) – 16–18 years 250 (51.3 %) – 19–21 years 63 (12.9 %) – 22 years and older 8 (1.6 %) – Number of sexual partners in the past year None 92 (18.9 %) – 1–3 273 (56.1 %) – 4–6 40 (8.2 %) – 7–9 15 (3.1 %) – 10 or more 5 (1.0 %) – Parental educational attainment: male guardian Less than high school degree 9 (1.8 %) – High school degree or equivalent 53 (10.9 %) – Some college, no degree 50 (10.3 %) – College degree 169 (34.7 %) – Graduate or advanced degree 190 (39.0 %) – Parental educational attainment: female guardian
Table 1 continued N (%) M (SD)
Less than high school degree 4 (.8 %) – High school degree or equivalent 50 (10.3 %) – Some college, no degree 65 (13.3 %) – College degree 217 (44.6 %) – Graduate or advanced degree 140 (28.7 %) – a (^) Responses coded on a scale from 1 (not at all important) to 6 (very important)
first exposure to pornography and the age at which they first used pornography for masturbation. These last two items were sig- nificantly correlated, r = .56, p.001.
Sexual Insecurities
Three questions assessed sexual insecurities: (a) I am concerned about how good I am at sex; (b) I am concerned that my penis is not big enough; and (c) I am concerned that I cannot sustain my erection long enough (including concerns about loss of erection or premature ejaculation). Each item was answered on a 6-point Likert scale, from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree). Cronbach alpha for the three-item scale was .78. All items loa- ded significantly onto a single factor (standardized loadings were .69, .69, and .57, respectively).
Reliance on Pornography to Obtain/Maintain Sexual Excitement
Three questions assessed participants’ preference for and reli- ance on pornography to obtain and/or maintain sexual excite- ment: (a) It is easier for me to reach orgasm by watching por- nography and masturbating than by having sex with a partner; (b) When I am having sex with a partner, I intentionally think about images from pornography to maintain my excitement; and (c) Using pornography to masturbate is more exciting than having sex with a partner. Each item was answered on a 5-point Likert scale, from 1 (never) to 5 (always). Cronbach alpha for the three-item scale was .57; however, examination of alpha-if- item-deleted statistics and item-total correlations (ranging from .37 to .44) indicated all three items contributed to the scale’s reliability (de Vaus, 2002). All items loaded significantly onto a single factor (standardized loadings were .53, .71, and .50, respectively).
Integrating Pornography with Sex
Three questions assessed participants’ integration of pornogra- phy with sexual interactions with a partner: (a) On average, how often do you view pornography when you are having sex with a partner? (b) Have you ever asked a sex partner to try something that you saw in pornography, such as a new sexual activity or position? and (c) I role-played with a sexual partner a scene that I saw in pornography. The first item was answered on an 8-point Likert scale (1 = never, 2 = less than once a year, 3 = a few times a year, 4 = once a month, 5 = a few times a month, 6 = 1 – 2 days a week, 7 = 3 – 5 days a week, 8 = daily or almost daily). The second item was answered on a dichotomous scale (1 = yes, 0 = no). The third item was answered on a 5-point Likert scale, from 1 (never) to 5 (always). Cronbach alpha for the three-item scalewas .41;however, examination of alpha-if-deleted statistics and item-total correlations (ranging from .23 to .33) indicated all items contributed to the scale’s reliability (de Vaus, 2002) and all
items loaded significantly onto a single factor (standardized loadings were .42, .38, and .70, respectively).
Enjoyment of Sexual Intimacy
Three questions assessed enjoyment of sexual intimacy: (a) I enjoy cuddling with my sexual partner; (b) I like kissing during sex; and (c) I like to take time caressing my sexual partner’s body. Each item was answered on a 6-point Likert scale, from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree). Cronbach alpha for the three-item scale was .87. All items loaded significantly onto a single factor (standardized loadings were .76, .87, and .86, respectively).
Procedure
This project was part of a collaborative, multi-site study of culture and sexual behavior conducted by a consortium of inter- national, cross-disciplinary scholars from the fields of com- munication, psychology, and sociology. All participating uni- versity Institutional Review Boards approved the project. Par- ticipants were recruited from Spring 2011 to Spring 2012 through departmental and college-wide email announcements, posted campus flyers, or Introductory Psychology courses. Interested participants were directed to an online survey posted on SurveyMonkey, a web-based survey service; each recruit- ment site had a unique link. Participants first provided consent, then confirmed their eligibility prior to completing the survey. Participation took approximately 30 min. Following survey completion, participants received a full debriefing and were given an opportunity to enter into a raffle to win one of three cash prizes (one $100 and two $60 prizes were awarded via random selection of all interested participants).
Analytic Approach
Descriptive statistics were utilized to provide base rate data on frequency of pornography use. Means and SDs for all dependent variables were computed (Table 2). Bivariate correlations were examined to assess demographic variables for inclusion in anal- yses as covariates. Skewness and kurtosis statistics and histo- grams were examined for assumptions of normality. Bivariate scatter plots were used to examine assumptions of linearity. Hypotheses were tested with a structural equation model using maximum likelihood estimation that employed one exogenous factor (pornography use, indicated by frequency of use for masturbation and frequency of use, but not for masturbation), six exogenous covariates (age, age at first pornography exposure, White ethnicity, religiosity, committed relationship status, and parental educational attainment), and four endogenous factors (pornography use during sex, preference for and reliance on pornography, enjoyment of sexual intimacy, and sexual inse- curities). Parental education was a latent factor comprised of
first hypothesis, there was not a significant association between pornography use and sexual insecurities in our structural model (standardized path coefficient = .13, p = .16). None of the covariates were significantly associated with sexual insecurities. A non-significant trend emerged, such that older participants tended to report lower sexual insecurities than younger partici- pants (standardized path coefficient = .11, p = .07).
H2: Pornography Use and Reliance on Pornography to Obtain/Maintain Sexual Excitement
We were interested in seeing whether pornography use was associated with a preference for and a reliance on pornography to obtain and/or maintain sexual excitement during sex with a partner. Means and SDs for the three pornography reliance questions are presented in Table 2. Consistent with our second hypothesis, there was a significant positive association between
the two variables in our structural model (standardized path coefficient = 1.21, p = .01). None of the covariates were signif- icantly associated with pornography reliance; however, higher religiosity was non-significantly associated with higher reliance on pornography during sexual activity (standardized path coef- ficient = .40, p = .09).
H3:Pornography Use and Integrating Pornography with Sex
Among participants with a current sexual partner (N = 297), most (78.1 %) did not view pornography during sexual activity (Table 2). We hypothesized higher use of pornography would be associated with greater likelihood of having viewed pornogra- phy during sexual activity with a partner, requesting from the partner a sexual activity the participant saw in pornography, and role-playing a pornography scene with a partner. Consistent with our third hypothesis, we saw a significant positive association
Fig. 1 Structural model relating pornography use and demographic variables to relational variables
between pornography use and the pornography use during sex factor (standardized path coefficient = 1.10, p = .02). Of the covariates, younger age was associated with greater integration of pornography into sexual activity (standardized path coeffi- cient = -.33, p = .04).
H4: Pornography Use and Enjoyment of Sexually Intimate Behavior
Participants answered questions assessing the degree to which they enjoyed intimate behaviors with their sexual partners, such as cuddling, kissing, and caressing. Overall, the respondents highly enjoyed those intimate behaviors; means and SDs for these three questions are presented in Table 2. Consistent with our fourth hypothesis, there was a significant negative associa- tion between these two latent variables in our structural model (standardized path coefficient = -.37, p.001). We also found older age (standardized path coefficient = .15, p = .03) to be associated with increased self-reported enjoyment of sexually intimate behaviors. A non-significant trend emerged for religi- osity, such that more religious participants tended to have lower self-reported enjoyment of sexually intimate behaviors than less religious participants (standardized path coefficient = -.13, p = .09).
Associations Between Pornography Use and Covariates
While we initially explored bivariate associations between pornography use and demographic variables, as described above, we further investigated how demographic variables used as covariates in the structural model related to the pornography use latent variable. Current pornography use was significantly associated with age at first exposure to pornography. In partic- ular, the younger the age at which men were first exposed to pornography, the higher their current use of pornography (standardized covariance = -.24, p = .02). Religiosity was also significantly negatively associated with current pornography use (standardized covariance = -.49, p.001). Non-signifi- cant trends emerged for two additional covariates: participant age and being in a committed relationship. Older participants (standardized covariance = .18, p = .06) and those not in a current committed romantic relationship (standardized covari- ance = -.18, p = .06) tended to report higher frequency of pornography use than younger and non-committed participants. Finally, we conducted a series of analyses that explored whether any of the demographic covariates moderated the rela- tions between pornography use and the endogenous variables. The items comprising each factor were averaged for a total score, and these served as the criterion variables in a series of multiple regressions with pornography use, the demographic covariate, and their interaction as the predictors. None of the demographic covariates were significant moderators with the exception of one: menlowerinreligiositythatusedhigheramountsofpornography
were significantly more likely to prefer pornography over sex with a real life partner than men higher in religiosity.
Discussion
This study joins previous research documenting the ubiquity of viewing pornography among heterosexual male college stu- dents (Boies, 2002; Carrol et al., 2008). Our research indicates that a majority of men (58.7 %) use pornography weekly, mostly via the internet. Furthermore, although Carrol et al. (2008) found daily viewing of pornography to be very rare (5.2 %), we found that 13.2 % of respondents viewed pornography daily or almost daily. We also found an earlier onset of first exposure to pornography compared to prior studies. Previous research (Sabina et al., 2008) found that 14.4 % of boys had exposure prior to the age of 13; we found that 48.7 % of men in our sample had similar early expo- sure. Such an increase in both the rate of consumption and early exposure may be due to the idiosyncrasies of the participants, but it may also be the result of increasingly easy access to ubiquitous Internet pornography (Johnson, 2010) and the social acceptance of a‘‘pornified’’culture (Paul, 2005). The growing presence of pornography in men’s sexual social- ization raises questions about the potential impact of pornogra- phy on dyadic sexual encounters; how might pornography use shape heterosexual men’s sexual behaviors, attitudes, and expec- tations during sexual encounters with women? Our research indi- cates that men who view high rates of pornography are more likely to rely on pornography to become and remain sexually excited and, when engaged in dyadic sexual behaviors, are more likely to integrate pornography in sexual activities. In addition, men with high rates of pornography use expressed diminished enjoyment in the enactment of sexually intimate behaviors com- pared to men with lower rates of pornography use. On the other hand, pornography use was not significantly associated with sexual insecurities. These findings build on the work of Tsitsika et al. (2009) and Peter and Valkenburg (2008a, b, 2010a, b) illustrating the relationships between pornography use and male consumers’ attitudes and beliefs about real-world sexual relationships. We, too, find that pornography is not mere fantasy or an individu- alized experience for men. Instead, our findings are consistent with a theory suggesting that pornography can become a pre- ferred sexual script for men, thus influencing their real-world expectations. Like others (Maltz & Maltz, 2010; Paul, 2005), our research indicates that such pornographic preferences are not benign for either the male consumer or his sexual part- ner(s). Instead, the consumption of pornography is associated with decreased self-reported enjoyment of sexually intimate behaviors with a real life partner. This association is con- cerning but not particularly surprising, given the phallocentric fixation, male-dominated content, and infrequent expressions
who only views pornography on Saturday but for 5 h straight, differ from a person watching 5 days a week for an hour at each viewing? More precise measurement of involvement in por- nography may be helpful in future studies. A second related limitation is the lack of information about the content of the pornography our participants used. Some researchers have theorized that there are important differences between mainstream pornography, which often includes imper- sonal sex and themes of degradation and aggression, and por- nography marketed to couples, which includes higher degrees of sexualintimacy (e.g.,Beggan &Allison, 2003). Itisverypossible these different types of pornographic materials convey different sexual scripts and therefore relate differently to real-world behaviors in their consumers. Third, the population in our study was not very diverse with respect to ethnicity, race, geographic location, or education. All subjects included in this study were male college students, the majority were non-Hispanic White, and most resided in the southern region of the United States. Furthermore, most came fromfamilies wherecaregivers were well-educated. Replicating and extending these findings to more diverse samples of men, and to women, would be important. Fourth, because our study was cross-sectional in nature, attempts to link pornography use and sexual attitudes and behav- iors in a causal way is unwarranted. Furthermore, our questions asked about average pornography use and typical sexual atti- tudes and behaviors, but did not specify a time frame for either. Therefore, we are unable to temporally order pornography consumption and sexual script-related variables. It may be that people who hold certain pre-existing sexual scripts seek out pornographic media that conform to and reinforce those scripts. Work such as that by Wright (2012), using longitudinal data, suggests pornography use often precedes sexual attitudes and behaviors such as engagement in casual sex (sex with non- committed partners) but that the converse was not true; never- theless, future studies may want to assess people longitudinally and include time specifiers in questionnaires. Lastly, our work does not speak to the direction of the rela- tionship between pornography and male sexual attitudes, behav- iors, and choices. Does pornography reflect sexual behavior preferences, shape these preferences, or both? Do the men in our study engage in pornographic sex acts in their relationships with a partner because they have been conditioned to desire them through their patterns of media consumption, or do they seek out pornographic media that are consistent with the sex acts that they prefer? Thus, the relationship between media scripts and sexual preferences may be recursive rather than linear. A longitudinal study following young men’s sexual development would help answer these questions. In conclusion, regardless of the intent of producers or consum- ers of pornography, our data point to clear connections between pornography consumption, sexual scripts, and real-world sexual experiences. Pornography is sometimes dismissed, celebrated, or
problematized as fantasy (e.g., Kipnis, 1996; Lehman, 2006; Williams, 2004), and many consumers may access pornography explicitly as a form of entertainment (McKee, 2012), but por- nography is also much more. What happens on the screen may implicate life off of it.
Acknowledgments The authors would like to acknowledge Michael Morgan and Patricia Geoffroy. Special thanks to Nicole Sullivan and her advisor Amy Tishelman for collecting the data at a northeastern college.
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