Shaping Sexual Behaviors & Sexual Scripts

Open Access: Yes.

Abstract

The study of online pornography use and its correlation with sexist attitudes has long intrigued the global scientific community. Despite diverse perspectives, opinions regarding the impact of pornography on an individual’s psychology and sexuality vary. In Greece, there is also a lack of research exploring the possible relationship between these two phenomena. This study aims to investigate the relationship between problematic internet pornography use, sexism, and other related factors like viewing frequency, preferred type of pornographic material, and sexist attitudes. An online, synchronous study was conducted with a sample of 535 adult individuals (350 males, 178 females, 7 identified as “other”) with an average age of 38.9 years (SD = ± 13.5) from the general population on the most popular social media platforms. The Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale (PPCS) and Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (ASI) measured problematic pornography use and sexism. In comparison to women and individuals of “other” genders, men exhibited significantly higher levels of both hostile sexism (p < 0.001 and p = 0.014, respectively) and benevolent sexism (p < 0.007 and p = 0.002, respectively). Age and rural residence correlated with higher sexism levels (p < 0.001 and p = 0.018, respectively). Higher levels of education were associated with lower levels of benevolent sexism, emphasizing education’s positive impact (p < 0.001). Problematic internet pornography use was significantly correlated with higher levels of sexism (p < 0.001). The Greek scientific community should focus on monitoring and investigating problematic internet pornography use to better understand its potential associations and implications.

Relevance

“One of the most significant findings in this study is the association between problematic internet pornography use and sexist attitudes, with higher levels of problematic internet pornography use indicating higher levels of sexist attitudes.”

Additionally, “Men exhibited higher levels of both hostile and benevolent sexism, consistent with the broader literature highlighting the role of exposure to pornographic content in reinforcing explicit and implicit gender stereotypes.”

Citation

Liatsou, I., Triantafyllou, K., Malliori, M. M., Tzavellas, E., & Paparrigopoulos, T. (2025). Problematic Internet Pornography Use and Sexist Attitudes: An Internet-Based Observational Study. Sexuality & Culture 29, 1034-50. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-024-10311-2