Reports & Summaries
Is Pornography Colonizing Young People’s Sexuality and Normalising Inequity?
Full Article Name: Is Pornography Colonizing Young People’s Sexuality and Normalising Inequity?
Open Access: Yes
Abstract
Growing up digital means sexual exploration and experimentation is increasingly happening in the online space. From sending or receiving nude texts (sexting), flirting with strangers in 18+chat sites like Omegal, to watching free online pornography young people are increasingly using the online space to become sexual beings (Allen 2013). In 2003, before the dominance of mobile devices, 73% of 16-year-old boys surveyed by Flood (Flood and Hamilton 2003) watched pornography on a regular basis. Almost 12 years on that figure is more like 80% of both boys and girls at age 16 reporting that they regularly watch online pornography (Parker 2014). These statistics from 500 18-year-olds surveyed in the UK recently reinforce what we already know anecdotally about the way online pornography has influenced popular culture, music videos, advertising, and young people’s understanding of sexual information and sexual conditioning (Parker 2014, Quinlivan 2014).
Citation
Etheredge, L. (2014, December 9). Is pornography colonizing young people’s sexuality and normalising inequity? [Paper presentation]. The Gender and Education Association Biennial Interim Conference, Melbourne, Australia. https://www.academia.edu/12476200/Conference_Paper_Is_pornography_colonizing_young_people_s_sexuality_and_normalising_inequity