Mental Health
Motivational pathways to problematic pornography use: A self-determination theory perspective.
Open Access: No.
Abstract
The present exploratory study investigates associations between problematic pornography use (PPU; i.e., dysregulated and distressing use of pornography) and psychological outcomes within the framework of Self-Determination Theory (SDT) using conditional process analysis (N = 613, 75.7% male, mean age = 25.14 ± 4.41). PPU was positively associated with several pornography use motivations (notably stress reduction, emotional distraction, and fantasy), impulsivity, loneliness, psychological distress, and sexual dysfunction, and negatively associated with relationship satisfaction and sexual self-esteem. Being male, married, higher internet use frequency, and higher pornography viewing frequency were associated with higher levels of various motivations; female gender, being single, higher education, prior sexual intercourse experience, and higher sexual satisfaction were associated with lower levels. Exploratory conditional mediation analyses suggested that fantasy, lack of sexual satisfaction, and emotional distraction/suppression were the most consistent mediators of the relationships between relationship satisfaction, sexual self-esteem, and religious commitment with PPU, particularly at higher levels of psychological distress, loneliness, and sexual dysfunction. Other motivations (e.g., sexual curiosity, self-exploration) showed only sporadic, very small effects. Most indirect effects fell below the threshold for practical significance (|β| < 0.20), indicating that these motivational pathways are unlikely to be clinically useful intervention targets and play a minor mechanistic role, justifying research into alternative pathways. All findings are hypothesis-generating and require independent replication to better understand how different pornography use motivations would act differently at various levels of psychological vulnerabilities.
Relevance
The findings were consistent with SDT or Self-Determination Theory, such that pornography use is a maladaptive coping strategy for lower levels of sexual self-esteem and for unmet needs for relationships. These, in turn, were associated with greater problematic pornography use of PPU.
PPU is arises from a “dysregulated trajectory rooted in emotional avoidance” and a maladaptive coping strategy “aimed at alleviating negative affect.”
Pornography “may serve as an emotionally avoidant coping strategy, particularly under high levels of distress.”
Impulsivity amplified the effects of pornography use motivations, and loneliness moderated the link between difficulties with emotional regulation and PPU.
“Overall, the findings are consistent with a conditional pathway model in which basic psychological needs, frustration, and pornography use motivations interact with individual vulnerabilities to predict PPU.”
“Interventions may benefit from focusing on restoring psychological need satisfaction, particularly in the domains of relational intimacy and sexual competence. Although most motivational indirect effects in this study fell below practical significance thresholds, treatment effectiveness may still be improved by attending to underlying motivations, particularly those related to emotional escape, stress regulation, and boredom avoidance, especially in individuals who also present with elevated psychological distress or sexual dissatisfaction, where motivational pathways showed the strongest conditional effects.”
Citation
Akbari, M., Seydavi, M., & Sheikhi, S. (2026). Motivational pathways to problematic pornography use: A self-determination theory perspective. Addictive Behaviors Reports, 24, Article 100724. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abrep.2026.100724
