Socialization & Relationship Outcomes

Open Access: Yes.

Abstract

Given the moral barriers that hinder critical analysis of pornography, this study aims, through a qualitative approach with 15 participants, to examine its impacts on the construction of masculinity and the social relationships of men from the semi-arid region of Paraíba, Brazil. Data were collected via an online form, which included a sociodemographic questionnaire and open-ended questions on the topic. The data were analyzed using dialogical maps within the framework of discourse analysis. Results show that pornography is a constant and influential presence in the participants’ lives, often beginning at an early age and reinforced by social interaction. Its consumption goes beyond personal satisfaction, also serving as a tool for social comparison, shaping male subjectivity and relational dynamics. In sum, the study highlights the cultural impact of pornography in a context where critical discussions about sexuality remain limited due to the prevalence of traditional gender norms and male chauvinism.

Relevance

“Pornography appeared not merely as part of private sexual consumption, but also as an ordinary and ambivalent repertoire through which participants organized meanings about desire, pleasure, performance, intimacy, and masculinity. Consumption was described as frequent and often starting early, commonly mediated by male family members and peers, while participants also portrayed pornography as both accessible and pleasurable and as a possible source of frustration, excess, and distorted expectations. More than a matter of isolated exposure, the findings suggest that pornography is woven into broader social processes through which sexual norms are learned, negotiated, and normalized.”

The data “suggests that pornography entered participants’ lives not simply through an isolated act of curiosity, but as part of a process of gendered sexual socialization.”

“Participants frequently described pornography as exaggerated, artificial, or far removed from everyday sexual life, yet they also reported comparison, frustration, projected fetishes, and expectations imported into real relationships. Importantly, recognizing pornography as fictional did not prevent it from functioning as a reference point for evaluating bodies, performances, and sexual encounters.”

“Participants described porn actors as exaggerated, staged, dominant, strong, and sexually efficient, even when they explicitly rejected these portrayals as unrealistic. Such responses suggest that pornography offered stylized images of masculine sexual competence that remained socially intelligible even under critique.”

Citation

França, M., Santos, S., Dantas Silva, W. A., & Silva, C. (2026). Pornography, Subjectivity, and Rural Masculinities in Brazil. Psychology International, 8(2), 36. https://doi.org/10.3390/psycholint8020036