Women in Relationships and Their Pornography Use: A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis

Why Do People Watch Pornography? Cross-Cultural Validation of the Pornography Use Motivations Scale (PUMS) and Its Short Form (PUMS-8)

Motivations for pornography use may vary across gender identities, sexual orientations, and geographical regions, warranting examination to promote individual and public health. The aims of this study were to validate the Pornography Use Motivations Scale (PUMS) in a diverse, multicultural sample, and develop a short form (PUMS-8) that can assess a wide range of pornography use motivations. Using data from 42 countries (N = 75,117; Mage = 32.07; SDage = 12.37), enabled us to thoroughly evaluate the dimensionality, validity, and reliability of the Pornography Use Motivations Scale (PUMS), leading to the development of the more concise PUMS-8 short scale. Additionally, language-, nationality-, gender-, and sexual-orientation-based measurement invariance tests were conducted to test the comparability across groups. Both the PUMS and the PUMS-8 assess eight pornography use motivations, and both demonstrated excellent psychometric properties. Sexual Pleasure emerged as the most frequent motivation for pornography use across countries, genders, and sexual orientations, while differences were observed concerning other motivations (e.g. self-exploration was more prevalent among gender-diverse individuals than men or women). The motivational background of pornography use showed high similarity in the examined countries. Both the PUMS and the PUMS-8 are reliable and valid measurement tools to assess different types of motivations for pornography use across countries, genders, and sexual orientations. Both scales are recommended for use in research and clinical settings.

Relationship between the frequency and duration of masturbation and the sexual health literacy and sexual function of women in western Turkey: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Although sexual life and its knowledge are still taboo in many cultures, especially for women, it can negatively affect women's sexual health.

AIM

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between the frequency and duration of masturbation and the sexual health literacy among young Muslim women of reproductive age between 18 and 25 years living in western Turkey.

METHODS

The cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted with 921 young women in western Turkey between March and December 2023. Participants were included in the study per the snowball method. The data consisted of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors regarding masturbation, sexual life, and sexual health literacy. Data were obtained on an online platform and analyzed with SPSS (version 24; IBM). Difference, correlation, and regression analyses were performed. The significance level for statistical analyses was accepted as P < .05.

OUTCOMES

The outcomes of the study are the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors regarding masturbation, orgasm, sexual health literacy, and sexual function in women.

RESULTS

The participants were young Muslim women aged 21.00 ± 1.89 years (mean ± SD). The frequency of masturbation was 5.06 ± 2.03 times per month, and the duration was 3.47 ± 1.77 minutes per day. Masturbation frequency and duration were significantly associated with sexual health literacy and sexual function (P < .001). According to regression analysis, sexual function increased and sexual health literacy increased as masturbation frequency and duration increased (P < .001).

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

This study presents results on the current situation regarding the sexual health literacy and sexual lives in women from different geographies and cultures, and it serves as a source for future studies on areas that need to be improved.

STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS

The limitation of the study is that it was conducted only with Muslim and Turkish women who use smartphones and are sexually active, so it cannot be generalized to all women. The strengths of the study are that it was conducted with a sample of 921 women, it was based on self-report and addressed many dimensions related to masturbation and female sexuality, and the results were reached through exploratory analysis.

CONCLUSION

The study found that the higher the duration and frequency of masturbation in young women, the better their sexual function and higher their sexual literacy.

Women Reporting on Their Use of Pornography: A Qualitative Study Exploring Women's Perceived Precursors and Perceived Outcomes

The aim of this study was to explore motivations women describe for using pornography. A qualitative online interview study was conducted with 30 women (Mean age 30.23, range 20-47; residing in the UK and in Greece; of varied sexual orientations and relationship status) about their pornography use, motivations for use, and preferences. Reflexive thematic analysis was used. Results were organized into four themes: Sexual Precursors, Non-sexual Precursors, Intended Outcomes, and Unintended Outcomes. The findings highlight that pornography use for women can have both positive and negative ramifications for women's sexual lives. Implications for clinical practice and education are discussed.

Let's Talk About Sex(ual Health): Young Adult Women's Disclosure of Their Pornography Use to Their Romantic Partners

Within romantic relationships, secret-keeping has been related to negative outcomes whereas self-disclosure has been related to positive outcomes. Exploring young adult women's pornography use disclosures to their romantic partners can provide further avenues for understanding aspects of sexual and relational health. Using an open-ended survey informed by the Revelation Risk Model (RRM), this study explored young adult women's reasons and perceived relational outcomes of disclosing their pornography use to their romantic partners. Data from 32 young adult women (M = 20.8 years old), were thematically analyzed. Women in our sample reported disclosing for three main reasons: disclosed to be close, disclosed because we are intimate, and speaking our minds. They also reported that their disclosures resulted in emotional, sexual, or no relational changes. Further, we found that women who engaged in more in-depth conversations following their pornography disclosures perceived there to be more positive relational changes in comparison to women who had surface-level conversations following their pornography disclosures.

Sexual Experiences and Beliefs Vary by Patterns of Pornography Genre Preferences Among Women

Pornography use is multidimensional, yet most studies of the topic use variable-oriented methods (e.g., frequency of use) that reduce the experience to a single dimension. In this study, we sought to identify different multidimensional patterns of pornography genre preferences among a sample of women (n = 206) and examine how those patterns are differentially associated with sexual experiences and beliefs examined in previous literature. Latent Class Analysis uncovered four patterns (or classes): Heterogeneous (39%), Traditionally Feminine (27%), Female Pleasure (23%) and Rough/violent (11%). Class membership was differentially predicted by prior sexual victimization, sexual esteem, and diverse sexual experiences while controlling for frequency of use. These findings suggest that genre preference could account for much of the mixed findings of prior work that measured pornography use with unidimensional approaches.

Häufigkeit, Heimlichkeit und Einstellung bei der Pornographienutzung und deren Zusammenhänge mit der sexuellen Paarzufriedenheit

Zusammenfassung. Theoretischer Hintergrund: Bisherige Befunde zeigen, dass Pornographienutzung einen Zusammenhang mit der Zufriedenheit in der Paarsexualität hat. Fragestellung: Um diesen Zusammenhang besser zu verstehen, soll diese Studie aufzeigen, welche Faktoren dabei von Bedeutung sind. Methode: Dafür wurden 18- bis 60-Jährige in einer Beziehung ( N = 1’091) anhand eines Online-Fragebogens befragt. Ergebnisse: Sowohl die Häufigkeit der Pornographienutzung, als auch eine negative Einstellung und die Heimlichkeit weisen bei den jungen und Männern mittleren Alters einen negativen Zusammenhang mit der sexuellen Paarzufriedenheit auf. Bei den Frauen jeden Alters hat lediglich eine heimliche Nutzung einen negativen Zusammenhang mit der Paarsexualität. Schlussfolgerungen: Das bedeutet für die Beratung, dass auf die Häufigkeit der Nutzung und die Einstellung zu der Nutzung geachtet werden soll.

Perceptions of Pornography and Attitudes Toward Condom Use in Heterosexual Chinese Adults: The Effect of Sexual Pleasure, Safer Sex Communication Apprehension, and Shared Pornography Use During Sex

Chinese people's pornography use is increasing and condomless sex is prevalent in pornography. However, both the relationship between pornography and condom use among Chinese adults and the mechanisms underlying this relationship are underexplored. This study examined how perceptions of pornography were associated with attitudes toward condom use through the mediating effect of gratification of sexual pleasure and safer sex communication apprehension, and how shared pornography use with a partner during sex moderated these relationships. A total of 658 participants (391 women and 267 men) aged 18-65 years and involved in a romantic relationship completed an online survey assessing pornography consumption, condom use, gratification of sexual pleasure, and safer sex communication apprehension. Results showed that expressive/erotic perceptions of pornography were associated with higher levels of gratification of sexual pleasure, which were, in turn, associated with more negative attitudes toward condom use. Expressive/erotic perceptions of pornography were also associated with lower levels of safer sex communication apprehension and lower levels of negative attitudes toward condom use. Higher levels of shared pornography use with a partner during sex strengthened the direct positive relationship between expressive/erotic perceptions of pornography and negative attitudes toward condom use. Higher levels of shared pornography use during sex also strengthened the positive relationship between expressive/erotic perceptions of pornography and gratification of sexual pleasure, and the negative relationship between expressive/erotic perceptions of pornography and safer sex communication apprehension, which in turn, were significantly associated with attitudes toward condom use. Implications for sexual health education and limitations are discussed.

Porn Sex versus Real Sex: Sexual Behaviors Reported by a U.S. Probability Survey Compared to Depictions of Sex in Mainstream Internet-Based Male-Female Pornography

Using data from a 2014 U.S. nationally representative probability survey and a 2014 content analysis of 2562 male-female videos from two popular pornographic websites, this study aimed to: (1) compare the prevalence of survey respondents' event-level sexual behaviors with those depicted in mainstream pornography online videos; (2) compare event-level condom use with condom use prevalence in pornographic videos; (3) compare event-level orgasm with prevalence of orgasms in pornographic videos; and (4) assess whether respondents' partnered use of pornography was associated with the sexual behaviors in which they report engaging. We found that kissing, male orgasm, female orgasm, and condom use were significantly less prevalent in the pornographic videos than in survey respondents' most recent sexual experiences. Conversely, penile-anal intercourse and fellatio were significantly more prevalent in the pornographic videos than in participants' reports of their most recent sexual experience. There were no significant differences between the prevalence of cunnilingus or sex toy use represented in the videos as compared to survey respondents' reports. Finally, we found that individuals who reported partnered pornography use during their most recent sexual experience were more likely to report having engaged in oral sex, penile-anal intercourse, and sex toy use and were also more likely to report female orgasm during their most recent sexual experience.

An Intersectional Feminist Analysis of Women's Experiences of Authenticity in Pornography

Most pornography research has examined negative consequences of use among heterosexual men. Scant research has explored the benefits of using pornography among women, though research does indicate several potential benefits, including increased sexual self-esteem, sexual knowledge, and sexual communication. Research suggests that women may maximize these benefits when they perceive pornography to be authentic. To more fully understand the importance and perceptions of authenticity in pornography, we analyzed qualitative interviews with 24 women in the U.S. who reported recent pornography use. Ages ranged from 22 to 53 (M = 30.33, SD = 6.91), 62.5% were white, and most (79.2%) reported a sexual identity other than heterosexual. Thematic analyses indicated that authenticity was important for most women's enjoyment of pornography, partially via its utility in reducing guilt and emotional labor (i.e., the work needed to enjoy or believe the content). Furthermore, women's intersectional identities, such as race and sexual orientation, influenced their experiences of guilt and emotional labor. Finally, women determined authenticity within pornography in three primary ways: analyzing appearance, performance, and intimacy. Results suggest research, clinical, and educational opportunities to support women's sexual exploration and pleasure via engagement with pornography.