People may use pornography to complement their sexual practices with partners or to provide a safe means of solitary sexual pleasure. However, just like other media, pornography has the power to influence our perceptions and attitudes. In this case, it can influence our attitudes toward sex, sensuality and relationships. The type of sex some pornography depicts may be worthy of aspiration; other pornography may normalize sex that is unrealistic or harmful.

Pornography, like all media, reflects the social dynamics present in society.  For example, aggression and violence are commonplace in mainstream pornography, and the targets of aggression are most often feminine. This aggression is typically associated with pleasure without depicting negotiations of consent that may happen “off camera.”  Racist, ableist, fatphobic and classist themes are frequently represented as well. Content analyses have found that, in the most popular videos, violent content has increased over the past few decades. (Source: Wright, P. J., Tokunaga, R. S., & Kraus, A. (2015). A meta-analysis of pornography consumption and actual acts of sexual aggression in general population studies. Journal of Communication, 66(1), 183-205). Because of the themes described above, it's important to think about how viewing pornography may be affecting you. Below are a few potential harmful effects of certain types of pornography to consider.

Consider if and how your own pornography use has affected your expectations of bodies, both yours and your partners':

• Does your pornography use create unrealistic expectations regarding breasts, vulva, pubic hair, or body type?

• Does your pornography use create unrealistic expectations regarding penis size, capacity for multiple orgasm, stamina or body type?

• Does your pornography use play into racialized, gender-based, body-based and other stereotypes?

Pornography may also change your expectations of sex by obscuring negotiations of consent and safer sex, normalizing non-consensual degrading or violent sexual practices.

• Does the pornography you consume glorify non-consensual violence against sexual partners and/or depict physically painful sex?

• Does the pornography you consume depict the degradation of those in the film or photographs?

• Does the pornography you consume depict the safer sex preferences or otherwise demonstrate the personal autonomy of the actors?

One should also consider the nature of all pornography with respect to the models and actors in these films or photographs. Pornography is most often the depiction of real people. Consider the potential for the exploitation and harm of the people in the pornography you consume. Recently there has been more exploration into the impacts and ethics of producing pornographic content on the internet in the “amateur” genres, for example in the 2015 Netflix documentary “Hot Girls Wanted.”  

• You decide that watching pornography is taking up too much time in your life and you try to cut back but you aren't able to.

• You've made promises to your partner that you will change your pornography habits but have not been able to make those changes.

• The time spent watching pornography is impacting your academic, work, social, and family responsibilities.

• Your relationships are being negatively impacted as a result of your use.

• Your pornography use replaces or becomes preferable to sexual intimacy with a partner.

The campus resources listed below can help Brown students better understand their use of pornography and its impact, and you can also contact Sex Addicts Anonymous for information and resources.