Researchers at the University of Glasgow figured outthat porn addicts are more likely to experience religious obsessions and have an increased aversion to negative emotions. Scientists have tried to figure out what unites these features.
They explored sensitivity (which is characterized by pathological guilt or obsession related to moral or religious issues) and experiential avoidance (a person’s reluctance to experience unpleasant memories, thoughts, and emotions). 672 participants in the experiment, with an average age of 26, answered questions compiled by the researchers.
The results of the survey showed that people who scored high on problematic pornography use were more likely to score high on the sensitivity index. Typically, those who agreed with the statements “I spend too much time watching pornography” also agreed with the statements “I should try to avoid certain immoral thoughts” and “I am afraid that I might be an evil person.”
In addition, people who turn on porn more often than others experience pangs of conscience that they would like to get rid of. They are more and more often than others try to avoid delicate situations.
The researchers also found in the answers they received a connection with the Dark Tetrad – this psychological term describes a set of inclinations of a “dark personality”. These include psychopathy, sadism, narcissism, and machiavellianism. The strongest connection was found between pornography and indirect sadism, although it is too early to draw conclusions on this basis, the scientists added.
The psychologists emphasize that these results do not apply to all people who watch porn, but only reveal the psychological characteristics associated with obsession with adult content.
We make no assertions about whether the use of pornography is healthy or unhealthy, moral or immoral. We were interested in what factors are associated with (problematic) pornography use. A lot of it comes down to wanting to avoid unpleasant thoughts, feelings, or scenarios. In fact, problematic porn use is usually caused not so much by a person’s personality as by whether or not they sought to avoid unpleasant experiences.
Christopher Hand
Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Glasgow
Also, the researchers are not sure about the objectivity of the survey participants, since no one measured how much time a person spends watching porn, and no one took into account what is “a lot” or “little” except for subjective judgments.
In the future, the authors plan to identify the relationship between psychological characteristics and porn genres, as well as establish a more accurate system for questioning participants.