Young Adult Women’s Reports of Their Male Romantic Partner’s Pornography Use as a Correlate of Their Self-Esteem, Relationship Quality, and Sexual Satisfaction

AUTHOR(S)

Stewart, Destin N.; and Szymanski, Dawn M.

PUBLISHED

2012 in Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, Vol. 67(5-6), pp. 257-271

KEY FINDINGS
  • This study found that women’s reports of their male partner’s frequency of pornography use were negatively associated with their relationship quality.
  • Female partners' perceptions of their partner's problematic use of pornography was negatively correlated with their own self-esteem.
  • This study also found that pornography was associated with lower sexual satisfaction, relationship quality, and sexual satisfaction.
ABSTRACT
Pornography is both prevalent and normative in many cultures across the world, including United States’ culture; however, little is known about the psychological and relational effects that it can have on young adult women involved in heterosexual romantic relationships in which their male partners view pornography. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between men’s pornography use, both frequency and problematic use, on their heterosexual female partner’s psychological and relational well-being... READ FULL ABSTRACT
EXCERPTS
  • "The findings of the current study revealed that women’s reports of their male partner’s problematic pornography use were negatively associated with their self-esteem, relationship quality, and sexual satisfaction. In addition, perceptions of frequency of pornography use were also negatively related to relationship quality. These findings are consistent with previous qualitative descriptions of women’s experiences after they discover their male partner’s heavy involvement in pornography."
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