Pornography and Social Anxiety

Abstract

pornography is among the major global concerns, especially among parents. Many teenagers, youths, and adults engage with pornography, oblivious of the danger to their mental health. Neuroscience studies associate porn with social anxiety witnessed among most pornography addicts. Generally, social anxiety caused by porn includes depression, social disconnection, loneliness, and discomfort. The study explores the relationship between pornography and social anxiety. Participants will be drawn from New York City, including youths and adults of different age groups. A descriptive survey will be suitable for this study since it will allow participants to express their views and collect qualitative and quantitative data. The study findings will be tabulated in frequency tables where mean and standard deviation will be determined. The data will be evaluated using correlation and regression assessment using descriptive statistics. The significance of each variable in the study will be determined using ANOVA. 

Pornography and Social Anxiety

The advancement of internet technology has made it easy to access materials online from the comfort of our homes. Most young people between the ages of 14 to 25 years are among the majority of internet users, according to the America Psychology Association report of 2017 (Peterka-Bonetta et al., 2019). They sought to establish whether pornography is addictive. Pornography has significantly led to an increase in irresponsible sexual behaviors among the youths because they are trying to imitate what they see over the internet (Love et al., 2015). Pornography use has led to risky sexual behaviors and mental health concerns among the users (Naizof, Weizman, & Weinstein, 2019). The moral concern around pornography makes its users fall victims to social anxiety (Peterka-Bonetta et al., 2019). The study surveyed the connection between porn and social anxiety based on scientific research. Generally, social anxiety associated with pornography includes discomfort, loneliness, disconnection, and depression.

Neuroscience recognizes that pornography consumption is among behaviors that potentially affect the reward circuitry in human brains, which leads to loss of control in some individuals (Niazof, Wiezman, & Weinstein, 2019). There are some individuals that, however, do not get affected by pornography as others because they watch porn with different intentions. However, a general overview of porn users substantiates that pornography is addictive and affects people’s ability to control themselves. The stigma of moral disapproval causes most individuals addicted to porn to feel guilty whenever they watch the videos (Camilleri, Perry, & Sammut, 2021). Pornography users often hide to avoid interacting with others. Individuals addicted to porn tend to confine themselves in their rooms to avoid noticing. The feeling of being isolated from the crowd is associated with social anxiety.

The continued use of pornographic materials influences the brain as drugs and substances do. Pornography affects the reward center of the brain. A pleasure chemical in the brain known as dopamine causes a connection between habits and a reward. Pornography influences the brain like an addictive drug by triggering higher amounts of dopamine (Hilton & Watts, 2011). Over time, continuous viewing of porn content causes the brain to build a tolerance to the excess dopamine and pushes the brain to require more content to gain some extent of perceived pleasure (Love et al., 2015). When the brain is exposed to prolonged viewing of pornography videos, it gets rewired. Most teenagers exposed to pornography tend to have sex at an early age, leading to risky sexual behaviors.

Different researchers have examined porn and social anxiety to ascertain their relationship. Generally, pornography is viewed from a morality and ethical perspective to imply that it is unacceptable. People addicted to pornography indicate social anxiety based on how they relate with others. (Caballo et al., 2018). Porn videos are not like other normal videos that one can watch in an open place. Most users of pornography materials hide from the crowd because they feel unsafe watching the contents in an open place. Continuous usage of pornography leads individuals to develop behaviors such as self-isolation and discomfort whenever they are in a group of people (Mennig, Tennie, & Barke, 2022). Individuals addicted to pornography often feel lonely.

Pornography addiction affects two groups of people more than others. That is teens and couples. When teens are exposed to sexual content at an early age, it might affect their confidence (Peterka-Bonetta et al., 2019). Some teens often want to experiment with what they see from pornography videos in real life. When they realize they had set unrealistic expectations, they get depressed and lose their self-esteem. Couples also get into trouble because pornography addiction causes a lack of attention to one another (Caballo et al., 2018). Neuroscience studies indicate that prolonged exposure to porn videos results in addiction. A couple’s relationship gets jeopardized due to pornography usage by either of them.  

Discomfort is among the symptoms of social anxiety experienced by people addicted to pornography. They often feel guilty whenever the topic of pornography is mentioned. Pornography is surrounded by stigma and taboo that anyone watching porn videos feels they are violating vital life fundamentals they ought not to break (Camilleri et al., 2021). The last thing that most pornography addicts want is to contribute or sit where the issue of porn is being discussed. They feel ashamed such that they can easily walk away from such meetings to avoid embarrassment. Society views it even more complicated with women as they are the last people expected to get attached to pornography (Zlot et al., 2018). Neuroscience studies indicate that pornography affects men and women differently. While men get the visual attraction to it, women, on the other hand, get emotionally attached.

Most people addicted to pornography get uncomfortable even sitting with others in a crowd. They are used to hiding themselves whenever they are watching the content to the extent that their brains want them to be alone (Love et al., 2015). They worsen when someone speaks about moral values that guide society that everyone should uphold. Pornography generally confines people to a position of discomfort because it lacks ethical approval (Caballo et al., 2018). No single person addicted to porn can pretend not to be guilty when the issue of porn is getting addressed. Pornography is a common practice among youths and adults that has significantly contributed to mental health challenges. Therefore, there is a correlation between pornography and social anxiety as examined from various perspectives.

Loneliness is another symptom of social anxiety that results from the continuous use of pornography materials and content. Loneliness is a mental disorder associated with the need to self-isolate to avoid social interactions (Niazof et al., 2019). Sometimes people feel lonely and opt to watch pornography to stimulate their brains to feel some pleasure. Pornography and loneliness are interrelated. When people get lonely, they feel the urge to watch pornography videos, pushing them to want to be alone. Generally, pornography leads to a cycle of loneliness among users. People addicted to porn want to watch it more often such that whenever they are not watching it, they feel lonely (Hilton, 2011). The cycle continues so that they feel the urge to watch pornography whenever they are lonely. Continuous use of pornography gets someone addicted to the extent that they cannot do without it.

Individuals’ brains develop an automatic response to the urge to watch pornography. The brain gets triggered to generate more amounts of dopamine which is responsible for pleasure (Love et al., 2015). Finally, the brain reaches a point of tolerance such that there is no more extended excitement in watching porn. Pornography addiction leaves its victims with long-term feelings of loneliness even after quitting the practice (Mennig et al., 2022). Therefore, such symptoms of social anxiety can explain the extent to which porn results in mental disorders among the users. The more exposed to pornography, the more they risk damaging their brains that may not be easy to repair.

Disconnection is another effect resulting from an obsession with pornography. Human beings are generally social beings that want to interact with everyone in their social environment. People need to maintain social interactions to maintain stable mental health. Unfortunately, people hooked on pornography miss out on building social relationships (Caballo et al., 2018). They often find themselves hiding in one room or corner to enjoy their videos. Most people obsessed with porn videos tend to lose the desire for real sex as they feel what they watch is the real deal. They tend to create fake intimacy in their brains, making it challenging to consider real sex with their partners (Zlot et al., 2018). When women get more hooked on pornography, they get emotional and withdraw from those they love, such as husbands, family, or colleagues at work. Generally, addiction and shame push most people from their social relations.

Depression is among the significant social anxiety symptoms that result from addiction to pornography. People who watch pornography often feel guilty even when alone because they fear getting stigmatized when they get caught (Camilleri et al., 2021). Some people resort to pornography to relieve themselves from their feelings such as anger, sadness, and boredom. Unfortunately, when people watch porn, they start panicking, thinking someone will catch up with them. Continuous panicking push people into depression which cause them to withdraw from people around them (Peterka-Bonetta et al., 2019). The more people feed their minds with sexual graphics, the more they miss out on building genuine social relationships. Most couples lose their intimate relationships due to pornography. A spouse may raise weird expectations, which cause their partners to lose self-esteem and get into depression. Therefore, pornography and social anxiety are real as they can get attributed to depression among users.

Methods

Participants

Participants in this study will be 500 youths and adults drawn from New York City. The age range of participants will be between 18-30 years to cover a wide range of demography. Out of the 500 participants, 270 will be male, while 220 will be female. The participants will comprise diverse race and ethnic groups that include 40% Native Americans, 33% black Americans, 15% Asians, and 12% Native Hawaiian. The study participants will be selected randomly from families of different income levels.

Strata will divide participants into six groups, each of which will be led by a single person. The data on participants’ consumption of pornography will be collected through a survey method. The data for the survey will be collected using a closed and open-ended questionnaire. The participant’s level of involvement in pornography will be determined using a 1-5 rating scale. For example, on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 represents participants with a minor level of pornography addiction, and 5 reflects significant levels of porn addiction.

Measures

The study’s “dependent and independent variables” will be stated in the questionnaires. There will be 20 questions on independent variables and five dependent phenomena in each questionnaire. To assess the study’s reliability and validity, various questionnaires should be used. Each group’s leaders will be taught to respond to the questionnaires with closed-ended questions. Each questionnaire will have questions with corresponding blocks where participants will indicate their responses by ticking the right block. Time will be allocated for each question to give participants enough time to digest every question before answering. The team leaders will be responsible for tallying the responses of their team members in the frequency tables.

The survey session will be done in three phases to allow participants to take small breaks. The first phase will contain ten survey questions with eight closed-ended and two open-ended questions. The second phase will contain eight survey questions that will be all closed-ended to save time on the survey. The last phase will contain seven open-ended questions, and participants will be allocated enough time to allow them to provide succinct responses. Their team leaders will break down the questions to facilitate their understanding. The survey will use hard copy questionnaires for people without Android phones, while others will fill soft copy questionnaires. The team leaders will classify the findings based on active porn users versus inactive users.

Procedure

The study uses the survey method because the phenomenon under study requires descriptive analysis of qualitative and quantitative data. Participants will be informed about the survey through a request letter published on the print media that invites anyone interested to participate. Participation in the survey will be voluntary. Each participant will be assured of confidentiality through a written agreement signed upon selection to participate in the study. The participants will be stratified by age bracket, gender, income level, education level, and race/ethnic orientation. There will be an introductory statement on all the questionnaires informing participants of the essence of the survey and how they should answer the questions.

The questionnaires will be structured around four significant independent variables selected for the study. They include discomfort, loneliness, depression, and disconnection. Participants will be required to use pencils to fill out their questionnaires to enable them to erase what they are not sure about. A frequency table will be prepared that will be used to tabulate all the responses. The response sheet will be divided into demographic information, first, second, third, and fourth variables to represent independent variables. Descriptive statistics will be utilized on both qualitative and quantitative data.

Results

Based on the data collected from the participants, the study creates social phobia connection with pornography. Per the research, individuals aged 18 to 30 are said they use pornography more than 7 times a week. Furthermore, male respondents have a higher probability than females to involve in porn. Each category of questions will be sampled and tabulated to find its mean. For further statistical significance, a standard deviation will get used to determine the spread of the variables. Tables will be used to highlighting the study results by indicating frequency, mean, and standard deviation for each section of the questionnaire. Data analysis will be done using a Pearson R test that will measure the statistical relationship between two continuous variables. The relationships shall be established for participants of different age brackets as indicated in Table 1 attached. Figure 1 will also show the relationship between porn addiction and social anxiety at different age brackets.

Calculation of the significance in independent variables used the one-way independent ANOVA to check for significant differences within each variable. F-statistics will be computed to check for significance. The alpha level will be 0.05 for this study. As predicted, the effect of the different types of exams will be significant, F (3, 62) = X. XX, p< .05, such that participants falling in different age bracket (M = XX. XX, SD = X.X) will relate to social anxiety indicators than those that do not use porn (M = XX.XX, SD= X.X).

Discussions

The central hypothesis of this study is that pornography causes social anxiety among people addicted to it. The study results are expected to validate the relationship between porn and social anxiety based on the four dimensions of anxiety: discomfort, loneliness, disconnection, and depression. The rating score used for the study to decide the level of porn addiction will indicate that more young people are addicted to porn than adults between the ages of 18-and 30 years. Participants selected for the study will be willing to share their past experiences with porn. Generally, the findings will indicate that more males than females are involved in pornography.

The findings will also indicate that more Native Americans are addicted to pornography than any other ethnic group. The study will suggest that more people suffer social anxiety due to porn than those that do not use pornography. Although there are indications that pornography relates to social anxiety, there is a need for further studies. The connection “pornography and social anxiety” data should be gathered from a large population outside New York City. Pornography addiction is a global concern, especially among parents, resulting in risky sexual behaviors. Most young people engage in sex at a tender age due to the influence of porn. The majority have developed low self-esteem due to unrealistic expectations from the pornography sites and videos they watch every day. Some couples have been affected significantly, such that some families have broken to reduced intimacy and social relationships among couples.

The strength of this study will be the use of a descriptive survey for data collection and analysis. A descriptive survey allows participants to express themselves freely and answer the survey questions with confidence. The questionnaires are tailored toward the social impacts of pornography as far as mental health is concerned. The study’s findings will enlighten participants and caution them against further indulgence in pornography. Through the structured questions, young people will understand why they need to consider moral values at the expense of addictions such as pornography.

The study’s limitations will be the participants’ confidence level in undertaking the survey. The porn topic is among crucial subjects that most people shy away from. Some participants might feel awkward being seen among those people taking the survey. The stigma of pornography may hinder people from participating in the study. Their participation will be under anonymity to help them gain confidence.

The conclusive results of the study are that pornography and social anxiety are directly related. Pornography is associated with more indecency, and no one wants to get caught engaging in it. Therefore, most people isolate themselves from watching porn, resulting in long-term effects on their mental faculties. Some of the effects of porn include depression, guilt, panic, disconnection from social life, and loneliness. Generally, further research is needed to validate the relationship between porn and anxiety. In addition, there should be suggestions on the best approaches that can be used to curb the spread of pornography among young people. 

References

Caballo, V. E., Salazar, I. C., Arias, V., Hofmann, S. G., & Curtiss, J. (2018). Psychometric properties of the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale in a large cross-cultural Spanish and Portuguese speaking sample. Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry, 41, 122-130. https://doi.org/10.1590/1516-4446-2018-0006

Camilleri, C., Perry, J. T., & Sammut, S. (2021). Compulsive Internet Pornography Use and Mental Health: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Sample of University Students in the United States. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 613244. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.613244

Hilton, D. L., & Watts, C. (2011). Pornography addiction: A neuroscience perspective. Surgical neurology international, 2, 19. https://doi.org/10.4103/2152-7806.76977

Love, T., Laier, C., Brand, M., Hatch, L., & Hajela, R. (2015). Neuroscience of Internet Pornography Addiction: A Review and Update. Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 5(3), 388–433. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs5030388

Mennig, M., Tennie, S., & Barke, A. (2022). Self-Perceived Problematic Use of Online Pornography Is Linked to Clinically Relevant Levels of Psychological Distress and Psychopathological Symptoms. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 51(2), 1313-1321. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-021-02101-w

Niazof, D., Weizman, A., & Weinstein, A. (2019). The contribution of ADHD and attachment difficulties to online pornography use among students. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 93, 56-60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2019.07.002

Peterka-Bonetta, J., Sindermann, C., Elhai, J. D., & Montag, C. (2019). Personality associations with smartphone and internet use disorder: A comparison study including links to impulsivity and social anxiety. Frontiers in public health, 7, 127. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2019.00127

Zlot, Y., Goldstein, M., Cohen, K., & Weinstein, A. (2018). Online dating is associated with sex addiction and social anxiety. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 7(3), 821-826. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.7.2018.66

Appendix

Table 1

Mean and standard deviation for measures of various effects of porn addiction and social anxiety studied.

*p < .05

Figure 1

(Image)Figure 1