Sex Aware

Are Pornography and Marriage Substitutes for Young Men? by Michael Malcolm, George S Naufal (November 2014) forthcoming in: Eastern Economic Journal, 2015

Substitutes for marital sexual gratification may impact the decision to marry. Proliferation of the Internet has made pornography an increasingly low-cost substitute. We investigate the effect of Internet usage, and of pornography consumption specifically, on the marital status of young men. We show that increased Internet usage is negatively associated with marriage formation. Pornography consumption specifically has an even stronger effect. Instrumental variables and a number of robustness checks suggest that the effect is causal.

Research published in the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in Germany claims that the rise of free porn on the internet is both correlated with the decline in the amount of young adult men who are married and might actually play a role in the decline. Researchers surveyed more than 1500 men between 18 and 35, analyzing how they used the internet between 2000 and 2004. The researchers took a look at how many hours each participant spent and how many looked at porn versus religious sites, adjusting for variables like age, income, education, religiosity, and employment. Roberto A. Ferman at Washington Post writes :

Broadly, higher Internet usage was associated with lower marriage rates. But pornography use in particular was more closely linked to those participants who were not married than any other form of Internet use, including regular use of financial websites, news websites, sports websites, and several others. The opposite, for comparison, was true for religious website use, which was positively correlated with marriage.

One of the study's authors, professor at University of West Chester, Pennsylvania Dr. Michael Malcolm explains that the study could point to marriage and sexual gratification. Ferman continues:

If pornography is viewed as a means of alternative sexual gratification, then it could be undercutting the need for marriages to serve this function, at the very least during a younger age. Think of it as a milder form of premarital sex.

A British firm has launched what it claims to be the sexiest sleep-aid ever - a sex dream machine!

Little Rooster, the creators of the alarm clock panty vibrator say they have invented a sex dream machine. Dream Rooster works by vibrating in the underwear while the user sleeps. Says inventor Tony Maggs:

I realised a sex dream machine was possible when my customers told me that Little Rooster, the world's first alarm clock that wakes you by vibrating in your underwear, was giving them erotic dreams. Little Rooster stimulates you for about two minutes before waking you up. Dream Rooster can stimulate you for several hours!

Women simply slip Dream Rooster into their underwear before going to bed. The vibrating leg rests against the clitoris and between the labial lips and the wide, flat body stabilises Dream Rooster by resting inside the underwear, against the user's front.

Men insert their penis and testicles through the ring. The ring both helps hold Dream Rooster in place and also transmits stimulation. Dream Rooster is held against the user's front by their underwear.

Promotional Material

Review People with disabilities have, too often, been denied sexual happiness and expression. Although attitudes are slowly changing, there is a long way to go. Tuppy's helpful anecdotes and lack of jargon make for an inspiring read which will give practitioners the confidence to discuss sex with their disabled clients. --Helen Dunham, PSHE SEN Teacher and Shada Member

Tuppy deserves national recognition for decades of challenging our collective neglect of the emotional, social and sexual needs of people with impairments. In the face of media, fashion and beauty industry promotion of perfect bodies, which cruelly makes disabled people outsiders , Tuppy has tirelessly campaigned and developed resources for the hundreds of thousands of UK people whose needs for friendship, affection and sex we marginalize and ignore. --Andy Beckingham, FFPH, Consultant in Public Health

This book is relevant to a broad range of professionals coming into contact with a broad range of disabled people. Whether physically, visually or hearing impaired, or with learning difficulties, deaf-blind or those with ME, social anxiety or Asperger's syndrome. This remarkable book will support all. --Maria Oshodi, VI Artistic Director and CEO of Extant About the Author Tuppy Owens is the founder of Outsiders, a club providing peer support and dating opportunities for physically and socially disabled people. She also handles the Sex and Disability Helpline, and set up the Sexual Health and Disability Alliance (SHADA) for health and social care professionals. Tuppy has a Diploma in Human Sexuality, and has worked with and supported disabled people with their sexual lives for over 35 years. She has been recognised by the Family Planning Association as one of the top achievers who has contributed to the sexual health of the UK.

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More than one in 10 men have paid for sex, according to a major study of British sexual habits.

The majority of the 11% who had done so had visited sex tourism hotspots such as Bangkok and Amsterdam.

The report, in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections, said that young professionals rather than lonely older men were paying. The most likely age group to have recently paid for sex were those in their late 20s and early 30s. Other characteristics of those likely to pay for sex included being single, having a managerial or professional job and drug use. Nearly two-thirds of them reported paying for sex abroad, with Europe and Asia being major destinations.

A team at University College London analysed data from the Third National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles. Just 0.1% of the women aged 16-74 surveyed had paid for sex, but 11% of the men said they had at some point in their lives. Of the 6,108 men surveyed, 3.6% had paid for sex in the past five years and 1.1% in the past year.

But that comes with a price. The men who had paid for sex in the past five years were twice as likely to be diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection (STI) such as HIV, syphilis or gonorrhoea. Holiday sex

With porn becoming more acceptable, a new large survey reveals that half of the adult population of Denmark watches porn, with most preferring the free stuff.

Three quarters of Danish men and a third of Danish women watch porn, according to a new survey carried out on behalf of the women's magazine Q .

Eight out of ten users said that they only view porn on free sites and 84% said they primarily watch porn alone. One in four respondents said that they see it with their partner.

Helle Hartz, the editor of women's magazine Tidens Kvinder , told Q that with one third of Danish women watching porn, there has been a change in attitudes toward explicit material.

I think there has been in increase in the number of women who watch porn because there are now so many more woman- or pair-friendly films that appeal to them. It's become more acceptable to see porn because they are now produced in much better quality and with a focus on women so it's no longer so 'sleazy' to watch.

People in the UK are having less sex than they were back in 2008, according to a new survey of British sexual behaviour carried out by The Observer . But if we're not doing it, we're still watching and reading it.

More than half (56%) of Britons watch online pornography at least occasionally and 15% do so on a regular basis. However, there is a disparity between the sexes, with 76% of men watching pornography on the internet, compared with just 36% of women.

The tables are turned when it comes to reading erotica, including the likes of best-selling trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey . While 53% of women read erotica at least occasionally, only 32% of men can say the same.

Despite the nation's dwindling sexual activity, the majority (72%) of those who watch online porn said that they do not believe the practice impacts on their expectations of their sex life.

A new sex toy featuring an in-built camera aims to help women perform health checks and watch for any changes that could indicate an STI or health problem.

The technology, which was created by Svakom, a US-based company, claims to give women a 'multi-sensory' experience, while allowing them to keep a check on their health.

The Gaga, as it is known, aims to provide pleasure with information. The design comes with a USB charger cable for a laptop or smartphone app allowing women to perform personal check-ups. The Gaga can also be controlled by another person using its wireless app.

The new technology aims to help women learn what is normal for them, and look out for any abnormal changes, which could imply a health problem or STI.

A sex manual for teenagers that was banned in 1969 has just been republished. The Little Red School Book by Soren Hansen, has hit shelves for the first time since its 1969 ban.

According to The Guardian, when the book was published first time round:

Margaret Thatcher was said to have been very worried by it, The Pope denounced it as sacrilegious, and morality campaigner Mary Whitehouse successfully campaigned to have it prosecuted under the Obscene Publications Act.

The Little Red School Book, whose title alludes to Chairman Mao's Little Red Book , gives straight-talking sex advice that's largely still relevant to teenagers today:

If anybody tells you it's harmful to masturbate, they're lying. If anybody tells you you mustn't do it too much, they're lying too, because you can't do it too much. Ask them how often you ought to do it. They'll usually shut up then.

The new version of the book contains only one change from the original, the 2014 update no longer encourages teens to stave off boredom at school by reading pornographic magazines under your desk .

The book was also banned in New Zealand, France, Italy, and Queensland Australia.

Researchers from the Max Planck Institute in Berlin found that a part of the brain which activates when people feel motivated or rewarded is smaller for porn users.

However the researchers don't know whether this is a correlation or causal link. Dr Simone Kuhn said:

It's not clear, for example, whether watching porn leads to brain changes or whether people born with certain brain types watch more porn.

The abstract for the paper is as follows:

Brain Structure and Functional Connectivity Associated With Pornography Consumption

By Simone Kuhn, Jurgen Gallinat

Importance Since pornography appeared on the Internet, the accessibility, affordability, and anonymity of consuming visual sexual stimuli have increased and attracted millions of users. Based on the assumption that pornography consumption bears resemblance with reward-seeking behavior, novelty-seeking behavior, and addictive behavior, we hypothesized alterations of the frontostriatal network in frequent users.

Objective To determine whether frequent pornography consumption is associated with the frontostriatal network.

Design, Setting, and Participants Sixty-four healthy male adults with a broad range of pornography consumption at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin, Germany, reported hours of pornography consumption per week. Pornography consumption was associated with neural structure, task-related activation, and functional resting-state connectivity.

Main Outcomes and Measures Gray matter volume of the brain was measured by voxel-based morphometry and resting state functional connectivity was measured on 3-T magnetic resonance imaging scans.

Results We found a significant negative association between reported pornography hours per week and gray matter volume in the right caudate (P < .001, corrected for multiple comparisons) as well as with functional activity during a sexual cue--reactivity paradigm in the left putamen (P < .001). Functional connectivity of the right caudate to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex was negatively associated with hours of pornography consumption.

Conclusions and Relevance The negative association of self-reported pornography consumption with the right striatum (caudate) volume, left striatum (putamen) activation during cue reactivity, and lower functional connectivity of the right caudate to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex could reflect change in neural plasticity as a consequence of an intense stimulation of the reward system, together with a lower top-down modulation of prefrontal cortical areas. Alternatively, it could be a precondition that makes pornography consumption more rewarding.

Californian Charlie Powell claims to have invented a new kind of condom that he is calling the Galactic Cap . Instead of a latex sheath covering the full length of the penis, Powell's condom encases only the tip. That way, semen is trapped without dulling sexual sensation, according to Powell.

Prodded by a competition funded by Bill Gates, who believes more people will wrap it up if condoms are more pleasurable to use, some engineers are turning their attention to building a better condom. After failing to win a funding prize from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Powell is trying to raise money for making his condom through an IndieGogo campaign.

The cap is made up of two parts: a U-shaped polyurethane adhesive film and a reservoir tip that sticks to the adhesive. The film can be worn for hours or even days before sex. The cap is added immediately before sex.

While the cap has yet to receive approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, it is worth noting that this condom-alternative is lacking for the exact reason it seems appealing. Regular condoms cover the length of the penis because many sexually transmitted infections are spread through skin-to-skin contact. These include genital warts, genital herpes, HPV, syphilis and molluscum.

Powell recognizes the possible implications for the adult video industry. He says a couple of folks from that business have even expressed interest in investing:

If you use this you might overcome the problem of using a condom on camera. A lot of people might not like the look of the thing going in and out. It's transparent, on the head, so it doesn't look so gross.

Abstract

It has been an assumption of most anti-pornography discourse that porn damages women (and children) in a variety of ways. In Porno? Chic!, the author interrogated this assumption by examining the correlation between the incidence of sexual violence and other indicators of misogyny, and the availability and accessibility of pornography within a number of societies. This article develops that work with a specific focus on the regulatory environment as it relates to pornography and sexual representation. Does a liberal regulatory regime in sexual culture correlate with a relatively advanced state of sexual politics in a given country? Conversely, does an illiberal regime, where pornography and other forms of sexual culture are banned or severely restricted, correlate with relatively strong patriarchal structures? A comparative cross-country analysis seeks to explain the correlations identified, and to assess the extent to which the availability of porn can be viewed as a causal or a consequential characteristic of those societies where feminism has achieved significant advances.

Brian McNaira. Creative Industries Faculty, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia Published online: 21 Mar 2014.

Feona Attwood and Clarissa Smith introduce their Porn Studies journal as follows:

This journal has been more than two years in its planning, followed by the exciting, though time-intense and anxiety-making, work of bringing together the content for a launch issue. Porn Studies has been a labour of love. Our interests in bringing the journal to fruition were born out of our personal and professional fascinations with the ways in which pornography matters and is discussed. Clearly pornography is a significant topic across a whole range of academic, public and policy domains, and yet the spaces in which it is discussed and debated are not always conducive to the sharing of research and the development of meaningful dialogue. Just as there are specialist journals, conferences, book series and collections enabling consideration of other areas of media and cultural production, so pornography needs a dedicated space for research and debate.

Researching pornography can be particularly complicated and challenging. Newspaper articles examine the proliferations of sexually explicit materials as evidence of changing mores, of other peoples' weaknesses and excesses; pornography as an industry is characterized as a big business whose sheer size means it ought to be condemned. It (and pornography is almost always characterized as singular) is portrayed as an industry that succeeds by pandering to ever-more extreme interests and one that pulls everything, even the most innocent of people, into its orbit so that anything which hints at sexuality -- dress, topographies of body hair, musical tastes, dancing, and so on -- is marked by and marks pornography's influence . With such 'overhead noise' about pornography, uncovering the histories and contemporary forms of sexually explicit representation, their production and consumption, their circulation and distribution, their importance and insignificances can be daunting.

Yet it is too easy to focus on the problems of researching pornography, and we also ought to be able to celebrate successes. Research on pornography has found a home in journals and a presence at seminars and conferences across various disciplines. However, as important as these have been, they have not provided the dedicated space that allows for the development of a research tradition and for discussions about the kinds of approaches and methods which will produce good research. We need a dedicated space to explore the complexities and potentials of research into pornography. This is the right time for a journal for porn studies. We need to develop our methods and theories, and to talk about the importance of different technologies, their particular employment as platforms for distribution, and the contributions these make to the kinds of pornographies that are available. We need to be able to engage with and examine the variety of legislative moves against pornography and how those might be tied to concerns about the spread and accessibility of other forms of information, and we need to recognize where regulation is being lessened or loosened and why this is so.

Considering how important they are to modern society and how little people like wearing the things, it's a wonder that the design of the condom has barely changed over hundreds of years.

The drawback of having a prophylactic that is so widely disliked has even inspired the Gates Foundation to make the invention of the Next Generation of Condom one of their Grand Challenges in Global Health, a research initiative designed to find solutions to 15 global health problems. The foundations explains:

The one major drawback to more universal use of male condoms is the lack of perceived incentive for consistent use. We are looking for a Next Generation Condom that significantly preserves or enhances pleasure, in order to improve uptake and regular use.

Now, in response to the Gates Foundation challenge, a pair of PhD students have created a digital condom : a prophylactic that sends electrical impulses through the material to create pleasurable sensations.

Firaz Peer and Andrew Quitmeyer of Georgia Tech University have already put The Electric Eel (their name) through two prototype stages. The first used conductive threads sewn into a regular condom to add new sensations. A second prototype described by the researchers as soft stimulating sleeve (but that looks more like a sock) featured conductive arrays of electrodes along the sensitive underneath part of the shaft .

The pair are currently looking to fund their research through crowd-sourcing website Indiegogo.

Abstract

The addiction model is rarely used to describe high-frequency use of visual sexual stimuli (VSS) in research, yet common in media and clinical practice.

The theory and research behind pornography addiction is hindered by poor experimental designs, limited methodological rigor, and lack of model specification.

The history and limitations of addiction models are reviewed, including how VSS fails to meet standards of addiction. These include how VSS use can reduce health-risk behaviors. Proposed negative effects, including erectile problems, difficulty regulating sexual feelings, and neuroadaptations are discussed as non-pathological evidence of learning.

Individuals reporting addictive use of VSS could be better conceptualized by considering issues such as gender, sexual orientation, libido, desire for sensation, with internal and external conflicts influenced by religiosity and desire discrepancy.

Since a large, lucrative industry has promised treatments for pornography addiction despite this poor evidence, scientific psychologists are called to declare the emperor (treatment industry) has no clothes (supporting evidence). When faced with such complaints, clinicians are encouraged to address behaviors without conjuring addiction labels.

Nerve reports further

Dr. David Ley, author of a new study in the Current Sexual Health Reports, says that slapping the label of porn addict on net smut enthusiasts is not only missing the point, but ignoring the benefits of watching porn. Ley contends that fewer than two in every five research articles about high frequency sexual behavior describe it as being an addiction, and furthermore, a limiting 27 percent of articles on porn addiction actually contain any empirical data. In fact, in studies, there's been no evidence of any of the commonly hyped life-crushing negative effects of porn addiction, like erectile dysfunction and brain rewiring.

When we pathologize common sexual behaviors, even if they seem compulsive, we're also stigmatizing them. Frequently watching porn, even up to five hours a week, maybe could cause a mean case of carpal tunnel and near-sightedness, but it also increases positive attitudes towards sex, increases frequency of sex, decreases rates of sex crimes, and fosters open dialogues of sexuality between couples.

Statistically, people most likely to hop on the porn addict train are usually male, have a non-heterosexual orientation, have high libidos, and have religious values that conflict with their compulsions. Meaning: we like to diagnose things that run counter to our carefully constructed social and family values, when maybe, masturbating frequently is perfectly normal. Watching porn isn't accepted in every circle, so it became quite easy to call the behaviors of everyone --- from the helpless, to the hyper horny, to the completely ordinary --- an illness.

Porn addiction is also a business. The highly profitable conversation surrounding porn addiction is worrisome to Dr. Ley, who claims, we need better methods to help people who struggle with the high frequency use of visual sexual stimuli, without pathologizing them or their use thereof...Rather than helping patients who may struggle to control viewing images of a sexual nature, the 'porn addiction' concept instead seems to feed an industry with secondary gain from the acceptance of the idea.