Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Summer 2011 A Comparison of the Online Sexual Behavior Scores of Persons with a Sexual Addiction, in Comparison to Persons Wondering If They Have a Sexual Addiction as Measured by the Online Sexual Addiction Questionnaire (OSA-Q) Adam Buzzinotti Purcell Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Purcell, A. (2011). A Comparison of the Online Sexual Behavior Scores of Persons with a Sexual Addiction, in Comparison to Persons Wondering If They aH ve a Sexual Addiction as Measured by the Online Sexual Addiction Questionnaire (OSA-Q) (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/1068 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. 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A COMPARISON OF THE ONLINE SEXUAL BEHAVIOR SCORES OF PERSONS WITH A SEXUAL ADDICTION, IN COMPARISON TO PERSONS WONDERING IF THEY HAVE A SEXUAL ADDICTION AS MEASURED BY THE ONLINE SEXUAL ADDICTION QUESTIONNAIRE (OSA-Q) A Dissertation Submitted to the School of Education Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Adam Buzzinotti Purcell August 2011 DUQUESNE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF EDUCATION Department of Counseling, Psychology and Special Education Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Executive Counselor Education and Supervision Program Presented by: Adam Buzzinotti Purcell, M.A. April 11, 2011 A COMPARISON OF THE ONLINE SEXUAL BEHAVIOR SCORES OF PERSONS WITH A SEXUAL ADDICTION, IN COMPARISON TO PERSONS WONDERING IF THEY HAVE A SEXUAL ADDICTION AS MEASURED BY THE ONLINE SEXUAL ADDICTION QUESTIONNAIRE (OSA-Q) Approved by: _____________________________________________, Chair Joseph Maola, Ph.D. Professor ___________________________________________, Member Paul Bernstein, Ph.D. Associate Professor ___________________________________________, Member James Henderson, Ed.D. Professor iii ABSTRACT A COMPARISON OF THE ONLINE SEXUAL BEHAVIOR SCORES OF PERSONS WITH A SEXUAL ADDICTION, IN COMPARISON TO PERSONS WONDERING IF THEY HAVE A SEXUAL ADDICTION AS MEASURED BY THE ONLINE SEXUAL ADDICTION QUESTIONNAIRE (OSA-Q) By: Adam Buzzinotti Purcell, April 2011 Dissertation supervised by Dr. Joseph Maola, Ph.D. This study will examine the online sexual behaviors of visitors to The Society for the Advancement of Sexual Health (SASH) website (www.SASH.net). The survey was available for one year via the SASH website. The data consisting of tabulated survey results was collected via the survey link on the SASH homepage, and were electronically hosted and collected by a third party data collection website (www.surveymonkey.com). Tabulated responses totaled N= 3,603, with responses from 37 countries on five continents. The study examines whether a difference exists between the self-reported online sexual behaviors (OSB) of those who self-identified as sexual addicts, and those who self-identified as believing they may have a sexual addiction. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost, I must express my sincerest gratitude to my committee. Their patience through the difficult process of writing a dissertation was instrumental to completion. Dr. Joe Maola is a paragon, and this paper might never have reached fruition without his support and encouragement. He could definitely teach some other faculty how to be an effective chair. Dr. Bernstein must have used four cases of pens editing my paper, and I‟m grateful for every edit, strike, and rewrite. Last but not least, sincerest thanks go to Dr. James Henderson, especially for his willingness to meet extenuating circumstances and scheduling conflicts. Next I wish to thank my family, especially my mom, for her constant support and patience while I completed my dissertation. It has been a long, hard road, but the end is in sight. I‟d also be amiss if I didn‟t thank my father and sister, despite the fact that they did not live to see the completion that their support helped me to achieve. Additionally, I would like to thank Dr. Leslie Slagel, for her continuous support; Laurie Kephart Gunton, for her weekly motivational sessions, Dr. Baljinder Uppal for her support and encouragement, and Dr. Jill Irvin Maloney. Jill, you helped me keep my chin up throughout the process, right up until the defense. Lastly, I‟d like to thank my friends; especially Shelbi, Brenda, Mary, and Brian, for their ongoing willingness to listen to my complaints and frustrations on the long road to dissertation. You all deserve a Ph.D. in putting up with me. v TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .............................................................................. 1 Overview ..................................................................................................................... 1 Study Background ....................................................................................................... 2 Purpose of Study ......................................................................................................... 3 Research Questions ..................................................................................................... 3 Rationale ..................................................................................................................... 5 Significance ................................................................................................................. 5 Research Design .......................................................................................................... 7 Hypothetical Assumptions ........................................................................................... 7 Research Hypotheses ................................................................................................... 8 Hypothesis 1 ............................................................................................................ 8 Hypothesis 2 ............................................................................................................ 8 Hypothesis 3 ............................................................................................................ 8 Hypothesis 5 ............................................................................................................ 8 Hypothesis 6 ............................................................................................................ 9 Hypothesis 7 ............................................................................................................ 9 Hypothesis 8 ............................................................................................................ 9 Hypothesis 9 ............................................................................................................ 9 Hypothesis 10 .......................................................................................................... 9 Hypothesis 11 ........................................................................................................ 10 Hypothesis 12 ........................................................................................................ 10 Hypothesis 13 ........................................................................................................ 10 Hypothesis 14 ........................................................................................................ 10 Important Definitions ................................................................................................ 10 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................. 12 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 12 Online Sexual Behaviors (OSB) ................................................................................ 12 Classification & Appearances: ................................................................................... 14 Internet-Addiction & Online Sex ............................................................................... 16 Behavioral Stages in OSB .......................................................................................... 18 Disparity in Designation ............................................................................................ 21 Gender based Variations among Sex Addicts ............................................................. 24 Summary ................................................................................................................... 27 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODS ............................................................. 29 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 29 Research Questions ................................................................................................... 29 Research Design ........................................................................................................ 31 Instrument ................................................................................................................. 31 Research Population .................................................................................................