COPYRIGHT AND USE OF THIS THESIS This thesis must be used in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. Reproduction of material protected by copyright may be an infringement of copyright and copyright owners may be entitled to take legal action against persons who infringe their copyright. Section 51 (2) of the Copyright Act permits an authorized officer of a university library or archives to provide a copy (by communication or otherwise) of an unpublished thesis kept in the library or archives, to a person who satisfies the authorized officer that he or she requires the reproduction for the purposes of research or study. The Copyright Act grants the creator of a work a number of moral rights, specifically the right of attribution, the right against false attribution and the right of integrity. You may infringe the author’s moral rights if you: - fail to acknowledge the author of this thesis if you quote sections from the work - attribute this thesis to another author - subject this thesis to derogatory treatment which may prejudice the author’s reputation For further information contact the University’s Director of Copyright Services sydney.edu.au/copyright i Internet Pornography: Associations with Sexual Risk Behaviour, Sexual Scripts & Use within Relationships Emily Harkness School of Psychology University of Sydney A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of Doctorate of Clinical Psychology/ Master of Science 2015 ii Acknowledgements I would like to acknowledge a number of people in my life who have helped me to complete my thesis and the DCP course. Firstly, I want to offer my deepest gratitude to my primary supervisor, A/Prof Barbara Mullan. Barbara, you have been the most wonderful supervisor and given me such fantastic guidance and support. I have loved our supervisory relationship; it was just the right mix of fun, encouragement and nudges forward. Thank you for all of your time and effort, and for putting up with me! I hope you enjoyed our time as much as I did! To my associate supervisors, Prof. Alex Blaszczynski and Dr. Carolyn MacCann, thank you for providing me with additional assistance and expertise along the way. To my close family: mum, dad, Robbie and Nicky, and extended family, I would like to thank you for always supporting me and continuing to be proud of me and believe in my abilities. I am extremely lucky to have such a wonderful, loving, intelligent and fun family, who I also consider to best friends. I would particularly like to thank mum and dad, who have supported me both emotionally and practically throughout this degree, and without this I would not have been able to complete it. Finally, I want to express my gratitude to all of my friends, both DCP and non-DCP, who have supported me throughout this course, and made it fun, and often hilarious, along the way. In particular, I am very lucky to have the enduring, amazing and forever-friendship that is PET (Poppy and Tory). Thank you also to my special Tom for your ever-present support, love, pride and belief in me. I am also grateful for my partner-in-crime Natalie, and your empathic nature. While there are too many more special people to mention, please know that I am still very thankful for all of your fantastic personalities, love and support. iii Abstract The production and consumption of internet pornography is widespread, particularly as a result of its highly available, accessible and anonymous nature. Pornography may be an important influence upon sexual scripts, yet research into the cognitive, behavioural and interpersonal outcomes of its use is inconsistent and limited, particularly in adults, and until recently has been focused primarily upon potential harms. Accordingly, the current research attempted to address this gap in the literature through examining pornography use in adults, from a holistic point of view attempting to encompass both the potential benefits and possible negative associations of pornography consumption. Three online surveys were conducted with Australian adult pornography consumers, with comparison groups of non- users. A systematic review highlighting the lack of research examining the link between pornography use and sexual risk behaviour in adults was the impetus for study one (N=620). The results indicated that current internet pornography use was associated with higher sexual sensation seeking, and higher sexual compulsivity in females only, but it was not linked with any other indicators of sexual risk behaviour, including number of sexual partners, STI history, condom attitudes, intention to use a condom or unsafe casual sex. In study two (N=1016), a model of how internet pornography may act as a form of sexual inspiration was tested. Partial support was demonstrated, as internet pornography use was associated with more positive attitudes, greater engagement in a range of sexual activities, and higher sexual boredom. No evidence for a link with body or genital image was demonstrated. Finally, use of internet pornography in individuals within relationships was investigated in study three (N= 812). Daily or greater use of internet pornography was associated with poorer relationship intimacy in males only. Sexual communication iv satisfaction was higher for females, but lower for males, with more frequent internet pornography use. Regardless of gender, sexual communication satisfaction was greater when internet pornography was viewed with a partner. The findings were discussed in terms of the research implications and relevant theoretical perspectives; common antecedents to pornography use and its associations, gender differences and feminist approaches were considered. Possible clinical implications and avenues for future research were then explored. v Contents Chapter 1: Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Internet Pornography .................................................................................................................... 3 1.2 The Impact of Pornography on Sexuality: Theoretical Background .............................................. 5 1.3 Aims and Scope of Thesis ............................................................................................................... 9 1.4 Overview of Thesis ....................................................................................................................... 10 Chapter 2: A Systematic Review of the Association Between Pornography Use and Sexual Risk Behaviours in Adult Consumers ............................................................................................................ 12 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 12 2.1.1 Sexual risk behaviours ............................................................................................................... 12 2.1.2 Rationale and aims of the current systematic review ............................................................... 13 2.2 Methods ....................................................................................................................................... 14 2.3 Results .......................................................................................................................................... 18 2.3.1 Unsafe sex practices and condom use ...................................................................................... 30 2.3.2 Number of sexual partners ........................................................................................................ 32 2.3.3 Casual sex behaviour ................................................................................................................. 34 2.4 Discussion..................................................................................................................................... 35 2.4.1 Unsafe sex practices and condom use ...................................................................................... 37 2.4.2 Number of sexual partners ........................................................................................................ 38 2.4.3 Casual sex behaviour ................................................................................................................. 39 2.4.4 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................ 39 Chapter 3: Sexual Risk Behaviour and Associations With Internet Pornography Use .......................... 41 3.1 Literature Review ......................................................................................................................... 41 3.1.1 Sexual sensation seeking ........................................................................................................... 41 3.1.2 Sexual compulsivity ................................................................................................................... 42 3.1.3 Condom attitudes and safer sex ................................................................................................ 43 3.1.4 Number of sexual partners and casual sex behaviour .............................................................. 45 vi 3.1.5 Hypotheses ................................................................................................................................ 45 3.2 Methods ......................................................................................................................................