Skip to main content
Research Report

Pornography Consumption and Sexual Satisfaction in a Korean Sample

Published Online:https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-1105/a000246

Abstract. This research report assessed pornography consumption and sexual satisfaction in a heterosexual sample of Korean adults. Consistent with prior studies, the linear association between pornography consumption and satisfaction was negative and significant. However, the addition of a quadratic term to the equation increased model fit. Interaction effect analyses revealed an inverted U relationship for both men and women, such that occasional pornography consumption was associated with higher satisfaction, while consumption with any degree of regularity was associated with lower satisfaction. Further assessments showed that the negative relationship between more regular pornography consumption and lower satisfaction was slightly more marked for women, while the positive relationship between intermittent pornography consumption and higher satisfaction was slightly more marked for men. The nature of the relationship between pornography consumption and satisfaction was similar for religious and nonreligious people and for people in a relationship and not in a relationship.

References

  • Aiken, L. S. & West, S. G. (1991). Multiple regression. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Arakawa, D. R., Flanders, C. & Hatfield, E. (2012). Are variations in gender equality evident in pornography? A cross-cultural study. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 36, 279–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2011.08.006 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Blais-Lecours, S., Vaillancourt-Morel, M. P., Sabourin, S. & Godbout, N. (2016). Cyberpornography: Time use, perceived addiction, sexual functioning, and sexual satisfaction. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 19, 649–655. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2016.0364 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Bridges, A. J. & Morokoff, P. J. (2011). Sexual media use and relational satisfaction in heterosexual couples. Personal Relationships, 18, 562–585. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6811.2010.01328.x First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Bridges, A. J., Wosnitzer, R., Scharrer, E., Sun, C. & Liberman, R. (2010). Aggression and sexual behavior in best-selling pornography videos: A content analysis update. Violence Against Women, 16, 1065–1085. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801210382866 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Brooks, G. R. (1995). The centerfold syndrome. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Buss, D. M. & Schmitt, D. P. (2011). Evolutionary psychology and feminism. Sex Roles, 64, 768–787. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-011-9987-3 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Cafri, G., Kromrey, J. D. & Brannick, M. T. (2010). A meta-meta-analysis: Empirical review of statistical power, type I error rates, effect sizes, and model selection of meta-analyses published in psychology. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 45, 239–270. https://doi.org/10.1080/00273171003680187 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Doornwaard, S. M., Bickham, D. S., Rich, M., Vanwesenbeeck, I., van den Eijnden, R. J. & Ter Bogt, T. F. (2014). Sex-related online behaviors and adolescents’ body and sexual self-perceptions. Pediatrics, 134, 1103–1110. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2014-0592 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Doran, K. & Price, J. (2014). Pornography and marriage. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 35, 489–498. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-014-9391-6 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Emmers-Sommer, T. M., Allen, M., Schoenbauer, K. V. & Burrell, N. (2017). Implications of sex guilt: A meta-analysis. Marriage & Family Review. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/01494929.2017.1359815 First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Fritz, N. & Paul, B. (2017). From orgasms to spanking: A content analysis of the agentic and objectifying sexual scripts in feminist, for women, and mainstream pornography. Sex Roles, 77, 639–652. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-017-0759-6 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Gottman, J. & Gottman, J. (2016). An open letter on pornography. Seattle, WA: The Gottman Institute. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Grubbs, J. B., Exline, J. J., Pargament, K. I., Hook, J. N. & Carlisle, R. D. (2015). Transgression as addiction: Religiosity and moral disapproval as predictors of perceived addiction to pornography. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 44, 125–136. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-013-0257-z First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Harris, R. J. (2009). A cognitive psychology of mass communication. New York, NY: Routledge. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Higgins, J. A., Mullinax, M., Trussell, J., Davidson, J. K. & Moore, N. B. (2011). Sexual satisfaction and sexual health among university students in the United States. American Journal of Public Health, 101, 1643–1654. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2011.300154 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Kenrick, D. T., Gutierres, S. E. & Goldberg, L. L. (1989). Influence of popular erotica on judgments of strangers and mates. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 25, 159–167. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1031(89)90010-3 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Kim, Y. J. (2010). Adolescents’ sexual attitudes after exposing internet explicit materials associated with personal factors. Korean Journal of Broadcasting, 24, 45–84. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Kim, S. & Lee, C. (2015). Factors affecting sexually transmitted infections in South Korean high school students. Public Health Nursing, 33, 179–188. https://doi.org/10.1111/phn.12211 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Kong, M. (2000). Divided women’s subjectivity perceiving pornography. Journal of Women’s Studies, 11, 75–103. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Laier, C., Pekal, J. & Brand, M. (2014). Cybersex addiction in heterosexual female users of Internet pornography can be explained by gratification hypothesis. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 17, 505–511. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2013.0396 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Lee, J. W., Lee, Y. J. & Kim, J. H. (2012). A survey on the harmful environment of Korean adolescents in 2012. Seoul: Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Morgan, E. M. (2011). Associations between young adults’ use of sexually explicit materials and their sexual preferences, behaviors, and satisfaction. Journal of Sex Research, 48, 520–530. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2010.543960 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Peter, J. & Valkenburg, P. M. (2009). Adolescents’ exposure to sexually explicit internet material and sexual satisfaction: A longitudinal study. Human Communication Research, 35, 171–194. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2958.2009.01343.x First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Petersen, J. L. & Hyde, J. S. (2010). A meta-analytic review of research on gender differences in sexuality, 1993–2007. Psychological Bulletin, 136, 21–38. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0017504 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Rosenberg, H. & Kraus, S. (2014). The relationship of “passionate attachment” for pornography with sexual compulsivity, frequency of use, and craving for pornography. Addictive Behaviors, 39, 1012–1017. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2014.02.010 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Schmitt, D. P. (2005). Sociosexuality from Argentina to Zimbabwe: A 48-nation study of sex, culture, and strategies of human mating. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 28, 247–311. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X05000051 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Schneider, J. & Weiss, R. (2001). Cybersex exposed. Center City, MN: Hazelden. First citation in articleGoogle Scholar

  • Stulhofer, A., Busko, V. & Landripet, I. (2010). Pornography, sexual socialization, and satisfaction among young men. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39, 168–178. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-008-9387-0 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Sun, C., Bridges, A., Wosnitzer, R., Scharrer, E. & Liberman, R. (2008). A comparison of male and female directors in popular pornography: What happens when women are at the helm? Psychology of Women Quarterly, 32, 312–325. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6402.2008.00439.x First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Sun, C., Miezan, E., Lee, N. Y. & Shim, J. W. (2015). Korean men’s pornography use, their interest in extreme pornography, and dyadic sexual relationships. International Journal of Sexual Health, 27, 16–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/19317611.2014.927048 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Traeen, B. & Daneback, K. (2013). The use of pornography and sexual behaviour among Norwegian men and women of differing sexual orientation. Sexologies, 22, e41–e48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sexol.2012.03.002 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Tylka, T. L. (2015). No harm in looking, right? Men’s pornography consumption, body image, and well-being. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 16, 97–107. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0035774 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Valkenburg, P. M., Peter, J. & Walther, J. B. (2016). Media effects: Theory and research. Annual Review of Psychology, 67, 315–338. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-122414-033608 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Woo, J., Brotto, L. A. & Gorzalka, B. B. (2011). The role of sex guilt in the relationship between culture and women’s sexual desire. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 385–394. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-010-9609-0 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Wright, P. J., Steffen, N. J. & Sun, C. (2017). Is the relationship between pornography consumption frequency and lower sexual satisfaction curvilinear? Results from England and Germany. Journal of Sex Research. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2017.1347912 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Wright, P. J., Sun, C., Steffen, N. J. & Tokunaga, R. S. (2017). Associative pathways between pornography consumption and reduced sexual satisfaction. Sexual and Relationship Therapy. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681994.2017.1323076 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar

  • Wright, P. J., Tokunaga, R. S., Kraus, A. & Klann, E. (2017). Pornography consumption and satisfaction: A meta‐analysis. Human Communication Research, 43, 315–343. https://doi.org/10.1111/hcre.12108 First citation in articleCrossrefGoogle Scholar