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Pornography Use and Marital Separation: Evidence from Two-Wave Panel Data.
1Department of Sociology, University of Oklahoma, 780 Van Vleet Oval, Kaufman Hall 335A, Norman, OK, 73019, USA. samperry@ou.edu.
Archives of Sexual Behavior
|September 23, 2017
Summary
Married individuals who viewed pornography in 2006 were over twice as likely to separate by 2012. However, the link between pornography use frequency and marital disruption was curvilinear, with highest use showing lower separation likelihood.
Area of Science:
- Sociology
- Psychology
- Family Studies
Background:
- Pornography use is increasing, yet its impact on marital stability remains understudied.
- Previous research focused on marital quality, not the predictive power of pornography on marital disruption.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if pornography consumption predicts marital separation.
- To examine the relationship between pornography use and marital disruption over time.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the Portraits of American Life Study (2006 and 2012 waves).
- Employed binary logistic regression analyses with N=445 married individuals.
- Controlled for marital happiness, sexual satisfaction, and sociodemographic factors.
Main Results:
- Married individuals viewing any pornography in 2006 were >2x more likely to separate by 2012.
- Pornography use frequency showed a curvilinear relationship with marital separation.
- Highest pornography use frequencies did not correlate with increased separation likelihood compared to abstainers or moderate users.
Conclusions:
- Pornography use is associated with increased marital separation risk.
- The frequency of pornography use has a complex, non-linear association with marital stability.
- Findings are consistent across genders and warrant further research into the nuances of pornography's impact on marriage.
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