Roles of Religiosity, Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms, Scrupulosity, and Shame in Self-Perceived Pornography Addiction:...

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Religious Studies
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Pornography use is prevalent, and its compulsive nature is a growing concern.
• The interplay between religiosity, shame, and perceived addiction requires further investigation.
• Scrupulosity and obsessive-compulsive symptoms may moderate the relationship between religious beliefs and pornography use.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the roles of religiosity, shame, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and scrupulosity in perceived pornography addiction.
• To test the theory that religiosity leads to shame and perceived addiction, especially under certain moderating conditions.
• To explore the indirect and moderated indirect effects of religious primes and self-reported religiosity on perceived pornography addiction.

Main Methods:

• A study involving 645-646 participants who use pornography and believe in a theistic God.
• Confirmatory and exploratory analyses were conducted to assess the proposed relationships.
• Measures included religiosity, shame, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, scrupulosity, and perceived pornography addiction.

Main Results:

• Religious primes did not show indirect or moderated indirect effects on perceived addiction in confirmatory analyses.
• Exploratory analyses indicated religious primes were associated with increased shame and perceived addiction in individuals high in organizational religiosity and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) compulsivity.
• Self-reported religiosity indirectly affected perceived addiction via shame, particularly for those high in scrupulosity or moral disapproval of pornography.

Conclusions:

• While direct effects of religious primes were not supported, indirect pathways exist.
• Shame mediates the relationship between religiosity and perceived pornography addiction, especially in specific subgroups.
• Findings highlight the complex interaction between religious beliefs, psychological factors, and compulsive behaviors like pornography use.