Integrating Internalized Homophobia with Pornography Problems Due to Moral Incongruence Model among Chinese Sexual...

Problematic pornography use (PPU) is a core factor contributing to the negative consequences of pornography use. Particularly, pornography problems due to moral incongruence (PPMI) model suggest that individuals experience self-perceived PPU may be partly due to the moral disapproval of pornography use. Internalized homophobia overlapped conceptually with the moral unacceptability of same-gender attraction and behavior, which is also associated with PPU. Therefore, this study integrated internalized homophobia into the PPMI model among sexual minority men. In total, 593 Chinese sexual minority men completed measures for pornography use frequency, Revised Internalized Homophobia Scale, Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale (PPCS-18), moral disapproval of pornography use scale, and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale. Network analysis was used to examine the associations between pornography use, internalized homophobia, moral disapproval of pornography, PPU symptoms, and psychological distress. The results revealed that internalized homophobia was associated with conflict and relapse. Moral disapproval may play a bridging role in the relationship between internalized homophobia and PPU, with withdrawal, conflict, and relapse emerging as core symptoms driving psychological distress. These findings indicated the potential role of internalized homophobia in relation to PPU. Moral disapproval may explain, to some extent, the mechanism underlying the association between internalized homophobia and PPU. This study extends the PPMI model to sexual minority men in China. These findings have significant implications for the implementation of clinical interventions.