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Review Article | DOI: https://doi.org/10.31579/2637-8892/231
Department of Psychology, University of Uyo
*Corresponding Author: Emeh A. Udoh, Department of Psychology, University of Uyo
Citation: Emeh A. Udoh., Albright O. Azubike., Abdul-Rahman A. Ajibola. (2023), Demographics, Sexual Satisfaction and Self Control as Predictors of Pornography Consumption Among Married Persons in Uyo Metropolis, Psychology and Mental Health Care, 7(6): DOI:10.31579/2637-8892/231
Copyright: © 2023, Emeh A. Udoh. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Received: 31 August 2023 | Accepted: 15 September 2023 | Published: 22 September 2023
Keywords: pornography consumption; demographics; sexual satisfaction; self-control
This study investigated demographics, sexual satisfaction, and self-control as predictors of pornography consumption among married persons in Uyo Metropolis. Two hundred and eighty-eight (288) married persons comprising 140 males (48.6%) and 148 females (51.4%) selected purposively from fifteen (15) ministries in Uyo Federal Secretariat participated in the study. The ages of participants ranged between 20 – 50 years. The design of the study was Ex Post Facto. New Sexual Satisfaction Scale (Stulhofer, 2008), Brief Self Control Scale (Tangney, Baumeister, & Boone, 2004), and Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale (Bothe et al. 2017) were the instruments used in this study. Multiple Regression Analysis was employed for data analysis. Results of the study revealed that demographics significantly predicted pornography consumption among married persons: Gender (B=2.70, t = -1.60, P<.05), Age (B=-.90, t = -.54, P<.05), Educational Qualification (B= -1.85, t = 2.40, P<.05), Smartphone Usage =-10.35, t = 2.65, P<.05). Results also revealed that self-control independently predicted pornography consumption among married persons (B= - .35, t = -2.89, P<.05), and sexual satisfaction did not predict pornography consumption among married persons (B= -.26, t = -1.57, P>.05). It was concluded that gender, age, educational qualification, smartphone usage, and self-control are predictors of pornography consumption among married persons.
In recent times, there has been an increase in pornography consumption around the world as a result of an increase in the accessibility and use of the Internet, and the advancement in audio and video media (Peter & Valkenburg, 2016). Representative surveys have revealed that in developed countries such as the United States of America and Australia, majority of men (64-70%) and approximately one quarter (23-33%) of women watch pornography (Grubbs, Kraus & Perry, 2018). In addition, in developing countries, surveys have also shown that over half of the students in Ethiopia and Bangladesh have been exposed to pornography (Chowdhury, Chowdhury, Kabir, Perara & Kader, 2018; Abrha, Worku, Lerebe, & Berhane, 2019). Kraus, Rosenberg, Martino, Nich and Potenza (2017) define pornography consumption as intentionally looking at pictures, videos, written or audio materials depicting naked people portrayed sexually or people engaging in sex or masturbation. Sexual Script Theory by Gagmon and Simon (1973) provides the theoretical basis for this study. The basic assumption of this theory is that sexual feelings do not simply arise from within the body, but meanings and symbols are needed which provides cue to enable sexualities develop. It identifies three dimensions of script which are the cultural, interpersonal and intra-psychic dimensions. This theory also emphasizes that sexual behaviour and encounters are learned through cultural and other medium during interactions. By this theory therefore, pornography provides cues that enables sexuality. Pornography consumption among married persons is of interest in this study. This is because there exists a dearth in literature on pornography consumption among married persons in Nigeria. This study will therefore focus on this area, assist members of the scientific community and the general public in understanding factors related to pornography consumption among married persons in Nigeria and the effects of pornography consumption on marriages. Like every pornography consumption, research has shown consistently that pornography consumption among married persons leads to negative consequences. Frequent pornography consumption has been found to predict poor marital quality, sexual dissatisfaction, sexual inadequacy, higher chance of infidelity, overall marital instability and problems with self-image or intimacy especially among women (Leonhardt & Willoughby 2017; Perry, 2016; Doran & Price, 2014). This background necessitated the investigation of demographic factors, sexual satisfaction and self-control as factors predicting pornographic consumption among married persons in Uyo metropolis. Studies have implicated demographic variables such as gender, age, smartphone usage, and educational qualification in pornography consumption. Existing literature shows that men typically consume pornography more than women (Carroll, 2023; Lim, Agus, Carrotte, Vella & Hellard, 2017; Regnerus, Gordon & Price 2016). For example, Gaber, Khaled and Nassar (2019), found that 60% of married men watch pornography compared to 26.7% of married women. Regnerus et al. (2016) in a national study of adults in the U.S reported that 46% of men and 16% of women intentionally consumed pornography within the past week. In addition, Carroll. (2023), revealed that approximately 19.6% of married men consumed pornography weekly compared to 2.9% of married women. In relation to age, Cox, Lee and Popky (2022), revealed that 57% men aged 30-49 years had watched pornography in the past month, compared to 26% of men 65 years and older. Regnerus, Gordon, and Price (2015) found that about 60-70% of men and 30-40% of women below age forty and about 45 % of men and 15 % of women above age forty viewed pornography in a year. Also, Collins (2021) reported that 17% of men under 30 years consumed pornography daily compared to 7% of men 30 years and above. Smartphone usage has been found to predict pornography consumption among married persons. For example, Mamun, Yasir, Arafat, Ambiatunnahar and Griffiths (2018) found that an increase in the use of smartphones increases the consumption of pornography. Flood (2007) argues that this internet-enabled device allows people encounter, consume, create and distribute sexually explicit materials indiscriminately. Educational qualification has also been documented as a factor associated with increased pornography consumption. Rissel, Richters, de Visser, Mckee, Yeung, Rissel, & Caruana (2017) revealed that having a post-high school education increases the likelihood of consuming pornography. In addition, Gaber et al. (2019), found a positive correlation between educational level and watching pornography. Equally, empirical evidences have implicated sexual satisfaction in pornography consumption. Studies have revealed that low sexual satisfaction increases the frequency of pornography consumption (Daspe,Vaillancourt-Morel, Lussier, Sabourin & Ferron 2018). An explanation for this is that when couples are sexually dissatisfied, they turn to pornography in an attempt to satisfy sexual needs that are not meet in their current relationship. In addition, sexual dissatisfaction creates distress, and pornography is used as a way of coping with these negative emotions (Daspe et al. 2018). Existing literature has also linked pornography consumption to low self-control (Grubbs, Volk, Exline & Pargament 2015; Grubbs, Witt, Exline, Pagament & Kraus 2017). Grubbs, Kraus and Perry (2018) found that high self-control was associated with lesser reports of pornography use. Conversely, Buzzell, Foss and Middleton (2006), revealed that low self-control is positively associated with the likelihood of viewing pornography. Busche, Stark, Brand and Antons (2022) state that consuming pornography results in the deterioration of the prefrontal context leading to a decline in self-control, and this increases the consumption of pornography. This study therefore investigated demographics, sexual satisfaction and self-control as predictors of pornography consumption in Uyo metropolis.
It was hypothesized that
2. Sexual satisfaction will independently predict pornography consumption among married persons.
3. Self-Control will independently predict pornography consumption among married persons.
Participant
This study was cross-sectional . Participants in the study comprised two hundred and eighty-eight (288) married persons made up of 140 males (48.6%) and 148 females (51.4%) from selected ministries in Federal Secretariat in Uyo, AkwaIbom State.
Setting
Uyo is in the South South part of Nigeria lying 50.2N latitude and 7055E longitude with a density of 1,200S/km2 (3,100 Sqm) and a population of about 427, 873 people (National Population Commission, 2006). It is the capital of Akwa Ibom State. The selected ministries were National Tax force, Federal Ministry of Health, Federal Ministry of Education, Insurance Cooperation, Standard Organization of Nigeria, National Compliant Commission, National Agricultural Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Federal Road Safety Corp.
Sampling Techniques
Convenience and purposive sampling techniques were used in the study. Convenience sampling method was used to select the ministries while purposive sampling method was used to select the actual participants for the study. Only married persons participated in the study.
A structured questionnaire was used to collect data for the study. The questionnaire had four sections.
Section A: Demographic Variables
The demographic variables of interest in this study were gender, age, educational qualification and smartphone usage.
Section B: New Sexual Satisfaction Scale (NSSS)
The New Sexual Satisfaction Scale developed by Stulhofer (2008), is a 10 item scale designed to measure sexual satisfaction. The NSSS has two subscales the ego-centered and partner sexual satisfaction subscale and sexual activity-centered subscale. It is designed in a 5-point Likert type response format ranging from 1= not at all satisfied to 5= extremely satisfied. The NSSS scores ranges between 10 -50. It has a Cronbach alpha of 0 .94 and a test-retest reliability of 0.72. it also has a convergent validity of 0.44 - 0.67. For the purpose of this study, it was revalidated using 22 married persons from 6 offices at the Federal secretariat, Uyo and 7 items were found to be reliable with Cronbach Alpha coefficient of 0.81 and a Split half reliability coefficient of 0.87(each having a minimum cut-off point of 0.3).
Section C: Brief Self Control Scale (BSCS)
Brief Self Control Scale developed by Tangney, Baumeister and Boone (2004) is a 13 item scale designed to measure individual differences in self-control. The BSCS measures 5 domains of self-control which are controlling thoughts, controlling emotions, controlling impulses, regulating behaviour/performance, and habit breaking. It is designed in a 5- point Likert type response format ranging from 1= not at all to 5= very much. The BSCS scores ranges between 13-65, and the norm of the instrument is 39.5. It has a cronbach alpha of 0.83 and a test-retest reliability of 0.87. it has a construct validity of -0.48. For the purpose of this study, it was revalidated using 22 married persons from 6 offices at the Federal Secretariat Uyo, and 8 items were found to be reliable with a Cronbach Alpha coefficient of 0.79 and a Split Man reliability coefficient of 0.65. (each having a minimum cut-off of 0.3).
Section D: Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale (PPSC)
Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale developed by Bothe, Toth-Kiraly, Zsila, Demetrovics, Griffiths & Orosz (2017), is a 18 item scale designed to measure problematic pornography use. The PPCS is defined by salience, mood modification, conflict, tolerance, relapse and withdrawal. It is designed in a 7- point Likert type response format ranging from 1= never t0 7= all the time. The PPCS scores ranges between 18-126. The norm of the instrument is 76. For the purpose of this study, it was revalidated using 22 married persons from 6 offices at Federal Secretariat Uyo, and all the 18 items contained in the original scale were found to be reliable with a Cronbach Alpha coefficient of 0.89 and a Split Half reliability coefficient of 0.66 ( each having a minimum cut-off of 0.3)
Procedure
The study commenced with a pilot study during which 3 instruments were revalidated. A total of 22 married persons selected from 6 0ffices at Federal Secretariat, Uyo participated in the pilot study. The revalidated instruments were used to collect data for the main study. In both phases of the study, a letter of introduction was obtained from the department of psychology, university of Uyo, and due permissions were obtained from the authorities of the ministries. Participants were approached in their various offices, the purpose of the study was explained to them, and the instruments were administered to volunteers. Each participant was assured of the confidentiality of the information provided. A total of 350 copies of the instruments were administered, but 288 were correctly completed, retrieved and used for the study. 4 were not retrieved and 58 were discarded due to wrong filling. Multiple Regression Analysis was employed for data analysis.
Hypothesis one stated that demographic variables will predict pornography consumption among married persons. This was tested using multiple regression analysis. Summary of results is presented on Table 1 below:
| Predictors | Beta(β) | t-value | Sig. | R | R2 | F | P |
| Gender | -0.098 | -1.569 | <. 05 | ||||
| Age | -0.039 | -0.540 | <. 05 | ||||
| 0.139 | 0.019 | 5.123 | < 0> | ||||
| Educational Qualification | -0.099 | -1.544 | <. 05 | ||||
| Smart Phone Usage | -0.266 | -2.645 | <. 05 |
The results on Table 1 reveals that demographic variables like gender (β = -0.10; t = -1.57; P<.05), age (β = -0.04; t = -0.54; P<.05), educational qualification (β = -0.10; t = -1.54; P<.05) and smart phone usage (β = -0.27; t = -2.65; P<.05) independently predicted pornography consumption among married persons. Therefore the hypothesis was confirmed.
Table 1: Summary of multiple regression analysis showing independent effect of demographic variables on pornography consumption
Hypothesis two stated that sexual satisfaction will independently predict pornography consumption among married persons. This was also tested using multiple regression analysis. Summary of results is presented on Table 2 below:
| Predictor | Beta | t-value | Sig | R | R2 | F | P |
| Sexual Satisfaction | -2.62 | -1.573 | P>.05 | 0.093 | 0.009 | 2.425 | >.05 |
Table 2: Summary of multiple regression analysis showing the independent effect of sexual satisfaction on pornography consumption.
The results on Table 2 shows that sexual satisfaction did not independently predict pornography consumption among married persons (β = -2.62; t = -1.57; P>.05). Therefore the hypothesis was not confirmed.
Hypothesis 3 stated that self-control will independently predict pornography consumption among married persons. This was tested using multiple regression analysis. Summary of results is presented on Table 3 below.
| Predictor | Beta | t-value | Sig | R | R2 | F | P |
| Self-Control | -.348 | -2.388 | P<.05 | .140 | .020 | 5.704 | P<.05 |
In addition, the results on Table 3 indicates that self-control independently predicted pornography consumption among married persons (B = -0.348; t = -2.39; P<.05). The hypothesis was also confirmed.
Table 3: Summary of multiple regression analysis showing independent effect of self-control on pornography consumption.
Firstly, the result of this study showed that demographic variables independently predicted pornography consumption among married persons. In this study, gender was a predictor of pornography consumption. This finding supports the findings of Carrill ((2023), and Gaber et al. (2019) who reported that men consume pornography more than women. A plausible explanation for this gender differences is that there are gender differences in the social acceptability of pornography consumption and men are sexually adventurous so they explore various means of satisfying their sexual urge. Age was also a predictor of pornography consumption. This finding is also in line with the findings of Regnerus et al. (2015) and Collins (2021) who found that young people consume pornography more than older people. An explanation for this is that young people spend more time on the internet where most of these sexually explicit videos and pictures are found and young people are more attracted to these sites compared to older people. In addition, educational qualification was also a predictor of pornography consumption. This finding is consistent with the findings of Rissel et al. (2017) who found that having a post-high school education increases the likelihood of consuming pornography. Smart phone usage was also a predictor of pornography consumption. This finding is in line with the findings of Mamun et al. (2018), who found that an increase in smart phone usage also increases the consumption of pornography. A plausible explanation for this is that using a smart phone increases accessibility to pornographic materials since most of these materials can easily be found on the internet.
Secondly, the result of this study revealed that sexual satisfaction was not a predictor of pornography consumption. The finding of this study contradicts the findings of Daspe et al. (2018) who found that low sexual satisfaction increases the frequency of pornography consumption. A plausible explanation for this is that people who have been exposed to pornography materials previously might be tempted to continue irrespective of whether or not they derive sexual satisfaction from their partners.
Lastly, the result of this study revealed that self-control was a predictor of pornography consumption. This finding is consistent with the findings of Grubbs et al. (2015) and Grubbs et al. (2018), who found that low self-control increases the frequency of pornography consumption. An explanation for this is that individuals with low self-control lack the will to desist from viewing pornographic materials because of the satisfaction that is derived from viewing it.
Conclusively, this study examined demographics, sexual satisfaction and self-control as predictors of pornography consumption. A total of 288 married persons participated in the study. Results showed that demographic variables and self-control were predictors of pornography consumption. The implication therefore is that gender, age, educational qualification, smartphone usage and level of self-control increases the frequency of pornography consumption.
Public enlightenment campaigns should be organized to educate married persons of the impacts of watching pornography. In addition men should be taught strategies for increasing and boosting their level of self-control since they are more prone to consuming pornography compared to women.
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