Adolescent Pornography Use and Dating Violence among a Sample of Primarily Black and Hispanic, Urban-Residing, Underage Youth (2015)

Behav Sci (Basel). 2015 Dec 23;6(1). pii: E1. doi: 10.3390/bs6010001.

Rothman EF1, Adhia A2.

Abstract

This cross-sectional study was designed to characterize the pornography viewing preferences of a sample of U.S.-based, urban-residing, economically disadvantaged, primarily Black and Hispanic youth (n = 72), and to assess whether pornography use was associated with experiences of adolescent dating abuse (ADA) victimization.

The sample was recruited from a large, urban, safety net hospital, and participants were 53% female, 59% Black, 19% Hispanic, 14% Other race, 6% White, and 1% Native American. All were 16-17 years old.

More than half (51%) had been asked to watch pornography together by a dating or sexual partner, and 44% had been asked to do something sexual that a partner saw in pornography.

Adolescent dating abuse (ADA) victimization was associated with more frequent pornography use, viewing pornography in the company of others, being asked to perform a sexual act that a partner first saw in pornography, and watching pornography during or after marijuana use.

Approximately 50% of ADA victims and 32% of non-victims reported that they had been asked to do a sexual act that their partner saw in pornography (p = 0.15), and 58% did not feel happy to have been asked. Results suggest that weekly pornography use among underage, urban-residing youth is common, and may be associated with ADA victimization.

KEYWORDS: adolescent health; dating abuse; dating violence; partner abuse; partner violence; pornography; sexually explicit material