The Detrimental Effects of Pornography Addiction on Teenagers - Research Paper Example

RUNNING HEAD: The Detrimental Effects of Pornography Addiction on Teenagers The Detrimental Effects of Pornography Addiction on Teenagers BY YOU YOURACADEMIC ORGANIZATION HERE YOUR TUTOR HERE APPROPRIATE DATE HERE Abstract Teenagers appear to be at higher risk of addictive behaviors than their adult counterparts, leading to potential long-term, negative psychological problems. Specifically, addiction to pornography appears to be on the rise in the United States, stemming from higher levels of exposure to online sexual content and the prevalence of maladjusted social environments in which the youth cannot successfully transition from adolescence to adulthood. This research project identifies pornography addiction in today’s teenagers, examining the causes of such addiction as well as the long-term detrimental effects on their long-term mental health. The Detrimental Effects of Pornography Addiction on Teenagers Introduction The prevalence of pornography addiction amongst the American teenage population appears to be on the rise. Though experts are often divided as to the root cause of these addictive tendencies, there does appear to be issues of both biology and environment which contributes to adolescent addiction. Teenage addiction to pornography does not necessarily have to take the form of Internet-based pornographic materials, but can develop from an unhealthy obsession with sexually-explicit print and video materials. Weiten and Lloyd (2003) suggest that teenagers may develop substantial preoccupations with sex as a coping strategy for unfulfilled needs related to emotional intimacy. Under this presumption, pornography addiction is simply the result of unrewarding environmental conditions which do not adequately contribute to positive mental health. Thus, the preoccupation with sex and pornography becomes a replacement for poor self-esteem reinforcement by peers, family members, or other caretakers in their personal environment. It could simply be, under this premise, that the youth remains so largely unfulfilled emotionally that they latch onto pornography as a means to stimulate themselves amidst an environment where basic frustrations or an unhealthy view of the self lead to distorted views of sexuality. This viewpoint is reinforced by Gunter (2002) who offers that pornography is often used to create a desired mood state. If the youth cannot find personal gratification in their everyday surroundings, the enjoyment of sexual activity (i.e. habitual masturbation) would potentially serve as a tool to mask an unhealthy view of the self. For the male teenager, another mental health professional offers that pornography addiction is merely an outcome of unhealthy views related to male supremacy (August, 1995). In today’s culture, teenage men are exposed to specific cultural views regarding what constitutes acceptable male behavior under the theory of gender role identity. From an environmental perspective, parental figures or other household caretakers may explicitly reinforce that the male must be the dominant force in all social situations. At the same time, broader social viewpoints may contradict these beliefs regarding male superiority, giving the teenager a distorted view of male identity. Unable to fulfill the caretakers’ expectations of male dominance, the youth may turn toward pornography as a coping strategy amidst conflicting role expectations. Over time, this dependency on pornographic materials to stimulate positive emotion will likely lead to detrimental addictive behaviors. From a much different perspective, Wilson and Wilson (1992) offer that sexual addiction maintains four distinct cycles including preoccupation, ritualization, compulsive sexual behavior, and despair. Preoccupation is simply the addict becoming obsessed with sexual behavior and begins searching for sexual stimulation. Ritualization involves various habitual activities which serve to enhance or intensify sexual arousal, such as masturbating to magazines in a public place for the thrill of potentially getting caught in the act. This would suggest that the thrill of pornographic materials is linked with psychological needs fulfillment. The third stage in teen pornography addiction is compulsive sexual behavior in which the preoccupation with sex becomes addictive and the individual is no longer able to control their sexual impulses. By stage four, despair, the individual often begins to realize that their pornography addiction has spun so far out of control that the individual becomes riddled with anxiety each time they give in to the urge to exploit pornographic materials. Clearly, under the aforementioned premise, anxiety as the final stage of pornographic addiction is a detriment to the individual teen’s self-view, ability to adjust normally to what constitutes acceptable sexual behavior, and inability to control their sexual impulses. Another expert in the field of psychology offers that online pornography, specifically, “may provide an alternative reality to the user and allow them feelings of immersion and anonymity which may lead to an altered state of consciousness” (Flood, 2007: 81-82). This theory essentially suggests that exposure to online pornography creates a type of euphoria similar to that of the stimulating effects of drug use, giving the individual yet another method to bring pleasure in an environment where opportunities for personal satisfaction may be greatly limited. For teenage individuals, who are commonly-understood to maintain various difficulties adjusting from youth-oriented lifestyle to that of socially-mandated adult behaviors, online pornography may be the only means of finding satisfaction or giving them a sense of control over themselves when it is perceived that society will allow them to have no such behavioral authority. Despite the research provided which tends to suggest that environmental factors are monumental contributors to what drives teenage pornography addiction, McGough (2003) suggests that biology is the culprit for these maladjusted sexual behaviors. The author suggests that because of neurochemical factors related to how the brain is physically wired, the teenage youth is simply more prone to addictive behaviors than adults. This phenomenon is referred to as plasticity in which the youth makes monumental behavioral changes “in response to experience” (McGough, 2003: D.3). It seems that under this theoretical premise, the youth experiences unpleasant environmental stimuli and, due to the developing brain, makes radical attempts to undermine negativity in pursuit of more pleasant stimuli: Pornographic obsession. All of the expert opinion regarding teenage pornography addiction clearly indicates that there are significant opportunities for long-term, detrimental outcomes if the root cause of what drives this addiction cannot be identified or resolved. Anxiety, distorted view of the self, uncertain gender role function, or even despair leading to psychological trauma can potentially be carried into adulthood, leaving the youth unable to cope with normal adult lifestyle. It seems that this addiction to sexually-graphic materials can impact intimate relationships or the ability to find any type of stimulation beyond that of pornographic exposure. Method In order to verify the aforementioned experts’ theoretical assessments regarding teenage pornographic addiction and determine the most likely long-term detriment of this form of sexual dysfunction, it was necessary to conduct primary research using a small sampling of teenage individuals. Taking a qualitative approach to this research, it was determined that it would be most appropriate to conduct face-to-face interviews with two teenage subjects who have been admitted to an appropriate mental health facility for treatment of pornographic addiction. Gaining approval to conduct the interviews was not an extensive process, despite one of the subjects being a minor, as the researcher has an affiliation with the leadership of a specific mental health organization where a social acquaintance is currently being treated for this problematic issue. For the sake of anonymity, the subjects will be referred to as Subject A and Subject B. The parents of both subjects were consulted by hospital leadership where approval was granted to conduct the brief, face-to-face interview sessions. The interviews were supervised by the attending physician on the day of the interviews. Both interview sessions lasted 45 minutes, as mandated by the organizational leadership hierarchy at the facility. Both Subject A and Subject B were asked a series of ten open-ended questions. This method was determined most appropriate as it provided the youths the opportunity to discuss their feelings or issues freely, without the possibility of researcher bias which can occur with a more structured focus. As the researcher was familiar with Subject A on an informal basis, personal bias was a considerable issue in terms of researcher ethics. Subject A, male, is 17 years of age and comes from a relatively healthy background with married parents who are both professionals and well-educated. The youth has no history of maladjusted behaviors other than what was deemed by his parents as a sudden and completely unexpected addiction to multiple forms of pornography. Subject B, male, is 18 years of age and comes from a single-parent household in which the mother juggles two jobs in order to support the household. This individual has two teenage brothers (one is an identical twin) and a preschool-aged sister. Subject B was cited as having a wide history of maladjusted behaviors, only recently developing an unhealthy obsession with print pornography. This interview subject was arrested for stealing pornographic magazines from a local drug store on at least one occasion and was arrested for indecent exposure (masturbating) in a public facility’s restroom. Subject B was also given probation for attempted sexual assault against another male student colleague when he was 15. Subject B also participated in a secretive sexual relationship with his identical twin brother who has publicly declared himself a homosexual male. A brief, chance meeting with the mother of Subject B left the impression of a non-learned individual with the propensity to blend excessive profanities and vulgarity in normal, social conversation. Drawing on the aforementioned research literature, a series of questions were developed to determine whether biological or environmental factors could be contributed to the onset of the subjects’ pornography addictions. Additionally, each subject was directed to answer freely as their responses were strictly for research purposes and would remain anonymous. Both subjects freely agreed to be spotlighted for this research study. Results Subject A clearly indicated a sense of anxiety and despair regarding his current addictive behaviors and consistently reinforced that he was both “ashamed” and “disappointed” (Personal Interview, 2009). Generally, his responses indicated that he had spoiled his parents’ reputations and was far more concerned about the long-term consequences on his family relationships. Though the respondent indicated that both of his parents were very supportive and willing to provide assistance in the treatment process, he had, more than once, refused to let them attend any of his psychiatric sessions out of fear of embarrassment and “humiliation” (Personal Interview, Jan 2009). When asked why Subject A believed he had become addicted to pornography, his response was overwhelmingly, “Because nothing else in my life ever feels good” (Personal Interview, Jan 2009). This subject appears to believe that the stresses related to school and his parents unrealistic expectations for his scholastic success, coupled with an inability to hold a long-term intimate relationship with the opposite sex, had made him explore this outlet in order to avoid aggressive outbursts as a coping mechanism. More than once this respondent suggested that his father was overtly domineering in the household and often chastised his son for being physically weak (the subject is small-framed and not substantially muscular like his father). The respondent believed that no matter how hard he tried to please his father, there was always a reason for him to be rejected as somehow inferior. Subject A indicated that he had become familiar with his sexuality (masturbation) at a very early age but no longer found gratification through this without the use of sexually-explicit materials. On several occasions, the respondent identified that his father often entered his bedroom, located his hidden pornographic materials, and disposed of them without ever addressing the rationale for the action. This obviously caused the subject a considerable amount of distress. Subject B, in opposite accord, was actually quite proud of his pornography addiction (as well as his many other maladjusted behaviors) and clearly indicated that his stay at the mental health facility was not by choice. This respondent very clearly had a considerable amount of contempt for both his mother and his younger sister, which may indicate an unhealthy view of gender role identity. Throughout the interview, each time his mother came into the conversation, Subject B referred to her as “that fat whore”, clearly indicating a lack of personal respect for authority figures or simply the feminine persona. The researcher, as well, was the target of vulgar commentaries, again reinforcing a maladjusted viewpoint regarding the value the subject placed on females. Somewhat disturbing, Subject B seemed to have absolutely no problem whatsoever with his incestual relationship with his twin brother, citing that he “didn’t know why everybody made such a big deal about it….it’s just sex and sometimes you just need it” (Personal Interview, Jan 2009). This Subject, however, maintained a great deal of animosity against his twin brother calling him a “sick faggot with an attitude problem” (Personal Interview, Jan 2009). This Subject seemed to believe that lude or public sexual behavior was something everyone wanted, but were simply too “stupid” to act upon it (Personal Interview, Jan 2009). This Subject, in direct support of the research literature, maintained several rituals related to his pornography addiction, often leaving pornographic magazines hidden in his previous high school bathroom so that he could masturbate to them between classes (Personal Interview, Jan 2009). Subject B consistently and continuously showed nothing but contempt for his mother, the broader social system, and even law enforcement. His emotional outbursts were continuous throughout the interview session, growing louder in intensity until the attending facility leaders were forced to abruptly ask the researcher to quickly wrap up the session. Discussion Subject A appears to have developed a rather unhealthy view of the self based largely on environmental stimuli and perceived chastisement for being inferior to other males. Referring back to the research literature on this topic, this generally fits the theoretical profile of a teenager addicted to pornography. Looking for an outlet for gratification among high pressure and a domineering father appears to have made Subject A turn toward pornography as a means to simply cope. It is likely that with proper counseling and willingness to allow his parents to participate in treatment, this subject’s problems can be resolved with no long-term detriment. Subject B, however, was clearly the victim of a severely-dysfunctional home environment with an insufficient caretaker. His mother, likely too busy or ill-equipped to provide a stable, disciplined household, simply appears to have turned a proverbial blind eye to both incest and reckless disregard for the law. Because this respondent maintained such a massive variety of maladjusted beliefs and behaviors, it cannot be determined whether his problems stem from biological factors or simply faulty environmental stimuli and parental support. However, because this subject appeared to believe that all of these behaviors related to his addiction were both acceptable and magnificent, the long-term detrimental effects of his addiction could be an individual who will be completely unable to live a normal adult life. This individual did not meet the theoretical four stages of teenage pornography addiction as he showed absolutely no despair over his decision-making or sexual activities whatsoever. Subject A, however, had clearly gone through all proposed stages, as proposed by the literature, of such addiction leading to a person with an inadequate view of the self. All of the primary research would seem to indicate that the most prevalent, long-term detrimental effects of teenage pornographic addiction are despair and anxiety. Subject B was clearly a unique case which fit no addictive profile whatsoever. There was, however, sufficient evidence provided through this research effort that if a youth is of sound mind and has been raised in a healthy environment, the detrimental effects of this variety of addiction do not have to be long-term with the proper support and counseling. Clearly, further research, using a much broader sample population, is required to achieve concrete results. References August, Eugene R. (1995). The New Men’s Studies: A Selected and Annotated Interdisciplinary Bibliography. Englewood, Colorado, Libraries Unlimited: 117-120. Flood, Michael. (2007). International Encyclopedia of Men and Masculinities. New York, Taylor & Francis Routledge: 88. Gunter, Barrie. (2002). Media Sex: What are the Issues?. LEA Communication Series. N.J. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc: 69-71. McGough, Robert. (2003). “Brain Structure May Make Teens Addiction-Prone”. Wall Street Journal, New York, NY. 19 Jun: D.3. Personal Interview. (2009). Subject A and Subject B: Research in Anonymous Mental Health Treatment Facility. January 2009. Weiten, W. and Lloyd, M. (2003). Psychology Applied to Modern Life: Adjustment in the 21st Century. 7th ed. United States, Thomson Wadsworth: 288. Wilson, Jan R. and Wilson, Judith A. (1992). Addictionary: A Primer of Recovery Terms and Concepts, From Abstinence to Withdrawal. Center City, Minnesota, Hazelden Publishing: 41-43. 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