Pornography is having a huge influence on young people’s understanding of sex today. I read an article just recently that reported on a nearly 50% increase in sexual offence reports in south-western Victoria in just 12 months. What I found concerning, but unfortunately not surprising, was that police said pornography is playing a huge role in young male offenders “pushing the envelope” with their intimate partners.
Sergeant Chris Asenjo said,
“We're seeing boys and young men with unrestricted access to pornography on their smartphones… Their first sexual experience is through porn. And they're thinking, that's how I've got to treat a woman.”
I hear from many young men that they turn to pornography to try to understand sex. This doesn’t make the young viewer bad – their interest and curiosity around sex is normal. The issue with young people using pornography as their sex educator is that pornography is void of any values-based approach towards sex.
Porn tends to neglect the values of respect, boundaries and mutuality, while eroticising themes of dominance, control and ownership. This is causing young males to be confused and unaware of what healthy and respectful relationships look like.
Do you believe that pornography is contributing to unhealthy attitudes and behaviours amongst young men towards young women? Love to hear your thoughts.
