Pornography Use and Psychological Science: A Call for Consideration
- Authors
- Grubbs, J. B., & Kraus, S. W.
- Year
- 2021
- Journal
- Current Directions in Psychological Science
- Type
- Conceptual / review paper
- Last verified
- 2026-10-04
Main question
What does the psychological science on pornography use actually establish?
Related claims
Summary
Grubbs and Kraus (2021) reviewed the psychological literature on pornography use and argued that the field suffers from polarization and conceptual confusion. They call for research that carefully separates use from distress and that avoids assuming an addiction framework from the outset.
Why it matters
This paper is a useful frame for this knowledge base’s approach: distinguishing what people report from what evidence establishes, and treating the behavioural addiction debate as genuinely open rather than settled.
Findings
- Reviews the state of pornography research and argues for more rigorous, less polarized investigation.
- Highlights the distinction between pornography use and pornography-related distress, and the central role of moral incongruence.
- Calls for definitions and measurement that do not presuppose an addiction framework.
Limitations
- Conceptual/agenda-setting paper rather than new empirical data.
- verification needed (DOI/PMID not recorded)
Clinical relevance
Calls for definitions that separate use from distress in research and practice.
Relevance to problematic pornography use
Frames the need for rigorous, non-polarized PPU research.