Exposure to Violent Pornography and Teen Dating Violence Among High School Students

Introduction: With the proliferation of the Internet and other forms of media, many adolescents have easy access to a large collection of sexually explicit material. Indeed, exposure to pornography is prevalent among adolescents, and some is violent and aggressive. Whereas exposure to pornography in general has been linked with dating violence and sexual aggression, less is known about exposure to violent pornography specifically. The current study sought to examine the association of exposure to violent pornography with different forms of teen dating violence (TDV).

Methods: This study examined baseline survey data from the first and second waves of a randomized clinical trial of a sexual violence prevention program among 10^th grade high school students in a Northeastern state. Only students who reported being in a dating relationship in the past year were included in the analyses (N = 1315). Participants were on average 15.4 years old, and 51% were female. Logistic regression models with hierarchical entry generated odds ratios adjusted for demographics and attitudinal and behavioral risk factors to explore associations between any exposure to violent pornography and involvement (victimization or perpetration) in physical, sexual, and threatening TDV.

Results: Exposure to violent pornography was associated with physical (aOR = 2.46, p < .001), sexual (aOR = 2.43, p < .001), and threatening (aOR = 1.51, p < .10) TDV over and above demographics, substance use, a history of suspension/expulsion, rigid beliefs about masculinity, and tolerance of rape myths. To explore differences between gender, interactions between gender and exposure to violent pornography were included; no significant interactions were detected, suggesting that the relationship between exposure and TDV was not dependent on gender.

Conclusions: School- and community-based efforts to prevent TDV could incorporate a focus on how viewing violent sexually explicit content may impact adolescents’ real-life violent behaviors in dating relationships and develop messaging for adolescents and their families to prevent adolescent pornography exposure. Moreover, it will be important for health professionals, educators, and service providers to consider how to prevent pornography use in the context of changing technology, particularly given that pornography may become more aggressive and deviant in nature. However, prevention efforts should be implemented in conjunction with broader strategies that engage influential adults and peers to promote social norms that reduce risk for TDV. The current study results suggest that preventing exposure to violent pornography, as part of a comprehensive strategy to teach safe and healthy relationships, may be related to reductions in risk for TDV.