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Problematic and Non-Problematic Pornography Use Among LGBTQ Adolescents: a Systematic Literature Review

  • Sex Addiction (S Kraus, Section Editor)
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Abstract

Purpose of Review

Pornography use is highly prevalent among adolescents, yet lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) adolescents remain an understudied population and knowledge about their pornography use is limited. Therefore, we aimed to provide an overview of LGBTQ adolescents’ pornography use patterns and compare them with those of heterosexual adolescents.

Recent Findings

Despite the fact that there is limited data to draw conclusions, pornography may be viewed at a younger age for LGBTQ girls, be more prevalent, and be more frequent among LGBTQ adolescents than among their heterosexual counterparts. Despite this higher use pattern, LGBTQ adolescents may not be more prone to developing problematic pornography use based on their reported primary motivations for use. LGBTQ adolescents may not only use pornography to experience sexual pleasure, but they can also use it to learn about sexuality and develop their sexual identity. However, LGBTQ adolescents’ pornography use does not appear to be related to more negative outcomes compared with heterosexual adolescents; thus, LGBTQ adolescents do not seem more vulnerable to pornographic materials than heterosexual adolescents.

Summary

Although problematic or compulsive pornography use may seem an obvious explanation, LGBTQ adolescents’ more frequent pornography use may derive from their unmet needs regarding information on LGBTQ sexual activities and may be considered a part of their sexual identity development process.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, C.P. 6128, Succursale Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada

    Beáta Bőthe & Sophie Bergeron

  2. Institute of Psychology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary

    Beáta Bőthe & Zsolt Demetrovics

  3. Département de Psychologie, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Montréal, Canada

    Marie-Pier Vaillancourt-Morel

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  1. Beáta Bőthe
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Bőthe, B., Vaillancourt-Morel, MP., Bergeron, S. et al. Problematic and Non-Problematic Pornography Use Among LGBTQ Adolescents: a Systematic Literature Review. Curr Addict Rep 6, 478–494 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40429-019-00289-5

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