Violent Pornography Consumption and Sexual Perpetration: the Role of Hostile Masculinity, Sexual Arousal, and Masturbation

Increased availability of pornography has raised questions about whether it influences sexual perpetration. Research up to date has demonstrated that violent pornography is associated with sexual perpetration, while indicating that this relationship is stronger among men at high risk for sexual perpetration. Other potential explanations for this relationship have been theorized, such as sexual arousal and masturbation, but have rarely been tested. This study seeks to contribute to testing these theories with the following hypotheses: (1) sexual arousal will mediate the effect of violent pornography consumption on sexual perpetration, and this indirect effect (violent pornography on arousal) will be stronger for men high in hostile masculinity, and (2) masturbation will moderate the relationship between violent pornography consumption and sexual perpetration. A sample of heterosexual men (N=102) completed a self-report questionnaire assessing these relationships through a non-probability self-selection and convenience sampling. Results indicated that the indirect effect of violent pornography consumption on sexual perpetration through sexual arousal did not vary across different levels of hostile masculinity. The results also indicated no moderating effect of masturbation on the relationship between violent pornography consumption and sexual perpetration. These findings indicate that the theoretical background underlying the pathways tested in this thesis may be incomplete and highlight the need for future research to investigate additional factors that may affect these relationships.