🌐 AI搜索 & 代理 主页
Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

Pornography Use Habits of Sexually and Non-Sexually Delinquent Youth

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Save article
View saved research
Archives of Sexual Behavior Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Adolescents with problematic sexualized behaviors have been found to disclose more frequent and earlier exposures to pornography compared to non-sexually delinquent youth. There is a gap in the literature regarding specific pornography use habits that may differentiate youth who sexually and non-sexually offend, and little is known about how pornography use relates to delinquent behavior among youth who have sexually offended. The current study explored the pornography use habits, offending behaviors, and recidivism risk of 200 adjudicated youth in a Western state. Regression analyses revealed differences between groups in content selected, beliefs, and use habits. Youth who engaged in sexual offending had more unrealistic beliefs reflected in their pornography use. While only frequency of viewing was related to sexual recidivism risk, there was a relationship between viewing forceful or violent pornography and the diversified offending portfolios of youth who sexually offend. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+
from €37.37 /Month
  • Starting from 10 chapters or articles per month
  • Access and download chapters and articles from more than 300k books and 2,500 journals
  • Cancel anytime
View plans

Buy Now

Price includes VAT (Taiwan (R.O.C.))

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Explore related subjects

Discover the latest articles, books and news in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.

Data Availability

Data are not publicly available to protect the information of vulnerable participants.

Code Availability

No specialized or custom code was used for analyses. Analyses were completed using SPSS v.28.

References

  • Alexy, E. M., Burgess, A. W., & Prentky, R. A. (2009). Pornography use as a risk marker for an aggressive pattern of behavior among sexually reactive children and adolescents. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 14(6), 442–453.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). American Psychiatric Publishing.

  • Astle, S., Leonhardt, N., & Willoughby, B. (2020). Home base: Family of origin factors and the debut of vaginal sex, anal sex, oral sex, masturbation, and pornography use in a national sample of adolescents. Journal of Sex Research, 57(9), 1089–1099.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Attwood, F., Smith, C., & Barker, M. (2018). ‘I’m just curious and still exploring myself’: Young people and pornography. New Media & Society, 20(10), 3738–3759.

    Article�� Google Scholar 

  • Baker, K. E. (2016). Online pornography–should schools be teaching young people about the risks? An exploration of the views of young people and teaching professionals. Sex Education, 16(2), 213–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., Lykins, A. D., Wherrett, D., Kuban, M. E., Cantor, J. M., Blak, T., Dickey, R., & Klassen, P. E. (2009). Pedophilia, hebephilia, and the DSM-V. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 38(3), 335–350.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bosetti, R. L. (2024). Investigating trauma symptomology as a mediator of the relationships between childhood maltreatment and sexual and non-sexual delinquency. Sexual Abuse, 36(3), 349–380.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bőthe, B., Vaillancourt-Morel, M.-P., Girouard, A., Štulhofer, A., Dion, J., & Bergeron, S. (2020). A large-scale comparison of Canadian sexual/gender minority and heterosexual, cisgender adolescents’ pornography use characteristics. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 17(6), 1156–1167. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2020.02.009

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, J. D., & L’Engle, K. L. (2009). X-rated: Sexual attitudes and behaviors associated with US early adolescents’ exposure to sexually explicit media. Communication Research, 36(1), 129–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burton, D. L., Leibowitz, G. S., & Howard, A. (2010). Comparison by crime type of juvenile delinquents on pornography exposure: The absence of relationships between exposure to pornography and sexual offense characteristics. Journal of Forensic Nursing, 6(3), 121–129.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Caldwell, M. F. (2010). Study characteristics and recidivism base rates in juvenile sex offender recidivism. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 54(2), 197–212.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Caldwell, M. F. (2016). Quantifying the decline in juvenile sexual recidivism rates. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 22(4), 414.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caldwell, M. F., Ziemke, M. H., & Vitacco, M. J. (2008). An examination of the sex offender registration and notification act as applied to juveniles: Evaluating the ability to predict sexual recidivism. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 14(2), 89.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carr, J. L., & VanDeusen, K. M. (2004). Risk factors for male sexual aggression on college campuses. Journal of Family Violence, 19(5), 279–289.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crabbe, M., & Flood, M. (2021). School-based education to address pornography’s influence on young people: A proposed practice framework. American Journal of Sexuality Education, 16(1), 1–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, A. C., Wright, C., Curtis, M., Hellard, M. E., Lim, M. S. C., & Temple-Smith, M. J. (2021). ‘Not my child’: Parenting, pornography, and views on education. Journal of Family Studies, 27(4), 573–588.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dawson, K., Nic Gabhainn, S., & MacNeela, P. (2020). Toward a model of porn literacy: Core concepts, rationales, and approaches. Journal of Sex Research, 57(1), 1–15.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dawson, K., Tafro, A., & Štulhofer, A. (2019). Adolescent sexual aggressiveness and pornography use: A longitudinal assessment. Aggressive Behavior, 45(6), 587–597.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dillard, R., Maguire-Jack, K., Showalter, K., Wolf, K. G., & Letson, M. M. (2019). Abuse disclosures of youth with problem sexualized behaviors and trauma symptomology. Child Abuse & Neglect, 88, 201–211.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Driemeryer, W., Spehr, A., Yoon, D., Rickter-Applet, H., & Briken, P. (2013). Comparing sexuality, aggressiveness, and antisocial behavior of alleged juvenile sexual and violent offenders. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 58(3), 711–718.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elliott, D. S., & Ageton, S. S. (1980). Reconciling race and class differences in self-reported and official estimates of delinquency. American Sociological Review, 45, 95–110. https://doi.org/10.2307/2095245

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elliott, D. S., & Huizinga, D. (1989). Improving self-reported measures of delinquency. In M. W. Klein (Ed.), Cross-national research in self-reported crime and delinquency (pp. 155–186). Dordrecht: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Epperson, D. L., Ralston, C. A., Fowers, D., & DeWitt, J. (2009). Scoring guidelines for the Juvenile Sexual Offense Recidivism Risk Assessment Tool - II (JSORRAT–II). https://safersociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Epperson-JSORRAT-II-2009-Scoring-Guide.pdf

  • Flood, M. (2009). The harms of pornography exposure among children and young people. Child Abuse Review, 18(6), 384–400.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ford, M. E., & Linney, J. A. (1995). Comparative analysis of juvenile sex offenders, violent non-sexual offenders, and status offenders. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 10(1), 56–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Galatzer-Levy, R. M. (2012). Obscuring desire: A special pattern of male adolescent masturbation, internet pornography, and the flight from meaning. Psychoanalytic Inquiry, 32(5), 480–495.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gunnoo, A., & Powell, C. (2023). The association between pornography consumption and perceived realism in adolescents: A meta-analysis. Sexuality & Culture, 27(5), 1880–1893.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hornor, G. (2020). Child and adolescent pornography exposure. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 34(2), 191–199. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedhc.2019.10.001

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, J. A., Figueredo, A. J., & Malamuth, N. M. (2010). Developmental pathways into social and sexual deviance. Journal of Family Violence, 25(2), 141–148.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kingston, D. A., & Bradford, J. M. (2013). Hypersexuality and recidivism among sexual offenders. Sexual Addiction & Compulsivity, 20(1–2), 91–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kingston, D. A., Fedoroff, P., Firestone, P., Curry, S., & Bradford, J. M. (2008). Pornography use and sexual aggression: The impact of frequency and type of pornography use on recidivism among sexual offenders. Aggressive Behavior, 34(4), 341–351.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kingston, D. A., Malamuth, N. M., Fedoroff, P., & Marshall, W. L. (2009). The importance of individual differences in pornography use: Theoretical perspectives and implications for treating sexual offenders. Journal of Sex Research, 46(2–3), 216–232.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Knight, R. A., & Sims-Knight, J. E. (2004). Testing an etiological model for male juvenile sexual offending against females. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 13(3–4), 33–55. https://doi.org/10.1300/j070v13n03_03

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Krahé, B., Tomaszewska, P., & Schuster, I. (2025). The role of pornography in shaping young adults’ sexual scripts and sexual behavior: A longitudinal study with university students. Psychology of Popular Media, 14(3), 422–431.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Landripet, I., Buško, V., & Štulhofer, A. (2019). Testing the content progression thesis: A longitudinal assessment of pornography use and preference for coercive and violent content among male adolescents. Social Science Research, 81, 32–41.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Leversee, T. (2015). Etiology and typologies of juveniles who have committed sexual offenses. Sex offender management, assessment, and planning initiative. US Department of Justice. Office of Justice Programs. Retrieved from https://www.ojp.gov/library/publications/etiology-and-typologies-juveniles-who-have-committed-sexual-offenses

  • Luder, M. T., Pittet, I., Berchtold, A., Akré, C., Michaud, P. A., & Surís, J. C. (2011). Associations between online pornography and sexual behavior among adolescents: Myth or reality? Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 1027–1035.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Maas, M. K., Gal, T., Cary, K. M., & Greer, K. (2022). Popular culture and pornography education to improve the efficacy of secondary school staff response to student sexual harassment. American Journal of Sexuality Education, 17(4), 435–457.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Malacane, M., & Beckmeyer, J. J. (2016). A review of parent-based barriers to parent–adolescent communication about sex and sexuality: Implications for sex and family educators. American Journal of Sexuality Education, 11(1), 27–40. https://doi.org/10.1080/15546128.2016.1146187

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M. (1981). Rape fantasies as a function of exposure to violent sexual stimuli. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 10, 33–47.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M., Addison, T., & Koss, M. (2000). Pornography and sexual aggression: Are there reliable effects and can we understand them? Annual Review of Sex Research, 11(1), 26–91.

  • Marshall, E. A. (2021). The psychometric assessment of a comprehensive problematic pornography use instrument (Doctoral dissertation, Sam Houston State University).

  • Marshall, E. A., & Miller, H. A. (2023). The role of sexual scripts in the relationship between pornography use and sexual coercion. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 38(7–8), 5519–5541.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Matković, T., Cohen, N., & Štulhofer, A. (2018). The use of sexually explicit material and its relationship to adolescent sexual activity. Journal of Adolescent Health, 62(5), 563–569.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell, A., Patrick, K., Heywood, W., Blackman, P., & Pitts, M. (2014). 5th National Survey of Australian Secondary Students and Sexual Health 2013. Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morais, H. B., Alexander, A. A., Fix, R. L., & Burkhart, B. R. (2018). Childhood sexual abuse in adolescents adjudicated for sexual offenses: Mental health consequences and sexual offending behaviors. Sexual Abuse, 30(1), 23–42.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Osuna, A. I., & Holt, K. (2024). Pornography use and sexual scripts among men who have committed sexual offenses. Crime & Delinquency, 70(3), 1005–1033.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pathmendra, P., Raggatt, M., Lim, M. S., Marino, J. L., & Skinner, S. R. (2023). Exposure to pornography and adolescent sexual behavior: Systematic review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 25, Article e43116.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Peter, J., & Valkenburg, P. M. (2016). Adolescents and pornography: A review of 20 years of research. Journal of Sex Research, 53(4–5), 509–531.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pizzol, D., Bertoldo, A., & Foresta, C. (2016). Adolescents and web porn: A new era of sexuality. International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health, 28(2), 169–173.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pratt, R., & Fernandes, C. (2015). How pornography may distort risk assessment of children and adolescents who sexually harm. Children Australia, 40(3), 232–241.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pullman, L., & Seto, M. C. (2012). Assessment and treatment of adolescent sexual offenders: Implications of recent research on generalist versus specialist explanations. Child Abuse & Neglect, 36(3), 203–209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rabbitte, M., & Enriquez, M. (2018). The role of policy on sexual health education in schools. Journal of School Nursing, 35, 27–38. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059840518789240

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rasmussen, E. E., Ortiz, R. R., & White, S. R. (2015). Emerging adults’ responses to active mediation of pornography during adolescence. Journal of Children and Media, 9(2), 160–176. https://doi.org/10.1080/17482798.2014.997769

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Righthand, S., & Welch, C. (2004). Characteristics of youth who sexually offend. Identifying and treating youth who sexually offend. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 13, 15–32.

  • Scull, T., Malik, C., Morrison, A., & Keefe, E. (2021). Promoting sexual health in high school: A feasibility study of a web-based media literacy education program. Journal of Health Communication, 26(3), 147–160.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Seto, M. C., & Lalumière, M. L. (2010). What is so special about male adolescent sexual offending? A review and test of explanations through meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 136(4), 526–575. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019700

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Seto, M. C., Maric, A., & Barbaree, H. E. (2001). The role of pornography in the etiology of sexual aggression. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 6(1), 35–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simon, W., & Gagnon, J. H. (2003). Sexual scripts: Origins, influences and changes. Qualitative Sociology, 26(4), 491–497.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sinković, M., Štulhofer, A., & Božić, J. (2013). Revisiting the association between pornography use and risky sexual behaviors: The role of early exposure to pornography and sexual sensation seeking. Journal of Sex Research, 50(7), 633–641.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, C., & Thornberry, T. P. (1995). The relationship between childhood maltreatment and adolescent involvement in delinquency. Criminology, 33(4), 451–481.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sun, C., Bridges, A., Johnson, J. A., & Ezzell, M. B. (2016). Pornography and the male sexual script: An analysis of consumption and sexual relations. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 45(4), 983–994.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Taormino, T. (Ed.). (2012). The ultimate guide to kink: BDSM, role play and the erotic edge. Cleis Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Testa, G., Mestre-Bach, G., Chiclana Actis, C., & Potenza, M. N. (2023). Problematic pornography use in adolescents: From prevention to intervention. Current Addiction Reports, 10, 210–218. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40429-023-00469-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thibaut, F., Bradford, J. M., Briken, P., De La Barra, F., Häßler, F., Cosyns, P., WFSBP Task Force on Sexual Disorders. (2016). The World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry (WFSBP) guidelines for the treatment of adolescent sexual offenders with paraphilic disorders. The World Journal of Biological Psychiatry, 17(1), 2–38.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vogels, E. A., Gelles-Watnick, R., & Massarat, N. (2022). Teens, social media and technology 2022. Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teens-social-media-and-technology-2022/

  • Waterman, E. A., Wesche, R., Morris, G., Edwards, K. M., & Banyard, V. L. (2022). Prospective associations between pornography viewing and sexual aggression among adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12745

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • West, C. M. (2022). Pornography consumers of color and problematic pornography use: Clinical implications. Current Addiction Reports, 9(3), 126–132.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Widman, L., Javidi, H., Maheux, A. J., Evans, R., Nesi, J., & Choukas-Bradley, S. (2021). Sexual communication in the digital age: Adolescent sexual communication with parents and friends about sexting, pornography, and starting relationships online. Sexuality & Culture, 25(6), 2092–2109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wright, P. J., & Štulhofer, A. (2019). Adolescent pornography use and the dynamics of perceived pornography realism: Does seeing more make it more realistic? Computers in Human Behavior, 95, 37–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wright, P. J., Tokunaga, R. S., & Herbenick, D. (2023). Perceived similarity, utility, and social realism as potential mediators of the link between pornography use and condomless sex. Health Communication, 38(9), 1800–1812.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ybarra, M. L., & Mitchell, K. J. (2005). Exposure to internet pornography among children and adolescents: A national survey. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 8(5), 473–486.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ybarra, M. L., Mitchell, K. J., Hamburger, M., Diener-West, M., & Leaf, P. J. (2011). X-rated material and perpetration of sexually aggressive behavior among children and adolescents: Is there a link? Aggressive Behavior, 37(1), 1–18.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yoder, J., Dillard, R., & Leibowitz, G. S. (2018). Family experiences and sexual victimization histories: A comparative analysis between youth sexual and nonsexual offenders. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 62(10), 2917–2936.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors take responsibility for the integrity of the data, the accuracy of the data analyses, and has made every effort to avoid inflating statistically significant results.

Funding

The authors have no funding to declare.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Social Work, University of Kentucky, College of Social Work, 1829 Patterson Office Tower, Lexington, KY, 40508, USA

    Rebecca Logue Bosetti

  2. School of Social Work, Colorado State University, School of Social Work, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Jamie Rae Yoder

Authors
  1. Rebecca Logue Bosetti
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jamie Rae Yoder
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

Both authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by Rebecca L. Bosetti and Jamie R. Yoder, and analyses were performed by Rebecca L. Bosetti. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Rebecca L. Bosetti and Jamie R. Yoder, and all authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rebecca Logue Bosetti.

Ethics declarations

Conflicts of interests

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Research Involving Human Participants

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee (Ohio State University Behavioral and Social Sciences), the Western state’s Department of Youth Services and Sex Offender Management Board, and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed Consent

Informed consent and assent (as appropriate) were obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Bosetti, R.L., Yoder, J.R. Pornography Use Habits of Sexually and Non-Sexually Delinquent Youth. Arch Sex Behav 55, 459–474 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-025-03296-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Version of record:

  • Issue date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-025-03296-y

Keywords