Men have a bit of a reputation for adopting things they see in porn that don’t quite translate to the bedroom (jackhammering, skipping foreplay, etc.) While a recent study confirmed that over-exposure to porn does indeed make men worse lovers, it turns out that women who take notes from adult entertainment can actually improve their sexual performance.
The study, published last month in the journal Psychological Medicine, found that men who watched more porn were more likely to report lower levels of sexual competence and satisfaction. The more porn a man watched, the more likely he was to experience sexual performance issues such as erectile dysfunction and lower levels of sexual desire. Women, on the other hand, were more likely to report higher levels of sexual function and satisfaction if they were frequent porn watchers.
Researchers behind the study couldn’t provide a conclusive explanation for this discrepancy, but theorized it could be related to differences in the kinds of porn men and women are more likely to watch. While men tend to be more inclined towards kinky and hardcore porn, women are more likely to stick to the softcore stuff. “Men watch more hardcore/paraphilic porn and less softcore/mainstream porn than women . . . which may be associated with different sexual comparison processes and sexual outcomes,” the study notes.
Not only does softcore porn tend to translate better to the bedroom than the hardcore stuff being performed by professional sex acrobats, but it’s also less likely to make the viewer feel inadequate by comparison. According to the study, “porn can also be a source of threatening upward sexual comparisons, particularly for men. For instance, the frequency of porn use predicts penis size dissatisfaction among men.” Naturally, feeling insecure about your body or your sexual performance doesn’t tend to make for a super satisfying sex life. This doesn’t mean that there’s anything wrong with being into kinkier stuff (lots of people are), but it does make sense that more intense porn is more likely to make viewers feel like their own performance doesn’t measure up.
Still, none of this is to say that porn is an inherently evil vice that’s going to poison your sex life. Anti-porn crusades often warn of the dangers of “porn addiction,” but used responsibly and with the knowledge that porn isn’t meant to be a model for real-life sex, it can be a harmless source of pleasure and a great tool for exploring fantasies. As for how your porn habits are affecting your sex partners, watching porn together as a couple can actually enhance your partnered sex life.
So while porn shouldn’t be your go-to source for improving your bedroom game, it certainly can be a positive influence if you can learn to separate fantasy from reality. Porn isn’t evil, but please porn responsibly.
More Like This
Whether you’re looking to get into shape, or just get out of a funk, The Charge has got you covered. Sign up for our new wellness newsletter today.
