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Category: Project

Description: Internet pornography is a common recreational activity in developed nations, particularly in those with limited state or governmental regulations on internet use. Over the past two decades there has been an immense increase in psychological literature examining the motivations for, associates of, and outcomes related to the use of internet pornography. This review seeks to consolidate this large and ever-growing body of research into an organizational framework that conceptualizes internet pornography use in terms of its relations to human sexual motivation. A review of research is conducted, and a novel, multipart model is described by which IP use may be seen as being influenced by and an influencer of human sexual motivation. In the first step of the present model, the present review contends that internet pornography use is motivated by hedonic and self-focused sexual motivations, most often being a solitary, pleasure-seeking pursuit. Second, the present model contends that IP use is uniquely rewarding of those motivations, due to its accessibility and customizable nature. Finally, the present model contends that internet pornography use is likely to lead to increases in self-focused hedonic sexual motivation both in solitary and in social sexual encounters. A review of available data suggests that this organizational framework is both accurate and useful for understanding a large portion of the psychological research on internet pornography use and provides clear directions for future research.