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The Relationship Between Sexual Sensation Seeking and Problematic Internet Pornography Use: A Moderated Mediation Model Examining Roles of Online Sexual Activities and the Third-person Effect

Overview

Overview

Journal J Behav Addict

Publisher Akademiai Kiado

Specialties Psychiatry
Social Sciences

Date 2018 Sep 12

PMID 30203696

Citations 13

Authors

Authors

Lijun Chen

Ying Yang

Wenliang Su

Lijun Zheng

Cody Ding

Marc N Potenza

Affiliations

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background And Aims: Internet pornography consumption is prevalent among college students and problematic for some, yet little is known regarding the psychological constructs underlying problematic Internet pornography use (PIPU). Drawing on the Interaction of Person-Affect-Cognition-Execution model, this study tested a model that sexual sensation seeking (SSS) would impact PIPU through online sexual activities (OSAs) and that this relationship would be influenced by the third-person effect (TPE; a social cognitive bias relating to perceived impacts on others as compared to oneself) in a gender-sensitive manner.

Methods: A total of 808 Chinese college students (age range: 17-22 years, 57.7% male) were recruited and surveyed.

Results: Men scored higher than women on OSAs and PIPU and on each scale's component factors. The relationship between SSS and PIPU was mediated by OSAs, and the TPE moderated this relationship: the predictive path (SSS to PIPU) was significant only in participants with high TPE. The moderated mediation model was not invariant across gender groups, with data suggesting that it accounted for a greater proportion of the variance in men as compared with women.

Discussion And Conclusions: The findings suggest that SSS may operate through participation in OSAs to lead to PIPU, and this relationship is particularly relevant for college-aged males scoring high on the TPE. These findings have implications for individuals who might be particularly vulnerable to developing PIPU and for guiding educational efforts and targeting interventions in college-aged students. The extent to which these findings extend to other age groups and cultures warrants further examination.

Citing Articles

What Is Excessive? The Screening Frequency of Online Sexual Activities Among Community and Subclinical Males.

Chen L, Wang Q, Jiang X, Zhang Y Psychiatry Investig. 2025; 21(12):1338-1348.

PMID: 39757813 PMC: 11704803. DOI: 10.30773/pi.2023.0369.

Moderating Role of Sexual Attitudes in the Association between Online Sexual Activity and Problematic Pornography Use: Evidence from the Chinese Community and Help-Seeking Men.

Chen L, Wang D, Wang H, Zhang Y, Jiang X Int J Sex Health. 2024; 35(4):555-572.

PMID: 38601807 PMC: 10903587. DOI: 10.1080/19317611.2023.2257688.

Biopsychosocial Determinants of Problematic Pornography Use: A Systematic Review.

Seyedzadeh Dalooyi S, Aghamohammadian Sharbaaf H, Abdekhodaei M, Chamanabad A Addict Health. 2023; 15(3):202-218.

PMID: 38026725 PMC: 10658102. DOI: 10.34172/ahj.2023.1395.

The Generalized Problematic Internet Use Scale 2 in a Polish sample: psychometric validation and relationship with specific Internet-related disorders and psychosocial functioning.

Balcerowska J, Bereznowski P Curr Issues Personal Psychol. 2023; 11(3):228-239.

PMID: 38014388 PMC: 10654343. DOI: 10.5114/cipp/151869.

Sexual development in ADHD and internet pornography consumption.

Privara M, Bob P Front Psychiatry. 2023; 14:1240222.

PMID: 37614646 PMC: 10442643. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1240222.

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