Methodological issues in defining aggression for content analyses of sexually explicit material

There exists an important tradition of content analyses of aggression in sexually explicit material. The majority of these analyses use a definition of aggression that excludes consent. This article identifies three problems with this approach. First, it does not distinguish between aggression and some positive acts. Second, it excludes a key element of healthy sexuality. Third, it can lead to heteronormative definitions of healthy sexuality. It would be better to use a definition of aggression such as Baron and Richardson's (1994) in our content analyses, that includes a consideration of consent. A number of difficulties have been identified with attending to consent but this article offers solutions to each of these

Pornography, Sex Crime, and Paraphilia

The current paper reviews research findings concerning the association of pornography with sexual violence and paraphilic interests. Little clarity concerning the causal impact of pornography on sexual aggression or child-oriented sexual behavior has been achieved in the scientific literature. Laboratory experimentation demonstrates that violent pornography may contribute to antiwoman aggression, but the artificiality and constraints of the experimental setting severely limit generalization of these findings to real-world situations, and observational studies in natural settings consistently find no association or an inverse association of pornography with sexual aggression. In addition, although pedophiles often use child pornography, the causal impact of child pornography on child sexual offending is not conclusive. The current analysis considers the confluence of predisposing factors and pornography use as issues requiring clinical judgment in the reduction of sexual aggression and management of paraphilic interest in children