Well I submitted the research proposal. Ill post updates in here as it progresses in the class. Thanks

Guarding Against Pornography

Pornography has been a contentious matter for decades. In the 1980�s, groups against pornography often picketed adult magazine stores and boycotted advertisers with racy ads on television. In the 1990�s, pornography became available on the internet and soon flourished into a multibillion dollar business by the end of the decade. As the internet expanded, so did smartphone technology and now adults and children have access to pornography in their fingertips. Despite its popularity, pornography causes psychological harm to viewers and appropriate actions should be taken to restrict child access to pornography.

Pornography enjoys widespread acceptance among emerging adults between the ages of 18 to 26. In one study of University students, ��9 out of 10 emerging adult men reported using pornography to some degree, with nearly half viewing pornography on a weekly or more frequent basis.� (Carroll, Padilla-Walker and Nelson) The researchers also found correlations between acceptance of pornography and increased sexual behavior. Notably, a majority of women were accepting of pornography but only 1 in 10 reported viewing it recently. It is indisputable that pornography is more popular than smoking, exercise and healthy diet among emerging adults.

Alarmingly, many experts now believe that most children first view pornography around the age of 11 (PR, Newswire.). Access is very easy with the use of a smartphone or family computer. Since pornography is accepted by the culture, many parents may be hesitant to place restrictions on their children�s access to it, much less their own. Some may argue that sexual expression through pornography is healthy or perhaps even enriching to the child. Although actual child pornography is widely opposed, the ability of children to access pornography seems to be enjoy support of parents and childhood peers.
Unfortunately, there is little clinical research on the relationship of pornography to lifestyle and psychological health. President Reagan created a special commission in 1988 to examine the relationships of pornographic use to crime and found that there is a correlation but there have not been ongoing studies coinciding with the rise of the internet. I was unable to locate any long-term studies of subjects. However, what little research is available is in agreement that pornography has a negative impact on the lives of users.

Dr. Bill Harley, a clinical psychologist and author of more than 18 books on marriage, describes pornography as a scourge on marriages. In a recent article posted on his website, Harley explains that wives often find their husband�s use of pornography highly offensive (Harley). Their husbands often have a decreased sex drive as a side effect of viewing pornography and the wife often feels neglected in bed. This seems to contrast with some who argue that pornography can enhance a marriage and sexual relations between partners. Harley states that men viewing pornography experience a �contrast effect� between viewing pornographic actors and their wife: First, the contrast between masturbating to a pornographic image is less work and equally rewarding to intercourse. Secondly, the models of these films are compared to the bodies of their spouse and wives feel they cannot compete with younger, more physically fit models. It is often so offensive to wives that �Many divorce their husbands who won�t end it.� Sadly, many of these men first viewed pornography at young ages and continued use has affected their ability to maintain mutually caring relationships with the opposite sex.

What causes such a problem with viewing �mainstream� pornography? Why do men find it equally or more fulfilling than sexual relations with their spouses? Many would agree with Gary Wilson, author of Your Brain on Porn that ��two-dimensional images of women were a poor substitute for actual three-dimensional women.� (Wilson) However, recent research into the neural pathways of the brain pleasure zones show that pornography can be addictive, more pleasurable than sex and cause erectile dysfunction.

Researcher Valerie Voon examined brain scans of test subjects and found that viewers of pornography experience a �high� similar to cocaine users. The pleasure centers of the brain reward system, which manufacture the chemical dopamine, respond quicker to pornographic images than real sex (Voon et al.). Test subjects reported that they ��had lost jobs due to use at work, damaged intimate relationships or negatively influenced other social activities, experienced diminished libido or erectile function specifically in physical relationships with women, used escorts excessively, experienced suicidal ideation and using large amounts of money.� Clearly, pornography has not benefited the lives of these subjects. Like drugs, the benefits of short term pleasure (a release of dopamine in the brain) far outweighs the cost in psychological health.

Since the outlook is dim for those who view pornography, parents should take a proactive role in restricting children�s access to it. The North Carolina Attorney General office suggests that parent�s should have passwords to all electronic devices and check them frequently. Spyware, which can be installed at very low cost, is also encouraged. Home computers should be in a central area of the house where activity can be monitored. Many parents may be met with opposition when implementing these suggestions, especially if the children are teenagers. However, parents should face the facts established here that their child has or will have access to pornography by the age of 11 and that continued viewing of pornography will damage their child�s future.

The right to privacy is often cited by both children and adults. In his article, Harley writes that men viewing pornography often get upset if their wife demands to know what was viewed in an attempt to hold them accountable. They often consider this a privacy issue and refuse to be honest which often leads to divorce. Although privacy rights are more debatable in a marital contract, there is not so much debate concerning children�s right to privacy. Parents can and should regularly invade their child�s privacy for any influence which would cause damage to that child�s future.

Although pornography dates from the earliest images found on cave walls to the girly magazines of the 1950�s, it has evolved into a high speed rapid delivery system of dopamine through the internet and is affecting the lives of young adults. Appropriate actions should be implemented to protect children from the dangers of pornography.

Works Cited

Carroll, S. J, L M Padilla-Walker and L J Nelson. "Generation XXX: Pornography acceptance and use among emerging adults." Journal of Adolescent Research (2008): 6-30. web. 4 Aug 2015
Harley, Willard. "The Scourge of Pornography." 2015. Marriage Builders. web. 2 Aug 2015.
PR, Newswire. "2014 Survey: Guess the age when boys first view porn or have sex and where they learn about sex?." PR Newswire US 28 Aug. 2014: Points of View Reference Center. Web. 5 Aug. 2015.
Voon V, Mole TB, Banca P, Porter L, Morris L, et al. Neural Correlates of Sexual Cue Reactivity in Individuals with and without Compulsive Sexual Behaviours. 11 July 2014. web. 28 July 2015.
Wilson, Gary. Your Brain on Porn. 2015. web. 1 Aug 2015.

93% on the above essay!

Just wanted to chime in and say good job Jedi! Awesome that you wrote this and were awarded such a high score on such an unpopular position. A CORRECT position in my opinion, but unfortunately not a popular one in modern US culture.

The professor told me she was hesitant to allow it but afterwards was glad she did.
I also spoke about it last year in speech class...and that professor liked it because she just found porn on her sons smartphone and appreciated the info.
in speech class i started the speech by asking anyone who regularly viewed pornography to raise their hands...none.
Then I asked for anyone who approves of pronography to raise their hands...none.
I then said t statistics show that 73% of men and 50% of women approve of pornography and a third regularly view it. The sources I listed in the paper are very informative.

How interesting!

I've been out of a classroom environment for almost a decade now so that's very interesting to me. While I can't imagine anyone raising their hand then either, I think attitudes about porn have changed a lot in the last decade, at least with people my age.

I notice a lot more joking about it, etc. But apparently people still have some shame in the face to face aspect of it.

I know at church when I'm leading any men's groups and I raise the topic, it's just crickets. Which is sad. In my experience, most men who are tech savvy either struggle with pornography or have struggled with it in the past. I think of it like a silent epidemic, the elephant in the room for Christian men.