Over 100 quick stats and findings from an ever-growing body of research that details the effects of porn for individuals, relationships, and society.
Research shows that while feeling guilt can motivate healthy change, feeling shame actually fuels problematic porn habits.
Problematic porn consumers who are treated using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy show a 92% reduction in porn consumption, and an 86% reduction three months later.
Research shows that women are almost always the targets of violence or aggression in porn —about 97% of the time.
Research suggests that pornography can make young people more sexually illiterate —in other words, it’s actively spreading harmful misinformation about sex.
Research suggests that frequent porn consumers are more likely to victim-blame survivors of sexual violence.
Research shows remarkable neurological similarities between substance addiction and compulsive pornography consumption.
Research indicates that only 18.3% of women in popular porn videos (compared to 78% of men) were depicted as reaching climax.
Studies show that frequent porn consumers are more likely to carry out sexual violence in real life.
A UK survey found that 44% of males aged 11–16 who consumed pornography reported that online pornography gave them ideas about the type of sex they wanted to try.
Researchers have found that approximately 95% of the targets of violence or aggression in porn appeared either neutral to the abuse, or were depicted as responding with pleasure.
Studies show that people who consume porn frequently are more likely to support sexual violence.
65% of underage victims recruited online in 2020 active criminal sex trafficking cases were recruited through Facebook, while 14% were recruited through Instagram, and 8% were recruited through Snapchat.
Research has demonstrated that overcoming a pornography habit is absolutely possible, and that over time, pornography’s negative effects can be managed and largely reversed.
Qualitative research reveals that young women often feel pressured to play out the “scripts” their male partners had learned from porn —they feel badgered into having sex in uncomfortable positions, faking sexual responses, and consenting to unpleasant or painful acts.
Because of desensitization, many porn consumers find themselves consuming more porn, consuming more often, or consuming more extreme forms of pornography.
Research assessing the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in treating porn addiction found that “over 95% of clients were able to manage symptoms at the end of the twelve weeks and 78% sustained recovery six months following treatment.”
Even quitting porn for a short time can lessen its negative effects and have positive effects on consumers' lives and relationships.
Research consistently shows that porn consumers are twice as likely to later experience a divorce or breakup —even after controlling for marital happiness, sexual satisfaction, and other relevant factors.
44.6% of underage sex trafficking victims experienced childhood sexual abuse before entry into the commercial sex industry.
While most porn consumers are generally unconcerned about the potential mistreatment of porn performers, about 70% of porn consumers who do learn about mistreatment in the porn industry take some form of action to combat it, including changing their porn habits.
©Fight the New Drug, Inc. 2025, All rights Reserved. Fight the New Drug is a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit. EIN: 26-3550143
Fight the New Drug, PO Box 522378, Salt Lake City, UT 84152 | Fight the New Drug is a part of the PHASE Alliance™.
