This is the first study to examine the correlations between pornography and marital stability.
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The first of its kind, a study presented to the American Sociological Association has found that married men who began viewing pornography were twice as likely to get divorced compared to those who didn’t — married women were three times as likely.
Other studies have explored the negative and addictive effects of pornography consumption, but this one is the first to explore the specific link between pornography and marital security. The researchers employed the General Social Survey to analyze pornography consumption, marital satisfaction, and marital status.
On the optimistic flipside of these statistics, women who quit watching pornography were only a third as likely to get divorced as those who did not quit. Though no similar correlation was found in regards to men, the researchers warned that the number of men who quit pornography was so small that the results were unlikely to be accurate.
Previous studies have discovered the circular effect between relationship quality and pornography consumption: viewing pornography leads to poorer relationships which prompts consumption of increasingly explicit material.
There is still more to learn, but one thing has been made clear by these studies: if you’re looking for a way to strengthen your marriage, quitting porn is a good place to start.
