COVID-19: Joint pornography use was associated with more sex quality & more satisfaction & intimacy with their partners, which in turn was associated with better perceived physical health & better sleep quality

Rodrigues, David L., and Joana Martins. 2020. “Personal and Relational Outcomes of Online Pornography Use During the COVID-19 Pandemic.” PsyArXiv. October 6. doi:10.31234/osf.io/h4jn5

Rolf Degen's take: https://twitter.com/DegenRolf/status/1313491121805373440

Abstract: The pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has forced the world into social isolation and confinement for health and safety reasons. Such changes affected the way people connect with each other, which had repercussions on health and well-being. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, researchers have been striving to understand the effects of the pandemic at social, personal and relational levels. Some people have experienced heightened sexual desire and made new additions to their sexual repertoire. We extended these findings by examining the personal and relational outcomes of joint and solitary online pornography use. Results from a cross-sectional study (N = 301 participants; 56.5% men; Mage = 31.36, SD = 10.57) showed that participants indicated adherence to confinement policies, changes in lifestyle, and fear of becoming infected with COVID-19. Participants also indicated decreased sexual desire since the outbreak, but also increased willingness to have sex. Results also showed that joint pornography use was associated with more sex quality and more satisfaction and intimacy with their partners, which in turn was associated with better perceived physical health and better sleep quality. The reverse pattern was found for solitary pornography use. Lastly, overall results were consistent for single and pattered people. These findings show the personal and relational benefits of using online pornography with partners use during the pandemic.