Women’s Reports of Their Male Romantic Partner’s Pornography Use as a Correlate of Their Psychological Distress, Relationship Quality, and Sexual Satisfaction

Pornography is both prevalent and normative in United States’ culture; however, little is known about the psychological and relational effects that it can have on women involved in heterosexual romantic relationships in which their male partners view pornography. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between men’s pornography use on their heterosexual female partner’s psychological and relational well-being among 311 undergraduate women. In addition, psychometric properties for the Partner’s Pornography Use Scale are provided. Results revealed women’s reports of their male partner’s pornography use were negatively associated with their self esteem, relationship quality, and sexual satisfaction. Partner’s pornography use was not related to female participants’ self-objectification, body-shame, nor depression. Finally, results revealed that relationship length moderated the relationship between partner’s pornography use and sexual satisfaction, with significant dissatisfaction being associated with longer relationship length.