While approximately 15 percent of the 57 million Americans logging onto the Internet visit sexually oriented sites without any negative impact, these sites do pose risks for some people. Those individuals who spend large amounts of time on the Net in sexual pursuits may be at risk for developing psychological difficulties, such as sexual compulsivity, according to new study in the April issue of Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, a journal published by the American Psychological Association.

While it is clear that large numbers of Americans use the Internet for sexual pursuits - previous studies suggest that 'sex' is the number one searched word on-line - this survey-based study sought to determine who was using the Internet for sexual pursuits, where they were going on the Net, what they were doing there, and how it was affecting their lives.

The study found that although on-line sexuality appears to be a form of sexual exploration or recreation without negative consequences for most people, those who spend 11 hours or more time on line in sexual pursuits show signs of psychological distress and admit that their behavior interferes with some areas of their lives. Time spent on line for sexual pursuits may be an indicator of other problems that exist in users' lives, or may even create further dependence, according to the study's authors.

The study, a 59-item questionnaire, was conducted over a 7-week period during March and April of last year. The questionnaire was posted on the MSNBC Web site and was completed by 13,529 individuals. After discarding surveys which were incomplete or filled out by people under 18 years of age, a final simple of 9,177 respondents (all anonymous) was evaluated.

According to the study, men are the largest consumers of sexually explicit material on the Internet. Male respondents (86%) outnumbered female respondents (14%) by a ratio of 6:1. Women, however, favor the use of chat rooms, which offer more interaction and the development of relationships (49% females to 23% males) to visual erotica (50% males to 23% females). Most individuals reported that they go on line for sexual pursuits from home (78.8%); 5.8 percent admitted using an office computer; and 12.7 percent said they do both. In addition, most individuals (64%) were either married (47%) or in a committed relationship (17%), and, of the single individuals (36%), half were dating and half were not.

Time spent on line for sexual pursuits was a strong predictor of both sexual compulsivity and distress. Although, on-line sexual compulsivity is a relatively rare condition, eight percent of the survey respondents were found to be most at risk to develop serious problems from their heavy Internet use. This estimates compares to the estimated five percent of the general population who deal with issues of sexual compulsivity. The majority surveyed (92%) spend under 11 hours a week in on-line sexual pursuits, and half spend less than 1 hour a week for on-line sexually related activities. Most people appear to use sexual material on the Internet as a source of entertainment more than for sexual release and reported that on-line experiences were satisfying but not particularly arousing.

Honesty on the Net and regarding Internet sex activities does seem to suffer. Most respondents, 61 percent, reported occasional "pretending" about their age while on the net. Thirty-eight percent admitted presenting themselves as a race different than their own. Additionally, three out of four respondents indicated keeping secret from others how much time they spend on line for sexual pursuits, although most (87%) reported that they did not feel guilty or ashamed about the time they spent on line.

"This study provides the first step in understanding the common use of the Internet and can help mental health professionals to develop guidelines to prevent, diagnose, intervene and treat sexual compulsivity and related disorders," according to its lead author, Dr. Alvin Cooper of the San Jose Marital and Sexuality Centre. "In addition it may be useful in the identification of other issues that may be going on in users' lives for which they wish to escape by turning to their keyboards."

Article: "Sexuality on the Internet: From Sexual Exploration to the Pathological Expression," Alvin Cooper, Ph. D., Coralie R. Scherer, Ph.D., Sylvain C. Boies, Ph.D. and Barry L. Gordon, Ph.D., Professional Psychology, Vol. 30, No. 2.

Lead author, Alvin Cooper, Ph.D., can be reached at the San Jose Marital and Sexuality Centre, 100 North Winchester Boulevard, Suite 330, Santa Clara, CA 95050 and at 408 248-9737 or 9738.

The study's other authors are: Coralie R. Scherer, Ph.D. also of the San Jose Marital and Sexuality Centre, San Jose, California; Sylvain C. Boies, Stanford University Department of Counseling and Psychological Services; and Barry L. Gordon, Ph.D., a clinical and consulting psychologist in private practice in Petaluma, California.

04/05/99

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