Fifth of adults who watch porn say content they view has become more extreme

Almost a fifth of UK adults who admit to watching pornography say the type of sexual content they view has become more aggressive or extreme over time, according to research.

A charity has warned that people who do so can end up watching illegal content including child abuse, having become desensitised to legal adult pornography.

Of the 40% of adults surveyed who admitted to watching pornography, more than a quarter (27%) said their consumption has become more frequent, while 19% said the type of things they watch has become more aggressive or extreme.

The Government vowed to clamp down on pornography which shows women being choked after the review – by Conservative peer Baroness Gabby Bertin – found such content can have “devastating” real-world consequences.

Non-fatal strangulation is already an offence in its own right, but it is not illegal to show it online.

Dr Alexandra Bailey, head of psychology at the Lucy Faithfull Foundation and associate professor at the University of Roehampton, said people who develop a tolerance for certain types of porn can end up going in search of more hardcore content which could be illegal.

She said: “It may sound a bit extreme to suggest that escalating pornography habits can lead people to offending online and viewing child sexual abuse material, but sadly it’s true and something helpline advisers at Stop It Now see every single day.

“We see people who go from watching legal pornography to watching more and more extreme content online.

“In these instances, the individual builds a tolerance to the content they’re watching, becoming desensitised to legal adult pornography, which leads them to seek out more extreme material to achieve the same level of gratification – in some circumstances this includes illegal child sexual abuse material.

“It’s important that people can recognise when a relationship with pornography develops into something more problematic.”

Dr Bailey said: “Watching illegal content online has life-changing consequences for you and your family, who are secondary victims.

“These consequences include criminal conviction, becoming a registered sex offender, family and career breakdown, housing implications, and even media exposure.

“It causes serious harm to real children.”

Assistant Chief Constable Alastair Simpson, from the National Police Chiefs’ Council, said: “Online child abuse sadly continues to grow in prevalence and severity, enabled by new technology that makes accessing child abuse material increasingly easier.

“The work of the Lucy Faithfull Foundation is fundamental in intercepting those who do or could pose a risk to children, and I would encourage anyone who is worried about their online behaviour to get help now, don’t let it escalate.

“Protecting children from harm is a responsibility we all share, and whilst policing works every day to target the most harmful criminals intent on abusing children online, we must see greater action from technology companies to regulate and control access to the content on their platforms.”

– Polling was carried out for the Lucy Faithfull Foundation among 2,520 adults in the UK by Verian in January.