The Impact of Pornography on Psychological Distress and Loneliness among University Students of Karachi, Pakistan: An Explorative Study

Abstract

The society we are surviving in is an age of advancement and invention. Where the internet has millions of merits, every coin has two sides. The negative side of this is the accessibility of pornography. This exploratory study investigates the correlation between pornography consumption and psychological distress among university students in Karachi, Pakistan. It was hypothesized that "There will be a correlation between pornography and distress and loneliness." A sample of 100 participants was taken using a convenient sampling technique. Data were collected from different universities in Karachi, Pakistan. Pornography-related factors were measured with the help of self-constructed items. Kessler distress scale was used to measure distress, and the UCLA Loneliness scale was used to measure loneliness among participants. The results demonstrated that there was a correlation between the duration of the pornography with distress (r (99) = -.235, p<.05) and also among participants who were unable to stop the behavior (r (99) = -.257, p<.05) Also, a correlation was found between an inability to indulge in the behavior with loneliness (r (99) = -.277, p<.05) and the duration of the usage with the loneliness (r (99) = -.116, p>.05). However, the small sample size (n=100) limits the generalizability of these findings. The study concludes that there is a notable desire for pornography use among participants, often leading to psychological issues.