ReviewBehavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland)2015
Neuroscience of Internet Pornography Addiction: A Review and Update.
Review in Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 77 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
77 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Adolescents' online pornography use and psychopathological symptoms: insights from a systematic review and meta-analysis.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of a 7-Day Pornography Abstinence Period on Withdrawal-Related Symptoms in Regular Pornography Users: A Randomized Controlled Study.Archives of sexual behavior · 2023Trial
- Association Between Self-Reported Pornographic Consumption Habits and Anxiety and Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Impulsivity and Emotional Dysregulation in Distress and Self-Perceived Pornography Addiction in Romanian Adults: Advancing the Dysregulation Pathway of "The Pornography Problems Due to Moral Incongruence Model".Archives of sexual behavior · 2026Article
- Compulsive sexual behavior disorder (CSBD) and problematic pornography use (PPU): A comprehensive, interdisciplinary, and expert-informed narrative review with suggested future directions.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2026Review
- Persistent appetitive memory in problematic pornography users.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2026Article
- Sexual and Clinical Profile in Spanish-Speaking Individuals with Problematic Engagement in Online Sexual Activities: Comparison Between Subclinical and Clinical Groups.Archives of sexual behavior · 2026Article
- Acute aerobic exercise modulates resting-state EEG microstate dynamics in individuals with internet addiction.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2026Article
- Article
- Clinical and Demographic Correlates of Pornography Addiction: A Cross-sectional Study from India.Indian journal of psychological medicine · 2025Article
- Implications of the Russian Invasion on Ukrainians' Pornography Consumption: Insights from Big-Data Processing.Archives of sexual behavior · 2025Article
- Validation of the Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale: Short Form (PPCS-6) in a Spanish Clinical Population with Gambling Disorder.Archives of sexual behavior · 2025Article
- Unraveling the impact of cyberporn motivations on mental health: insights from Chinese college students.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- Differences in cross-sectional and daily diary problematic pornography use correlates.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2025Article
- The Social Representations of Pornography Consumers Among Individuals in Romantic Relationships: Exploring the Roles of Gender, Relationship Satisfaction, and Sexual Satisfaction in a Romanian Sample.Archives of sexual behavior · 2025Article
- Pornography-Watching Disorder and Its Risk Factors Among Young Adults: Cross-Sectional Survey.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- The mediating effect of emotional schemas in the relationship between online gaming addiction and life satisfaction.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- The impact of internet pornography addiction on brain function: a functional near-infrared spectroscopy study.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2025Article
- Men's internet sex addiction predicts sexual objectification of women even after taking pornography consumption frequency into account.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Substance use patterns among individuals with problematic pornography use: A scoping review.PLOS global public health · 2025Article
17 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Many recognize that several behaviors potentially affecting the reward circuitry in human brains lead to a loss of control and other symptoms of addiction in at least some individuals. Regarding Internet addiction, neuroscientific research supports the assumption that underlying neural processes are similar to substance addiction. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) has recognized one such Internet related behavior, Internet gaming, as a potential addictive disorder warranting further study, in the 2013 revision of their Diagnostic and Statistical Manual. Other Internet related behaviors, e.g., Internet pornography use, were not covered. Within this review, we give a summary of the concepts proposed underlying addiction and give an overview about neuroscientific studies on Internet addiction and Internet gaming disorder. Moreover, we reviewed available neuroscientific literature on Internet pornography addiction and connect the results to the addiction model. The review leads to the conclusion that Internet pornography addiction fits into the addiction framework and shares similar basic mechanisms with substance addiction. Together with studies on Internet addiction and Internet Gaming Disorder we see strong evidence for considering addictive Internet behaviors as behavioral addiction. Future research needs to address whether or not there are specific differences between substance and behavioral addiction.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.