Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33403533›Full record

ArticleArchives of sexual behavior2021

The Pornography "Rebooting" Experience: A Qualitative Analysis of Abstinence Journals on an Online Pornography Abstinence Forum.

David P Fernandez, Daria J Kuss, Mark D Griffiths

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PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Archives of sexual behavior, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
19citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

19 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

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  6. From Pornography to Somatic Symptoms. A Moderated Mediation Model Involving Moral Disapproval of Pornography and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation.International journal of sexual health : official journal of the World Association for Sexual Health · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

David P FernandezPsychology Department, Nottingham Trent University, 50 Shakespeare Street, Nottingham, NG1 4FQ, UK. david.fernandez2018@my.ntu.ac.uk.ORCID 0000-0001-7645-9959
Daria J KussPsychology Department, Nottingham Trent University, 50 Shakespeare Street, Nottingham, NG1 4FQ, UK.
Mark D GriffithsPsychology Department, Nottingham Trent University, 50 Shakespeare Street, Nottingham, NG1 4FQ, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

A growing number of individuals using online forums are attempting to abstain from pornography (colloquially termed "rebooting") due to self-perceived pornography-related problems. The present qualitative study explored phenomenological experiences of abstinence among members of an online "rebooting" forum. A total of 104 abstinence journals by male forum members were systematically analyzed using thematic analysis. A total of four themes (with a total of nine subthemes) emerged from the data: (1) abstinence is the solution to pornography-related problems, (2) sometimes abstinence seems impossible, (3) abstinence is achievable with the right resources, and (4) abstinence is rewarding if persisted with. Members' primary reasons for initiating "rebooting" involved desiring to overcome a perceived addiction to pornography and/or alleviate perceived negative consequences attributed to pornography use, especially sexual difficulties. Successfully achieving and maintaining abstinence was typically experienced to be very challenging due to habitual behavior patterns and/or cravings triggered by a multiplicity of cues for pornography use, but a combination of internal (e.g., cognitive-behavioral strategies) and external (e.g., social support) resources made abstinence attainable for many members. A range of benefits attributed to abstinence by members suggest that abstaining from pornography could potentially be a beneficial intervention for problematic pornography use, although future prospective studies are needed to rule out possible third variable explanations for these perceived effects and to rigorously evaluate abstinence as an intervention. The present findings shed light on what the "rebooting" experience is like from members' own perspectives and provide insights into abstinence as an approach for addressing problematic pornography use.

Indexed as

PersonalityAdultBehavior, AddictiveEroticaHumansInternetMaleMiddle AgedMoralsProspective StudiesRewardSelf ConceptSelf-ControlSexual BehaviorSocial SupportAbstinenceAddictionPornHubPornography“Rebooting”Sexual dysfunction

Identifiers

PMID33403533
PMCPMC7889567

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.