Exploring the relationship between parenting styles, attitudes towards sexuality, and adolescent pornography consumption

The objective of the current study was to explore parents’ perceptions about the influence of pornography consumption on adolescent sexual development. Additional factors that may impact parents’ perceptions about adolescent pornography consumption were also examined, including parenting style, age, gender, ethnicity, education level, religious beliefs, and beliefs about sex and sexuality. Data was collected from 500 participants who had adolescents between the ages of 13-18 years, through an online survey. Findings indicated that parents who practice more authoritative child rearing styles perceive pornography to be more harmful for their adolescent(s). As well, the strength of the relationship between authoritative parenting, and the belief’s that pornography is harmful for adolescents changed as a function of permissiveness. Conversely, parents who exercise more authoritarian parenting styles believe pornography to be less harmful for adolescents. In addition, as permissive attitudes increased for our authoritarian parents, beliefs that pornography is harmful for adolescents decreased. Our results imply that permissive sexual attitudes, and various predictors such as age, gender, ethnicity are important moderators of the association between parenting styles and perceptions about adolescent pornography consumption.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat