In previous studies on the topic of highly religious men and porn, results have been mixed. Highly religious males seem to be both to more likely have highly problematic relationships with pornography viewing…and also less likely.

These results have confused researchers for a while now, so one intrepid team set out to get to the bottom of it. In a study published recently in Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity, researchers Nicholas C. Borgogna, Anthony Isacco, and Ryon C. McDermott surveyed 244 heterosexual men about their religiosity, their porn-viewing habits, and the feelings they had about those habits, specifically assessing their levels of self-compassion and scrupulosity.

Self-compassion, described as “a positive attitude towards oneself and acceptance of the self without judgment,” is taught by many religions. The researchers thought that perhaps religious men who watch porn might have higher levels of self-compassion, which might explain why some studies might show a lack of problematic porn-viewing habits in those populations. “These men may be likely to accept and move past perceived transgressions rather than ruminating and engaging in highly self-critical behaviors that might paradoxically increase pornography viewing,” wrote the researchers. But, “Contrary to the researchers’ predictions, self-compassion showed no significant correlation with problematic pornography viewing, wrote Beth Ellwood at PsyPost.org.

But Borgogna, et al were also looking at scrupulosity, a trait that’s “characterized by over-concern with adhering to religious standards” to the point of “pathological guilt/obsession with religious perfectionism.” Researchers predicted that being afflicted with scrupulosity “might explain why religious individuals tend to experience heightened distress in association with their use of pornography,” according to Ellwood. The researchers themselves wrote, “Individuals who hold themselves to extremely high religious standards may be the most susceptible to perceiving their pornography viewing as problematic.” 

In fact, the correlation between scrupulosity and problematic porn viewing was so strong that, “Scrupulosity might have been so strongly correlated with problematic pornography that it squandered any counter effects of self-compassion.” In other words, men who struggle with problematic porn viewing and also with scrupulosity might not be able to practice self-compassion because they’re so worried about being perfectly religious. 

Wow. That sounds horrible. And the researchers seem to agree. Religious and scrupulous men who nevertheless find themselves viewing pornography might, predictably, be so distressed by it that they seek therapy in the form of sex-addiction treatment. (Which is problematic on a number of levels, but that’s another article.) The research team recommended that mental health practitioners address the following when working with religious men in therapy: “(1) the religious-based obsessive thoughts that are part of scrupulosity, (2) the impulsive actions of accessing pornography, and (3) the cyclical feelings of guilt and shame that result from pornography use.” 

Yikes. In layman’s terms, they’re recommending that men seeking help for porn addiction be told: It’s not the porn that’s hurting you. It’s the fact that your religious beliefs are terrorizing you over your use of pornography that’s hurting you.

Science, folks. 

Man praying photo by Ric Rodrigues of Pexels