The aim of this qualitative research study was to explore the influences of pornographic material on
the sexual exploitation of children. An interpretive research method, based on phenomenological
principles, was followed. A total of 18 semistructured interviews were conducted with sentenced sex
offenders who had committed an offence against a child (a person under the age of 18).
The research findings, obtained through a process of interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA),
highlighted personal and family characteristics that could increase individuals’ susceptibility to the
effect of exposure to pornographic material. Moreover, it was found that early, recurrent exposure
to pornography results in physical, cognitive and behavioural influences that considerably increase
the level of sexual satisfaction and need for instantaneous sexual gratification. This uncontrollable
need for sexual gratification often results in destructive behaviour such as addiction to pornographic
material, criminal sexual acts involving children and damage to the family system. The effect of
sexually explicit material is furthermore intensified by the availability of pornographic material on the
Internet, which considerably increases the likelihood of individuals being exposed to a variety of
pornographic images, including illegal material such as child pornography.
Based on the outcomes of the research study, it can be concluded that pornography does have an
effect on human behaviour in relation to the sexual exploitation of children which necessitates the
effective regulation of pornographic material, especially on the Internet, and the evaluation of the
help profession’s approach to effectively deal with issues stemming from exposure to pornographic
material / Psychology / D.Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:umkn-dsp01.int.unisa.ac.za:10500/18764 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Basson, Antoinette |
| Contributors | Snyders, Frederik Jacobus Albertus, 1946-, Joubert, Johan Pierre Retief |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 1 online resource (xiv, 215 leaves, 17 unnumbered leaves) |
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