> Fortunately, there's actual scientific research on this. Various
> researchers have conducted experiments that randomly assign men to
> different types of film and measure attitudes and behavior towards
> women. The basic finding is this: exposure to "aggressive" erotic
> materials provoke more negative attitudes and more aggression against
> women. Exposure to sexually explicit films with no aggressive
> content does not provoke more negative attitudes and aggression against
> women, compared to groups exposed to films without sexual content.
Actually, there isn't much sicentific research on this stuff. I've been an advocate for porn in the library community, which I do as part of my activism against library filtering. I'm sure that *some* men become *more* aggressive after viewing *certain kinds* or porn, but the problem is that puritans take these studies and make generalizations about all pornography.
> So does any porn provoke violence against women? It's not as simple
> as the Dworkinites assume. On the other hand, appreciate the
> methodological rigor of the studies here: you can't say "most men
> who consume porn don't rape", or porn consumption and aggression
> against women are both symptoms of a misogynist personality. The
> data are as clear as social science evidence gets: sexually
> explicit films with aggressive content do provoke violence against
> women, to at least some degree.
The Dowrkinites are simply wrong. Pornography is a diverse genre, so it is quite impossible to make generalizations about it. Are we talking about vanilla hardcore, or fetish films? What about DIY porn produced by women?
The problem here is that many men get their violent, misogynistic tendencies from the socialization that occurs *before* they are exposed to pornography of any kind.
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