What do young people in Aotearoa say about porn?
Young people tell us that porn is a fact of life, whether they watch it or not.
A diverse range of young people report mixed experiences with porn, and their insights provide a crucial voice when understanding youth and porn issues. Here’s what they say (41, 46):
  • Many first see porn as children. It’s accessible and normalised, and they assume their peers have seen it.
  • They think access to porn is too easy – with 89% agreeing porn should not be seen by children, and 71% thinking access should be restricted.
  • Watching porn has positives – such as feeling arousal and pleasure, or helping with stress, boredom or depression.
  • Porn is a default learning tool.
  • Porn can negatively influence sex. It can create false expectations about sex and relationships and can influence gender roles.
  • Many are not worried about the amount of porn they watch. But 43% of regular porn-viewers would like to spend less time looking at it.
  • They seldom have good conversations about porn with adults, so they have to process what they see by themselves. Two-thirds (66%) have not talked to a parent or caregiver about porn.
  • The way adults talk about porn needs to change. The taboo and stigma, fear of punishment, and guilt or shame are barriers to having open conversations with adults.

%

agree that porn should not be shown to children

%

thinks access should be restricted
43%

of regular porn viewers would like to spend less time looking at it.

think porn can influence thoughts and behaviours (positively and negatively).

66%

have not talked to a parent or caregiver about porn

“Porn is such like, a massive undercurrent in, like youth sexual relations, especially at like, a high-school level. Where else are we going to look to get those ideas… other than porn? I think also like it skews a lot of young people’s views on what sex actually is like.”

Male, 19 years