Update (Feb. 4): Regnerus notes that researchers using a different data set have also found that porn consumption does predict support for same-sex marriage among heterosexual men.
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Mark Regnerus has written another sex and sociology article sure to make waves.
In short: He suggests a correlation among young adult men (but not women) between regular porn consumption and support for same-sex marriage.
Regnerus mined his New Family Structures Study for “a possible link between porn and sentiment toward same-sex marriage.” His conclusion: “Young adult men’s support for redefining marriage … may be, in part, a byproduct of regular exposure to diverse and graphic sex acts.”
From his recent article in Public Discourse:
But of the men who view pornographic material “every day or almost every day,” 54 percent “strongly agreed” that gay and lesbian marriage should be legal, compared with around 13 percent of those whose porn-use patterns were either monthly or less often than that. Statistical tests confirmed that porn use is a (very) significant predictor of men’s support for same-sex marriage, even after controlling for other obvious factors that might influence one’s perspective, such as political affiliation, religiosity, marital status, age, education, and sexual orientation.
“Of course, correlation doesn’t mean causation, and I’m not suggesting causation here,” wrote Regnerus. “But I’m also pretty confident the “causal arrow” wouldn’t run in the other direction.”
Earlier this year, Regnerus became infamous for a controversial study that concluded young-adult children of parents who have had same-sex relationships are more likely to experience emotional and social problems. CT reported how his school, the University of Texas at Austin investigated complaints of “scientific misconduct” regarding the research and concluded he was innocent. CT also noted how many social scientists came to his defense, including Michael Emerson, Christian Smith, Rodney Stark, W. Bradford Wilcox, and Bradley Wright.
In the aftermath, CT interviewed the embattled sociologist about the controversial study, as well as looked at the politics of science.
CT recently interviewed Regnerus on Sex Economics 101–his research into the sexual attitudes and behavior of young adults–and published a cover story on his provocative argument for early marriage. He also participated in a Village Green panel on how best to encourage premarital abstinence.
