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The use of web tracking panel data provides new insights into Germans’ online pornography use. According to new research published in Archives of Sexual Behavior, German Catholics, Protestants, and the religiously unaffiliated are as likely to use online pornography as each other. By comparison, members of minority religions in Germany, such as Muslims or Orthodox Christians, are less likely to use online pornography.
“Prior studies have shown that religiosity can be a strong predictor of pornography usage,” said Dr. Pascal Siegers of GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences. “We wanted to re-investigate these questions using web tracking data that is less likely to be affected by social desirability.”
Von Andrian-Werburg, Siegers, and Breuer combined data from a large-scale German online web tracking panel with survey data collected from the panelists. Their results generally replicate previous findings from survey-based research from Germany and other countries.
However, the study has also generated some novel insights, such as the identified difference in the role of religion in online pornography use between members of the religious majorities and unaffiliated in Germany and members of minority religions.
The German results differ from research findings in other countries. “In Germany, being Protestant or Catholic doesn’t significantly reduce the likelihood of a person’s online pornography use. This is different from results from other countries, such as the United States,” said Dr. Johannes Breuer, another research team member. “We suspect this is because German Christians tend to be more liberal than, for example, American evangelicals.” “One thing to note is that, for reasons of data privacy, participants in the web tracking panel can pause the tracking. Hence, it may also be that conservative American Christians who participate in web tracking studies are more likely to mute web tracking when they visit a pornographic website, making it look like they don’t visit such sites,” he added.
People’s use of pornography and which characteristics predict the use have been well-researched in social science. Prior research used surveys to collect their data. However, surveys are based on self-reporting, and that can have limitations. People may underreport their pornography use because they can’t remember accurately how many times they’ve used it, or people may not provide an accurate number because they feel embarrassed.
“With people participating in web tracking panels, we have a new way to measure online pornography use besides someone’s self-report,” said Siegers. “Previous research by Morichetta and colleagues found that, on average, people in the panel spent 37 minutes a week using online pornography, but they reported an average of 24 minutes. It is definitely the case that web-tracked activity gives us a more accurate picture of what people do online.”
The full article is available free of charge from Archives of Sexual Behavior:
von Andrian-Werburg, M.T.P., Siegers, P. & Breuer, J. A. Re-evaluation of Online Pornography Use in Germany: A Combination of Web Tracking and Survey Data Analysis. Arch Sex Behav (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-023-02666-8
Contact:
Dr. Kristi Winters
Survey Data Curation
kristi.winters@
GESIS Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences
As one of the world's leading social sciences infrastructural institutions, GESIS - Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences supports researchers at all levels of their research projects. With the support of staff expertise and its services, socially-relevant questions can be answered using the latest scientific methods, high-quality data, and research information. To ensure high-quality service today and in the future, GESIS links its integrated collection and data infrastructure with methods, models, and algorithms of computer science. It is continuously expanding its portfolio of services in the area of digital behavioral data. GESIS is a member of the Leibniz Association, consortium leader of KonsortSWD in the NFDI, and maintains institutional and project-related cooperation with many universities and research institutions in Germany and abroad. It is involved in important European projects such as the European Social Survey (ESS), the European Value Study (EVS), the European archive network CESSDA, and the OECD project Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC). GESIS also works continuously to strengthen the young research field of Computational Social Science through international conferences, symposia, and workshops in Germany and Europe and to promote worldwide networking.
Dr. Johannes Breuer
Dr. Pascal Siegers
von Andrian-Werburg, M.T.P., Siegers, P. & Breuer, J. A. Re-evaluation of Online Pornography Use in Germany: A Combination of Web Tracking and Survey Data Analysis. Arch Sex Behav (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-023-02666-8
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