Porn everywhere, new study shows

Young Australians will likely see pornography before they are legally allowed
because of a proliferation of easily available x-rated material, a new study says.
The Australian Institute of Criminology says there is a "very high" chance that
Australian teenagers will be exposed to pornography before the age of 18 - the legal
age to view and purchase explicit sexual material.
Institute analyst Colleen Bryant said there was concern that young people were being
inundated with sexual information before they were capable of integrating it into a
healthy sexual identity.
"The proliferation of pornographic materials and their ease of access are such that
it is not a matter of whether a young person will be exposed to pornography but
when," she said.
Dr Bryant said scientists were divided about the harm caused by porn as research was
struggling to keep pace with changing media technologies and children's engagement
with sexual material.
She said pornography might promote unhealthy sexual attitudes and behaviour by
encouraging males to view females simply in terms of sexual potential.
"Protecting young people necessarily requires equipping them and their caregivers,
with adequate knowledge, skills and resources," she said.
Dr Bryant said research showed males reported more positive attitudes to pornography
from an early age than did females who were generally extremely negative.
But by their mid-20s, both males and females might report similarly positive attitudes.
For that reason, seeking to minimise exposure to pornography was not the whole answer.
"Though restricting exposure will remain a priority, an over-reliance on this
approach to protect against the perceived harms of pornography is problematic as it
fails to recognise the realities of ready availability and the high acceptance of
pornography among young people," she said.