Evaluation of a sex-positive, youth-centred online pornography literacy intervention for adolescents

A range of pornography literacy programmes and interventions exist to address some of the developmental concerns prompted by adolescent pornography use. Interventions to date have typically developed in line within a harm reduction approach. However, contemporary youth-centred frameworks for literacy more generally suggest that pornography literacy interventions could also contribute towards more positive outcomes for adolescents. However, this has received significantly less research attention. This study evaluated a 1.5-hour youth-centred, school-based online pornography literacy intervention for adolescents (n = 147) across six secondary schools in Ireland. Results showed that intervention participation was associated with reduced perceived media realism and increased sexual consent preparedness and genital self-image for both adolescent boys and girls, as well as increased perceived sexual decision making for adolescent boys. The study’s implications and limitations are discussed.