Teens and older adults in America are shifting to virtual sex, choosing pornography "because it is less risky than actually having sex," according to a blockbuster new survey of porn in America.

In the study, "The Porn Phenomenon," the only area of growth area of why young and older men and women age are turning to porn is because they believe a picture or a video is safer than the real thing.

For those age 51-69 it is the fourth highest reason for why they watch porn.

But it also one of the key reasons teens age 13-17 use porn. "'Being less risky than actual sex' is higher motivation among both teens and older adults — for different reasons, presumably," said the study, portions of which were provided to Secrets from the Barna Group. The full report will be released in April.



The study is a comprehensive look at who uses porn, how they use it and why, with a special focus on morality.

The morality question found that the older the people are, the more immoral they view porn. But for teens, it amounts to a shoulder shrug. Consider: Most teens believe that not recycling garbage is more of a moral crime than porn, said the study.

It explained, "32 percent say viewing porn is 'usually or always wrong' compared to 56 percent who say not recycling is 'usually or always wrong."

And while older Americans believe porn is bad, younger Americans "believe it's good.

There were two other major findings: Women are into porn in a big way and teen sexting is still hot.

From the report:

While porn has typically been a man's domain, its usage among young women seems to have become more common, perhaps due to digital access.

— Teenage girls and young women are significantly more likely to actively seek out porn than women over age 25, which is similar to men.

— However, more than half of women 25 and under ever seek out porn (56% versus 27% among women 25-plus) and one-third seek it out at least monthly (33% versus just 12% among older men).



Most teens are "sexting" — either on the receiving or sending end of sexually explicit images.

— 62% of teens and young adults have received a sexually explicit image and 41% have sent one (usually from/to their boy/girlfriend or friend).

— 69% of girls have received a porn image via sexting, and 51% have sent one, way more than males at 33 percent.

Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner's "Washington Secrets" columnist, can be contacted at pbedard@washingtonexaminer.com.