Unveiling the Myths: Promoting Healthy Relationships through Education

Recent studies have shown that many teenagers are watching porn, and turning to it for information about sex life. Shockingly, for many teens, porn is their primary source of information about sex. However, research has also found that pornography is a problematic source of information about healthy sexuality. For example, 88% of pornographic scenes contain physical violence, while 79% feature verbal aggression. Additionally, 87% of aggressive acts are perpetrated against women, with 95% of their responses being either neutral or expressions of pleasure. As a result, pornography perpetuates rape myths and contributes to violence and sexual violence against women. Unsurprisingly, 73% of women who were victims of domestic rape across the EU stated that their partners were viewers of pornography. Furthermore, concerning child abuse, the link is even more explicit: 92% of child sexual abuse offenders possessed child pornography (Source: ‘’A lot of it is actually’’) As this data demonstrates, exposure to pornography can be harmful to mental health, foster unrealistic attitudes about sex, and promote misleading attitudes toward relationships. This can encourage adolescents to engage in sexually permissive behaviors such as sexual activity at a younger age, sexting, multiple sexual partners, and deviant sexual practices. Moreover, exposure to pornography is significantly correlated with the belief that women are sexual objects, constantly available for sex, and always satisfied by whatever men do. Our research, conducted across partner countries, confirms these findings. We found that 93% of males aged 14-30 and 61% of females aged 16-30 had viewed porn at least once before the age of 16. In the EU, formal sex education is often deemed ineffective and insufficient in the digital era.

Considering this, we propose a project that uses the topic of pornography as a tool to engage young people in discussions about healthy relationships and sexual lifestyles. We recognize the pervasiveness of pornography and its influence, and believe that it can be used as a teaching tool to prevent misconceptions about sexual life. However, it is essential to note that the project will not involve showing pornographic content to students or asking them to analyze pornographic scenes. Instead, we aim to use the concept of pornography as a means to have deeper conversations about healthy sexual life. One of the project's goals is to expose the artifice behind porn and raise awareness about sexuality. The project will be a 30-month strategic partnership project that aims to develop a new methodology, teaching, and learning model based on sexual education through the use of pornography.