In a recent piece for The Daily Beast’s “XXX Hysteria” (ha!) section, Aurora Snow asked “How far will one country go to regulate porn consumption?”

It’s looking like pretty far. In fact, accordingly, “The UK Is Losing Its Mind Over Porn” (4/4/15).

Last year, the UK banned a long list of sex acts from being produced/performed in porn, including fisting, squirting, and “aggressive spanking” (whatever that is). And today, on the heels of a recent survey (research methods!) conducted by NSPCC Childline (research methods!) that concluded that approximately 10% of surveyed 12-13 year-olds (research methods, research methods!) in the UK are worried that they’re addicted to porn and a separate poll (research methods!) conducted by ChildWISE (research methods!) and published last year which concluded that Pornhub was a top-five favorite website for British boys ages 11 to 16 (once again, research methods).

(In case you don’t get my point: Research is difficult to conduct well, especially when working with minor-aged persons – the restrictions are great – and asking questions about sex – even greater.)

In this recent Daily Beast piece, Aurora asks and postulates:

All this UK porn hysteria begs the question: Clearly adolescents that young shouldn’t be watching porn, but what is the right way to go about preventing it?

Organizations crusading against porn often define it by the most emotionless and extremely violent scenes, not the romantic ones (that do exist). From violent to nonaggressive, porn can be both degrading and liberating, which makes it difficult to quantify. When trying to ascertain pornography’s effect on adolescents these differences must be determined, but since they can’t, an all-or-nothing regulation dilemma arises… With a lack of consensus among researchers and more opinion-led research than hard facts, how different types of porn molds young minds is pretty subjective.

I then weigh in re the impact porn may have on developing young people – people who are developing sexually and critically:

“Of course [porn is] warping their minds,” says renowned sociologist Dr. Chauntelle Tibbals. “Young people are hitting puberty, becoming sexually curious, and they are looking for information. People aren’t born with the ability to drive, they aren’t born with the ability to form a complete sentence, we have to be taught these things.”

It’s an interesting space to be in, one that I do not envy parents — Do you face the puberty-curiousity sex beast head on, finding a way to connect with your young people (even if that endeavor pulls you out of your comfort zone), or do you let the interwebs do it for you?

Call me kooky, but I’m thinking the former may be the better way…

Read Aurora’s full piece on The Daily Beast here.

 (teach these kids about sex, when the time is right, or somebody/something else will…)

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Got a sociology question? Need some social justice informed life advice? Contact Dr. Chauntelle right here.