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Measuring Self-Perceived Effects of Pornography: A Short-Form Version of the Pornography Consumption Effects Scale

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Abstract

The Pornography Consumption Effects Scale (PCES) is a 47-item measure of self-perceived effects of pornography use. While the PCES is frequently used in the pornography research literature, its length may limit its applicability in some research situations. This study investigated if a short-form version of the PCES could be created for use with heterosexual men. The study employed an online sample of 312 self-identified heterosexual men. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to produce a 14-item version of the PCES. This short-form PCES (PCES-SF) showed excellent psychometric properties in terms of reliability, concurrent validity with the long-form PCES, and discriminant validity with respect to social desirability. Similar to the full-length PCES, the PCES-SF generates both an overall positive effect score and an overall negative effect score.

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Notes

  1. To facilitate model invariance testing (see below), this variable was later dichotomized to “in a relationship/not in a relationship.”

  2. To free the factor variances (both of which were fixed to one in the previous analysis), a loading on each factor had to be fixed to one (unit loading identification; Kline, 2011). These loadings were selected on the basis of whichever were the least variant between groups (Sass, 2011).

  3. Due to a positive skew in the distribution, Lie Scale total was first square root transformed (Tabachnick & Fiddel, 2013).

  4. In Miller et al. (2018), we show that different variables predict PED-SF and NED-SF scores, further indicating their discriminant validity.

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Acknowledgements

The third author was supported by the Carlsberg Foundation Distinguished Associate Professor Fellowship, Grant CF16-0094, for the duration of 2017–2019.

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Correspondence to Dan J. Miller.

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Miller, D.J., Kidd, G. & Hald, G.M. Measuring Self-Perceived Effects of Pornography: A Short-Form Version of the Pornography Consumption Effects Scale. Arch Sex Behav 48, 753–761 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1327-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1327-z

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