INFLUENCE OF ONLINE PORNOGRAPHY ON IN-SCHOOL ADOLESCENTS IN IMO STATE

Juvenile access and exposure to online pornography is an alarming and escalating problem worldwide. This study attempts to find out the reasons for Internet pornography use and its influence among in-school adolescents in Imo State. To achieve these objectives, a blend of quantitative and qualitative methods of research was employed. Questionnaire and Focus Group Discussion were used to gather data for quantitative and qualitative research methods respectively. While 500 copies of the questionnaire were administered, 493 were retrieved and valid for the study, six different FGD’s were constituted. Multi-stage, simple random and systematic sampling techniques were used for the selection of the respondents for the quantitative method because the population of the study cut across the three educational zones of the state and classes, purposive sampling technique was employed to select participants in the Focus Group Discussion (FGD). This technique was used to select members for the study based on their relevance to the study. The study was anchored on Social Learning and Uses and Gratification theories. Results show that in-school adolescents view online pornography to a high extent. Results also show that curiosity and fun were the primary motivations for the use of Internet pornography among in-school adolescents in Imo state. The study also found that Internet pornography corrupts their minds and makes them have wild thoughts that are capable of distracting them from their academics. Based on these results, the researcher recommends that parents should use both technical and physical strategies to monitor what their adolescent children do on the Internet