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According to an Australian research, 50% of the people who indulge in cybersex are either married or are in a committed relationship.
Marcus Squirrell, a doctoral candidate of the Swinburne University of Technology, conducted a survey of more than 1300 internet users, who frequently indulged in online sex, engrossment and swinging sites for enjoying various online sexual activities ranging from downloading erotic pictures and chatting online to using webcams to interact with others.
According to the survey, more than 55% of the respondents were either married or were in a committed relationship’. He also noticed that 65% of the people had met the people with whom they have indulged in online sexual activities.
According to Squirrell, “Many people can benefit from using the internet for sexual activity. But for some participants, particularly those in relationships, it can become problematic and damage their ‘real life’ interactions”.
“For many people, chat-lines can provide a vehicle for exploring their sexuality in a safe environment, which may increase their sense of social and emotional connectedness to their community,” he said.
“But for some people their use of the internet for cybersex becomes unmanageable and their behaviour takes on an obsessive and compulsive flavour,” he said.
“These people are putting so much energy into cybersex - in some cases up to ten hours per day - that it is detracting from their relationship with their partner. It can also adversely affect other areas of their lives, such as their education and employment.”
The Swinburne study also noticed that the cybersex participants were well educated males who had a mean age of 41.
The findings will be presented at the Australian Psychological Society conference in Darwin next week.
