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In 2015, digital technology is omnipresent. Nearly everyone in America either owns or has easy access to a computer, laptop, tablet, smartphone or other digital device. As a result, we now have endless access to information, entertainment and social interaction-with much of that material and interconnectivity being sexual in nature. (Research reveals that roughly 13% of all Internet searches are sex-related.1)
For the vast majority of people, this is not an issue. They are able to play with and enjoy sexnology in healthy ways, without becoming addicted or experiencing negative consequences, just as most people are able to enjoy alcohol without experiencing major problems. However, for people vulnerable to addiction and psychological disorders (usually thanks to a combination of genetic and early-life environmental factors2), sexnology is as much a danger zone as any other potential addiction.
In my psychotherapeutic practice, which specializes in sexual addiction and other intimacy disorders, I first noticed that technology was causing serious problems in the mid-1990s. In response, I co-wrote the first book on the topic, Cybersex Exposed, published in 2001. That now outdated book was followed this January with an entirely new book on cybersex addiction, Always Turned On, coauthored with my friend and colleague Jennifer Schneider, MD, PhD.
Prior to the mid-1990s, my sexually addicted clients were mostly hooked on real-world sexuality-serial affairs, prostitutes, sex clubs, adult movies, etc., plus the occasional guy addicted to phone sex (the old-fashioned phone that plugged into the wall). Then, when home computers and the Internet came along, my clients were suddenly and primarily engaging in tech-driven sexuality. This trend continues unabated, with current-day sex addicts hooked on digital pornography, virtual sex games, webcam sex, hookup apps, and whatever else R&D departments can dream up.
Furthermore, as both scientific research and anyone who's been treàting sex addicts for more than a decade can tell you, with each new sexnological advance we see more people who arc concerned about sexual addiction. Consider that studies conducted in the...