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Nora Fernandez Fernandez
The Rey Juan Carlos University launches a new title of Expert in Prevention of the Effects of Pornography on Affective-Sexual Health. The course, which will be the first on this subject in Spain, will be managed by the URJC University Clinic and will be co-directed by Lilian Velasco, URJC professor of Psychology, and José Luis García, clinical psychologist and prestigious expert in the field.
During the last decades, access to the Internet has caused a series of important changes in people's lives and also in relationships. Currently, the majority of minors learn sexual facts through the Internet and porn, which is producing important risks and consequences for health that have already been warned by various experts.
This is what Dr. José Luis García, co-director of the Título Propio and disseminator of these issues, points out when he affirms that “boys and girls need a series of scientific knowledge to understand their sexuality, their bodies, their changes and those of others… and if the family and the school do not provide that knowledge, they look for it outside, specifically in porn”.
Porn movies have become a very important reference for children, and what is worrying is no longer that "but that most of these videos are violent or present different doses of violence," says Dr. García. “The model of sex that boys and girls have learned is a model of sexual violence, especially against women and minors, and this has certain risks, such as causing pathological behaviors and sexual disorders, as well as producing painful and traumatic experiences, especially in girls. Another very detrimental effect is addiction to porn, something that has already been widely discussed and investigated by professionals and is a worrying issue in this area”.
Sexuality, as José Luis García points out, “has more to do with well-being and health, as long as it is in an environment of empathy, respect and affection. Unfortunately, this rarely happens." The scenario is complicated and even more so when pornography is related to the consumption of prostitution. This relationship will be dealt with in a specific section of the course.
This Title arises, therefore, "as a clear need in society, as a response to the lack of information that boys and girls have, and the obligation of a sexual education that contrasts the effects of this learning of pornography," says García . The intention of this course is "to offer scientific training to all those professionals linked to the human sciences, who are in contact with minors and train them to deal with these problems caused by the consumption of porn."
This education is going to be something pioneering in Spain, “since it will be the first public university to offer training in this matter, not only in our country but in America and other geographical areas. Without a doubt, it has been a success and a reaction to the difficult scenario in which we find ourselves”.
The Expert course in Prevention of the Effects of Pornography on Affective-Sexual Health will be developed in an online format. The number of hours will be 60 and the expected start date will be February 2023.