In a recent study, for example, we showed study participants traditional pornographic movies in 2D and virtual reality (VR). Half of the participants had seen the first movie in 2D and the second movie in VR - for the other half, the distribution was the other way around. We then showed study participants photos of the actresses from both the 2D and VR films and asked how intense the eye contact had been and whether the actresses had flirted with or desired them. We found that participants described significantly more interaction such as eye contact after watching the VR videos and that this was related to salivary oxytocin levels.

In another study, we are currently evaluating the consequences of using highly realistic silicone (sex) dolls. These dolls are considered as precursors of so-called sex robots, but do not yet have artificial intelligence and only limited communication and movement capabilities.

• Desbuleux, J. C., & Fuss, J. (2023). Is the Anthropomorphization of Sex Dolls Associated with Objectification and Hostility Toward Women? A Mixed Method Study among Doll Users. The Journal of Sex Research, 60(29), 206-220.
• Desbuleux, J. C., & Fuss, J. (2023). The self-reported sexual real-world consequences of sex doll use. The Journal of Sex Research (in press).
• Dekker, A., Wenzlaff, F., Biedermann, S. V., Briken, P., & Fuss, J. (2021). VR porn as “empathy machine”? Perception of self and others in virtual reality pornography. The Journal of Sex Research, 58(3), 273-278.

Prof. Dr. med. Johannes Fuß

E-Mail: johannes.fuss@uni-due.de