SummaryIn this article we ask what kind of phenomenon is internet sex addiction. From the perspectives of two practising psychiatrists, one of whom has worked in a weekly sexual disorders clinic for 12 years, and an anthropologist we explore whether a moral panic is emerging over sexual behaviour and the internet, and whether internet sex addiction forms part of any such panic. We ask whether many individuals who diagnose themselves as addicted to internet-based sex do so more out of a media-activated sensibility than a clinical reality. We also consider what developments in DSM-5 hold for this area.
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