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To a large degree, this anthology springs from the NIKK study. We, the three editors, were part of the research group, and we felt that the findings from this collective effort could be of interest to a larger, English speaking audience outside the Nordic countries, not least because of the different methodological approaches and research traditions represented in the project. Early on we decided to expand the circle of contributors by inviting researchers from outside the Nordic countries, specifically from southern Europe and the USA. It is our contention that this has enriched the presentation.

One might wonder why we chose to title this anthology Generation P? Youth, Gender and Pornography. The rationale behind the question mark that follows the P (as in pornography) is that the research findings that we present are to some extent both ambiguous and contradictory.² Certainly, present day popular culture, including pornography and sexualized media, is a powerful factor in shaping young people’s ideals and values pertaining to the body and sexuality. In that sense the expression Generation P is appropriate. Never before have pornography and sexualized material been so readily available and pervasive in young people’s everyday life. On the other hand, as will become clear, young people do not swallow the messages without resistance, and some are very critical of or actively opposed to them. For that reason, the label Generation P without a question mark would be both unfair and incorrect. To some young people pornography represents sexual possibilities and enjoyment, while others find it to be disgusting and degrading.

Most of the studies in this anthology use the young people’s own definitions of and experiences with pornography as a starting point. Rarely, if ever, do young people talk explicitly about, or even mention, pornography with homosexual content. Instead, they seem to refer implicitly to heterosexual pornography. This is not to say that they are unaware of the existence of gay porn. And comments on homosexuality are made in various contexts. However, this anthology does not deal with young people’s view on and consumption of gay porn. That is a subject for future research.

This anthology is divided into five sections: (1) theoretical and methodological perspectives and approaches to pornography, (2) studies of frequencies and distributions of pornography, (3) media and pornography, (4) access, entrances and approaches to pornography and (5) social-pedagogical implications and strategies.

In the theory and methods section, the first chapter focuses on the issue of the mainstreaming of pornography and the contemporary fascination with ‘pornochic’. With examples primarily from Danish debates, the development of pornochic is discussed in relation to the concepts volume, clean-up and fragments. The second chapter discusses theories by Giddens, Foucualt and Baudrillard in relation to young people using pornography. In the third chapter, with examples from Norway, two opposite trends of the mainstreaming of sexualisationarediscussed in relation to issues of backlash and experimentation. The fourth chapter analyses potential effects of pornography on young people’s sexual socialisation and sets up a model for a new methodological approach and meta-theoretical discourse.

In section two, frequencies and distributions, the first two chapters present and discuss some results of the NIKK-project’s online-based questionnaire. The first chapter is a base-line data presentation of responses from 1776 young people in Norway, Denmark and Finland (Swedish speaking). These show that 99% of the males and 86% of the females between 12 and 30 years old have viewed pornography. The second chapter discusses Icelandic teenagers’ exposure to pornography. The third chapter focuses on gender differences in behavioural, situational and interpersonal patterns of pornography consumption in a sample of 688 young heterosexual Danish men and women, ages 18 to 30. The fourth chapter provides insights into the complex issue of high frequency consumers of pornography in Sweden.

In the media and pornography section, the first chapter presents a study of young Swedish girls’ and boys’ visual self-representation on the Internet and in magazines. Codes of performativity, cultural frames of femininity and softporn codes for girls ‘body-ism’ as opposed to ‘face-ism’ for boys are analysed. The second chapter contains a media analysis of Internet pornography on for-free porn sites and self-representations on youth websites in Norway. In the third chapter of this section pornography on the Internet is analysed in relation to issues of paedophilia. The fourth chapter provides an analysis of the construction of gender, body and sexuality in young boys viewing male bodies in pornography. With examples from films made in the United States and Great Britain, the fifth chapter discusses pornography produced and directed by women in an effort to re-vision pornography and promote gender equality.

The fourth section, on access, entrances and approaches to pornography, contains four chapters. In the first chapter the process of normalization and gender-specific ‘porn careers’ among Swedish girls and boys aged 14-20 are analysed on the basis of qualitative interviews and focus group data. The second chapter discusses Norwegian girls’ essays containing their views on and experiences of pornography. The third chapter presents a qualitative interview study about young Swedish men’s use of pornography. Among other things, the author analyses the men’s reflections on the relationship between pornography and ‘real’ sex. The fourth chapter discusses how Swedish teenage girls cope with pornography at the crossroads between respectability and shame.

The last section of the anthology discusses the challenges that mainstreamed pornography in the media and public spaces presents to the education system in the Nordic countries. On the one hand, sex education in the schools has been compulsory for a long time, which means that there is a fairly long tradition of how to approach issues of sexuality in educational settings. On the other hand, the massive exposure of pornography over the last few years presents new challenges to this system, including the development of new and adequate pedagogical methods. These challenges and issues are discussed in the last two chapters of the anthology.