ABSTRACT
This chapter explores sex and porn addiction from a biopsychosocial perspective and aims to provide couples with a common understanding of the condition. There is information on the neuroscience behind addiction and explanations of how addictive behaviours are used for emotional regulation. There is an explanation of the most common causes of sex addiction, how it links to sex drive and the classifications of opportunity-induced, trauma-induced and attachment-induced addiction. The six-phase cycle of addiction is used to describe how addictions are maintained and reinforced. The chapter ends with a brief self-assessment tool to help couples determine if sex or porn addiction accurately describes what has happened to their relationship.
