Publications
• Mubasshera, Hamida. “Pornography usage during adolescence: Does it lead to risky sexual behaviour?.” Health Economics (2024).
Abstract :
Are youths who consume pornography more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors? Using longitudinal data from the National Study of Youth and Religion and an individual fixed effects strategy, this paper investigates the relationship between pornography use among 13- to 23-year-olds and a range of subsequent risky sexual behaviors. It also estimates a lagged dependent variable model where risky sexual behavior of the previous wave is included as a control. The findings suggest that moderate and frequent pornography use increases the likelihood of engaging in acts such as unprotected sex and having multiple sexual partners. Finally, a heterogeneity analysis by gender reveals that males and females behave differently in response to exposure to pornography, but that is true for only a few indicators of risky sex. The paper's findings provide critical information on determinants of risky sexual behavior and meaningful evidence for the policy debate on government censoring and monitoring online behavior.
Keywords: adolescence; impact of media; pornography consumption; risky sex.
• Meera, Ahamed Kameel Mydin, and Hamida Mubasheera. ”Revisiting the concepts of money, profit and interest from the perspective of value and diminishing marginal utility.” Journal of Islamic Monetary Economics and Finance 1, no. 1 (2015): 25-54.
• Saad, Norma Md, and Hamida Mubasshera. ”An Exploratory Study on the Understanding of the Concept of Riba and Factors Determining Patronization of Conventional Banks among Muslims in Malaysia.” Journal of Islamic Economics, Banking and Finance 11, no. 3 (2015): 18-23.
Job Market Paper
• “Does Consumption of Internet Pornography Trigger Violence?”
Abstract : Does the widespread consumption of internet pornography trigger violence? By analyzing local market (USA) website traffic data from major pornographic websites spanning from September 2019 to October 2022 and crime measures from NIBRS, this paper sheds light on this question. For identification, I leverage exogenous variation in the supply of pornographic materials caused by the publication of an opinion essay in the New York Times and employ a Difference-in-Differences (DiD) strategy with a treatment intensity approach. The analysis utilizes geographical variation in the fraction of pornographic users visiting the impacted website. The DiD estimates reveal that a one-percentage-point increase in exposure to the shock reduces all measures of violence. These reductions, relative to the mean, represent significant impacts: a 5.7% decrease in simple assault, a 4.7% decrease in aggravated assault, and a 5.5% decrease in aggregate violence. These findings provide valuable insights into the ongoing policy debate regarding government censorship and monitoring of online behavior, suggesting that reducing access to certain online content can influence violent behavior at the community level.
Working Paper
• “Is Pornography Consumption Addictive? Evidence from Theory of Rational Addiction"
Research Experience
• Research Assistant to Professor Catherine Maclean, Temple University, USA (Fall 2018- Spring 2019)
• Research Assistant, IIUM Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance (IIiBF), Malaysia (Fall 2013-Spring 2014)