TIME WAS WHEN INTERNET sex was a tawdry business (or so I have been told), largely consisting of dirty pictures and coeds with webcams, preening and moaning as if anybody was really having a good time. But no longer. According to a recent Swedish-American study being highlighted in the Swedish daily Dagens nyheter this week, online sex has been transforming itself from a form of deviance into practically the norm for human sexual behavior around the world.

The study, carried out by Michael W. Ross of the University of Texas and Kristian Daneback from the University of Gothenburg, examines the evolution of online sex behavior over the past fifteen years. “The Complexity of Internet Sexuality” found that “the Internet has made it easier to explore and express one’s sexuality at less risk of negative personal sanctions. In this regard, the technological innovation has meant a sexual revolution, particularly for disenfranchised groups.”

Social worker Daneback is an old hand when it comes to online sex. Already in his doctoral dissertation from the University of Gothenburg, “Love and Sexuality on the Internet,” he demonstrated that:

both men and women use the internet for love and sexual purposes and that usage patterns can be related to both gender and age. For the majority, using the Internet for these purposes is perceived as having positive outcomes while for a minority it may become problematic. The anonymity on the internet is a major factor contributing to make it a popular venue for love and sexual activities; not only because of the safety and security it provides by keeping others at a distance while being intimate, but also because it allows people to engage in activities that would be difficult or impossible to engage in offline.

In the new study, Daneback and Ross “examined the changes that have occurred [in the past fifteen years]. At the beginning, the image [of online sex] was extremely negative. People thought that only a very special kind of person used the Internet for sex.” Since then, the phenomenon has moved away from a passive, one-way consumption of online pornography and instead moved into a situation where genuine interaction occurs. “We have seen that people take an active position towards what they want to use. They make competent choices.” Nevertheless, the behavior remains largely taboo in modern society.

In the wake of this “revolution,” the study finds, women are taking more of an initiative, homosexuals have an easier time meeting, people who don’t enjoy the bar scene can meet on dating sites, and people too embarrassed to buy sex toys in the shop can now order them from the privacy of their own homes or offices. Perhaps most revolutionary of all, young people can now gather information on sex and relationships directly without resorting to embarrassing and often fruitless talks with parents or clergy.

While the study recognizes that there may be problems associated with uncontrolled online sex, it focuses on providing actual facts on usage and attitudes rather than highlighting risks both real and, in most cases, imagined.

Among many other intriguing bits of information, the study suggests that the Internet is also changing the ways in which people have sex. I’ve heard a lot of people saying that lately, and Salon’s Mary Elizabeth Williams wrote a chilling account of what this can mean between the sheets. If the authors are right, than we may truly be entering a brave new world of human sexuality, with no end in sight. But play it safe, kids, and be sure to keep your antivirus software updated…