Sexual Violence as a Form of Abuse in Men’s Experiences of Female-Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence

Abstract

The issue of men’s sexual victimization in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV) where the perpetrator is female has received minimal attention. This article brings together and analyses data from two empirical studies conducted in the United Kingdom—one exploring men’s experiences of being forced-to-penetrate women and another investigating men’s experiences of female-perpetrated IPV. Analysis of the data found that men experienced sexual violence alongside a range of other abusive behaviors, but that there was a clear relationship between the sexual violence and physical violence/ force, and coercive and controlling behaviors that they experienced. These novel insights improve our understanding about men’s sexual and domestic violence victimization, as well as challenge gender and sex-role stereotypes around men and masculinity and the (im)possibility of them experiencing sexual and domestic abuse from a female partner.