Self-reported Rape Proclivity Research Articles

Sexist Humor and Sexual Aggression Against Women: When Sexist Men Act According to Their Own Values or Social Pressures.

Exposure to sexist humor creates a context in which some men feel comfortable expressing aggressive tendencies toward women (i.e., self-reported rape proclivity). This is in part because this type of humor makes it easier for men who have antagonistic attitudes toward women to express their prejudice without fear of social reprisal. Besides, previous research has demonstrated the influence of motivational variables such as autonomy (initiation or regulation of intentional behavior based on free choice) and control (acting under external pressure) on aggression. We conducted two experiments to explore the hypothetical influence of priming autonomy and control motivations on the relation between sexist humor and the expression of sexually aggressive tendencies toward women. Study 1 (N = 108) revealed that control-primed men with high (vs. low) scores in hostile sexism reported a higher rape proclivity when exposed to sexist (vs. neutral) humor. These results were partially replicated in Study 2 (N = 132), assessing the accessibility of aggressive sexual thoughts. This research contributes to our understanding of the influence of sexist humor and motivational orientations in sexist men on the expression of aggressive sexual behaviors directed against women.

Sexist Humor and Rape Proclivity: The Moderating Role of Joke Teller Gender and Severity of Sexual Assault.

Three experiments examined the effect of sexist humor on men's self-reported rape proclivity (RP). Pilot study demonstrated that people differentiate the five rape scenarios of Bohner et al.'s. RP Scale based on the degree of physical violence perpetrated against the victim. Experiment 1 demonstrated that men higher in hostile sexism report greater RP upon exposure to sexist jokes when a woman (vs. a man) delivers them, and that this effect is limited to rape scenarios depicting a moderate versus a high level of physical violence. Experiment 2 further demonstrated that the relationship between hostile sexism and rape proclivity in response to a moderately violent rape scenario after exposure to sexist humor generalizes beyond women in the immediate humor context to women as a whole.

Male Peer Support to Hostile Sexist Attitudes Influences Rape Proclivity.

Sexual assault affects a large proportion of women in the world. Although most rapes are committed by one man, the act itself may be influenced by many (e.g., the peer group). Hostile sexism (HS) has repeatedly been associated with men's rape proclivity, but the influence exerted by the HS of the peer group on rape proclivity has not been investigated. In this study, we explored the impact of perceived male peer support to HS on participants' rape proclivity. A sample of Spanish undergraduate students from a university in the south of Spain ( N = 134) completed the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory. Immediately afterwards, they received feedback on the supposed sexist responses of a peer group (high vs. low in HS); we kept the benevolent sexism (BS) of the peer group at medium levels. Next, we assessed participants' rape proclivity using acquaintance rape scenarios. Results showed an interaction between participants' own levels of HS and information about the HS of the peer group. Men high in HS reported higher rape proclivity in the high-HS peer-group condition than in the low-HS peer-group condition. By contrast, information on the peer group did not affect self-reported rape proclivity of men low in HS. Results also corroborated the relationship between participants' levels of HS and rape proclivity, and expanded the literature by revealing an unexpected influence of participants' BS on rape proclivity.

Metacognitive Aspects of Rape Myths

The authors present a metacognitive approach to influences of rape myth acceptance (RMA) on the processing of rape-related information and rape proclivity. In Study 1, participants (N = 264) completed an RMA scale and subsequently reported the subjective strength (e.g., importance, certainty) of their RMA. Then they read about a rape case, viewed a photograph of the alleged crime scene, and rated the defendant's guilt on several items. Depending on condition, the photograph contained either RMA-applicable stimuli (e.g., alcoholic beverages) or neutral stimuli. Higher RMA predicted lower ratings of defendant guilt especially when applicable stimuli were present and RMA was strong. Study 2 (N = 85) showed that RMA-related attitude strength also moderated the effect of RMA on self-reported rape proclivity. Results of both studies indicate that the subjective strength of rape-related beliefs may be reliably assessed and serves as an important moderator of effects of RMA. The implications of these findings for prevention programs as well as future directions for research are discussed.

Exposure to Sexist Humor and Rape Proclivity: The Moderator Effect of Aversiveness Ratings

The aim of this study is to explore the effect of exposure to sexist humor about women on men's self-reported rape proclivity. Earlier studies have shown that exposure to this type of humor increases rape proclivity and that funniness responses to jokes are a key element to consider. However, the role of aversiveness responses has not been studied. In a between-group design, 109 male university students are randomly exposed to sexist or nonsexist jokes. Participants are asked to rate the jokes according to their degree of funniness and aversiveness. Participants' levels of hostile and benevolent sexism were also measured. Results about the relationship between sexist attitudes and sexist humor and the relationship between sexist attitudes and rape proclivity are consistent with those of earlier studies. However, exposure to sexist humor affects rape proclivity only when aversiveness shown to this type of humor is low. The results are discussed in the light of the prejudiced norm theory.

Hostile Sexism and Rape Proclivity Amongst Men

In the current study, we examined the influence of victim type and hostile sexism on men’s judgments about an acquaintance rape victim and their self-reported acquaintance rape proclivity. It was predicted that hostile sexism would predict self-reported rape proclivity, but that this relationship would be moderated by victim type. Specifically, it was predicted that participants would report greater proclivity in relation to a victim who appeared not to adhere to traditional gender stereotypes than to a victim who appeared to adhere to such stereotypes. Further, in line with D. Abrams, G. T. Viki, B. Masser, and G. Bohner (2003), it was predicted that the relationship between hostile sexism and rape proclivity would be mediated by perceptions of “token resistance” by the victim. Results partially supported the hypotheses. Hostile sexism was positively related to rape proclivity, but victim type was not found to moderate the relationship. In addition, perceptions of “token resistance” were found to mediate the hostile sexism and rape proclivity relationship. The results suggest that, at least in terms of rape proclivity, hostile sexists may not differentiate in their targets for sexual aggression.

Hostile Sexism, Type of Rape, and Self-Reported Rape Proclivity Within a Sample of Zimbabwean Males

The role of hostile sexism in accounting for rape proclivity among men was investigated using a sample of Zimbabwean students. Participants were presented with either an acquaintance rape or a stranger rape scenario and asked to respond to five questions about the scenario designed to assess rape proclivity. As expected, a significant relationship between hostile sexism and rape proclivity was obtained in the acquaintance rape but not the stranger rape condition. These results replicate previous research and suggest that hostile sexists are more likely to express their hostility toward women in situations where such behavior might be perceived as acceptable.

Perceived Rape Myth Acceptance of Others Predicts Rape Proclivity: Social Norm or Judgmental Anchoring?

Previous research has shown that information about others’ rape myth acceptance (RMA) affects men’s rape proclivity ( Bohner, Siebler, & Schmelcher, 2006 ). By varying both the level (low vs. high) and format (norm vs. anchor) of such information, different explanations for this effect were investigated. After reporting their own RMA, 117 male participants either read about others’ allegedly low vs. high RMA responses (norm conditions), or estimated if others’ responses were higher or lower than an “arbitrary” low vs. high value (anchor conditions). Later, participants indicated their rape proclivity (RP). Results show that the level of others’ RMA significantly affected participants’ self-reported RP, independent of information format. Furthermore, self-reported RMA and RP were positively correlated. Implications for future research are discussed.

Sexual Aggression Among Adolescents

This study examines the prevalence of sexual aggression among adolescents from both former East and West Germany. Koss and Oros' (1982) Sexual Experiences Survey (SES) was employed to measure sexual aggression (male version) and sexual victimization (female version). Almost 17% of female respondents reported forced sexual experiences that qualify as criminal offenses under German law. The total percentage including all forms of unwanted sexual contacts amounted to over 50%. Among male respondents, almost 15% admitted sexual behaviors that qualify as criminal offenses, with an overall rate of coercive sexual behaviors of over 44%. Token resistance and number of sexual partners were associated with a higher risk of sexual victimization in the female sample. Among male respondents, peer pressure, self-reported rape proclivity, anger, and disinhibition predicted sexually aggressive behaviors.

Rape myths as neutralizing cognitions: evidence for a causal impact of anti-victim attitudes on men's self-reported likelihood of raping

Men's rape myth acceptance (RMA; prejudiced beliefs that serve to exonerate the rapist and blame the victim) has been shown to correlate positively with self-reported rape proclivity (RP). To explore the causal pathway underlying this correlation, two experiments were conducted in which the relative cognitive accessibility of RMA and RP was varied. Male students were asked to report their RP in the context of a scale assessing attraction toward sexual aggression (Experiment 1) or in response to five realistic date-rape scenarios (Experiment 2), either before or after they filled out a 20-item RMA scale. In both studies, the correlation of RMA and RP was significantly greater in the after than in the before condition, suggesting that the belief in rape myths has a causal influence on men's proclivity to rape. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Influences of fraternity membership, athletics, and male living arrangements on sexual aggression.

Fraternal membership, intercollegiate athletic participation, and sex composition of living arrangements were investigated as possible correlates of sexual coercion. Four hundred seventy-seven male undergraduates enrolled in a large southeastern university were surveyed in classroom settings regarding their experiences with sexual aggression and coercion, as well as their self-reported rape proclivity. Fraternity members displayed significantly more use of intoxicants in obtaining sex, and also more use of nonphysical verbal coercion, but no greater use of physical force, than independents (nonfraternity members). Athletes displayed greater rape proclivity, but no greater coercive/aggressive sexual behavior. Sex composition of living arrangements had no significant effect on rape proclivity or sexual victimization. The results are discussed in light of other recent evidence indicting fraternities for their sexual conduct.

Construct Validity of Two Heterosocial Perception Skill Measures for Assessing Rape Proclivity

Rape-supportive attitudes and self-reported rape proclivity (using a measure by Malamuth, Haber, & Feshbach, 1980) were negatively correlated with decoding accuracy of women's negative cues (measured by the TRAC-D; McDonel, McFall, Schlundt, & Levenson, 1985) in an unselected sample of male college students. Better decoders of negative female cues on the TRAC-D, as well as subjects expressing fewer rape-supportive beliefs and less rape proclivity, were more conservative in their estimates of a man's justification in continuing to make sexual advances in the face of a woman's negative cues on the Heterosocial Perception Survey (HPS; McDonel, 1986). Ability to decode men's interpersonal cues was not correlated with responses on the HPS or rape attitude and proclivity measures, suggesting that specific rather than global decoding deficits were useful predictors of rape correlates. These results support the construct validity of the two social perception measures, the TRAC-D, and the HPS, as measures of rape proclivity.