The present study constructs and tests models that examine the relations between variables of “gender,” “sex role stereotyping,” and “adversarial sexual beliefs” on rape myth acceptance. The sample ...is 975 Chinese university students from seven universities in China. Measures include Chinese Rape Myth Acceptance (CRMA), Sex Role Stereotyping (SRS) Scale, and Adversarial Sexual Beliefs (ASB). We use structural equation modeling to investigate whether gender directly affects the acceptance of rape myth, or that these influences are mediated by SRS and ASB, after controlling for several demographic characteristics. Results suggest that SRS and ASB have a direct effect on rape myth acceptance. Gender has no direct effect on rape myth acceptance in three out of the four models, but it significantly (β = −.02, p < .05) predicts the acceptance of rape–violence myth. We also discuss the implications and limitations of the study.
Abstract Police officers are frequently perceived to hold negative attitudes about rape victims. The aim of this systematic review is to: (1) synthesise the current literature on police officers' ...attributions of rape victim blame, assessments of rape victim credibility, and rape myth acceptance; and, (2) examine the evidence that holding these attitudes impacts on police investigative decision making in rape cases. Twenty-four articles published between 2000 and 2016 were included following a systematic search of the available literature. The findings highlight that some police officers do hold problematic attitudes about rape victims e.g., blame, rape myth acceptance, although they are frequently noted to be at a low level. Furthermore, characteristics of the victim, e.g., alcohol intoxication and emotional expression, can affect attributions of victim credibility. Assessments of victim credibility were related to police investigative decision making e.g., recommendations to charge the perpetrator, perceptions of guilt. However, the impact of rape victim blaming and rape myth acceptance is less clear. Given that the literature was predominantly vignette-based, it is unclear how these judgements have an impact in real rape investigations.
Why has so much of the public discussion of rape focused on a few specific cases, and to what extent has this discussion incorporated the feminist perspective on rape?Rape on Trialexplores these ...questions and provides answers based on a detailed examination of the mainstream news coverage of the John and Greta Rideout marital rape case, the Big Dan's Tavern gang rape case, and the Webb-Dotson rape recantation case.
Lisa M. Cuklanz traces where and how rape reform ideas were granted legitimacy in mainstream news coverage. She finds that while the subsequent fictionalized versions frequently adopted the themes foregrounded in the news coverage, they usually were more sympathetic toward-and indeed often took on-the rape victim's point of view.
Why do some armed groups commit massive wartime rape, whereas others never do? Using an original dataset, I describe the substantial variation in rape by armed actors during recent civil wars and ...test a series of competing causal explanations. I find evidence that the recruitment mechanism is associated with the occurrence of wartime rape. Specifically, the findings support an argument about wartime rape as a method of socialization, in which armed groups that recruit by force—through abduction or pressganging—use rape to create unit cohesion. State weakness and insurgent contraband funding are also associated with increased wartime rape by rebel groups. I examine observable implications of the argument in a brief case study of the Sierra Leone civil war. The results challenge common explanations for wartime rape, with important implications for scholars and policy makers.
Many sexual violence survivors do not label their experiences as rape but instead use more benign labels, such as “bad sex” or “miscommunication.” A meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the mean ...prevalence of unacknowledged rape and to inform our understanding of methodological factors that influence the detection of this phenomenon. Studies were identified using PsycINFO, PubMED, and PILOTS and were required to report the percentage of unacknowledged rape that had occurred since the age of 14 among female survivors. Moderator variables included mean participant age, recruitment source, rape definition, and unacknowledged rape definition. Twenty-eight studies (30 independent samples) containing 5,917 female rape survivors met the inclusion criteria. Based on a random effects model, the overall weighted mean percentage of unacknowledged rape was 60.4% (95% confidence interval 55.0%, 65.6%). There was a large amount of heterogeneity, Q(29) = 445.11, p < .001, and inconsistency (I² = 93.5%) among included studies. The prevalence was significantly higher among college student participants compared to noncollege participants. The findings supported that over half of all female rape survivors do not acknowledge that they have been raped. The results suggest that screening tools should use behaviorally descriptive items about sexual contact, rather than using terms such as “rape.”
Rape-related cognitions (typically defined as encompassing any number of cognitive constructs) are thought to play a role in sexual aggression. However, rape-related cognition scales often assess ...these cognitive constructs as one. The purpose of this study is to explore the factor structure of these measures using a sample of 191 community men. We found that items from the Rape Myth Acceptance, RAPE, and Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance (IRMA) scales formed one factor, which was significantly related to sexual aggression. We further found that four and six IRMA subscales were significantly related to past and likelihood of sexual aggression, respectively. Additionally, one IRMA subscale was independently related to past and likelihood of sexual aggression. The results are discussed in terms of implications and direction for future research.
The Rape Investigation Handbook is the first practical and hands-on manual written by sex crime investigators and forensic scientists, providing students with first-hand insight into the work of ...these professionals. It is the only comprehensive reference available on the investigation of sexual assault and rape. It includes extensive accounts of perpetrators, victims, and other rape case evidence for identification of incidents of rape. The key feature of this text is a thorough overview of the investigative and forensic processes related to sex crime investigation. It takes the reader through investigative and forensic processes in a logical sequence, showing how investigations of rape and sexual assault can and should be conducted from start to finish. This book is designed to be accessible, in terms of language and approach, to the student in the classroom learning about the subject for the first time. It is an excellent training manual for sex crime investigators as well as an excellent textbook for any hands-on university course on the subject of sex crime investigation. This book would also serve as a useful supplement for any investigative course involving violent crime or death investigation.
Rape myth acceptance (RMA) is the acceptance of false beliefs, stereotypes, and statements about rape, victims, and perpetrators (Burt, 1980). Rape myths become outdated as we learn more about sexual ...violence. Therefore, psychometric scales should be updated periodically to reflect the more nuanced phenomenon of rape myth acceptance. Several items in the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale (IRMA; Payne et al., 1999; McMahon & Farmer, 2011) may measure knowledge about the rape perpetrator's psychology rather than rape myth acceptance. In current studies we developed and validated an updated rape myth acceptance scale called the Rape Excusing Attitudes and Language (REAL) Scale without items measuring knowledge about rape. Through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses on two separate datasets (N = 663), the REAL Scale presents a four factor, 20-item scale. We provide evidence of validation through demonstrating the Scale's convergent and discriminative validity by correlating the REAL Scale with the IRMA and the Rape Victim Empathy Scale (RVES; Smith & Frieze, 2003). We argue that the REAL Scale should be adopted in future studies assessing rape myth acceptance because the items explain the same amount of variance in the RVES as the IRMA, but the REAL Scale displays more face validity.
•RMA scales often contain empirically supported statements.•We developed and validated an updated RMA scale across two studies (N = 665).•Our REAL Scale predicted the same amount of variance in the RVES as revised IRMA.•Our REAL Scale contained no empirically supported items – unlike other RMA scales.
This research investigated how inner dialogue is experienced by rape survivors. Eight women were interviewed about their experiences and the data was analysed using Structural Existential Analysis ...(SEA). A novel application of SEA was developed and a step-by-step model for application and verification is provided. The findings are presented in two parts. Part 1 "Characteristics of Inner Dialogue" provides a novel conceptualisation of a personalised inner dialogical community, detailing its development, dominance, and functions with specific emphasis on self-creation, healing, and meaning. Part 2 "Long-Lived Experiences" offers in-depth understandings of how inner dialogue is experienced in the aftermath of rape. Implications and specific interventions for counselling psychologists, practitioners, the judiciary system, the general public, and survivors of sexual trauma are suggested and discussed in detail. The findings conclude that inner dialogue is a multifaceted innate phenomenon, not a pathological symptom of mental unwellness. Active engagement with inner dialogue facilitates deeper connection with the self and increased control over life experiences. The experience of rape is not an isolated physical violation, it has the potential to violate all areas of a person 's lived experience, shattering previously held values with long-term implications for the victim and the people in their lives. The healing process is individually unique. Societies' perceptions of stigmas, stereotypes, and rape-myths create hostile environments and directly impede healing from trauma.
PDF
