NCJ Number
241666
Journal
Violence Against Women Volume: 18 Issue: 10 Dated: October 2012 Pages: 1125-1146
Date Published
October 2012
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This study investigated the effects of gender identity threat on men's and women's perceptions of date rape and sexual coercion.
Abstract
The authors experimentally investigated the effects of gender identity threat on men's and women's perceptions of date rape and sexual coercion. Results showed that men whose masculinity was threatened responded by blaming the victim and exonerating the perpetrator more, while threatened women respond by blaming male perpetrators more and placing less blame on female victims. Men's response to threats was more pronounced than women's, an asymmetry the authors attribute to the cultural devaluation of femininity. The author's findings highlight the significance of masculinity concerns in perceptions of sexual violence and, more generally, the importance of perceiver context in views of violence against women. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.