Disturbing Article - 1 In 3 University Of North Dakota Men Surveyed Would Rape A Woman If They Could

[el_bryanto]

Nearly one in three college men admit they might rape a woman if they knew no one would find out and they wouldn’t face any consequences, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the University of North Dakota.

But, when the researchers actually used the word “rape” in their question, those numbers dropped much lower — suggesting that many college men don’t associate the act of forcing a woman to have sex with them with the crime of committing rape.

According to the survey, which analyzed responses from 73 men attending the same college, 31.7 percent of participants said they would act on “intentions to force a woman to sexual intercourse” if they were confident they could get away with it. When asked whether they would act on “intentions to rape a woman” with the same assurances they wouldn’t face consequences, just 13.6 percent of participants agreed.

Researchers hope to replicate the experiment on a larger scale in the future, since they used a very small sample size this time around. However, they still think their findings could help inform the current conversation about campus sexual assault, which has dominated national headlines over the past several years.

From Thinkprogress, an article by Tara Culp-Ressler.

Scary article; it is a small sample size, so it's possible there was clustering, but still, that's disturbing.

Bryant

[niyad]

1. unfortunately, it is consistent with other studies. and the fact that college students seem not

to understand what rape is, is. . . disheartening, to say the least.

[el_bryanto]

2. Yes that's pretty disturbing and suggests we need to broaden our discussion of rape

Because many of these men would hear "You should not rape" and nod their heads and agree "Yes I agree. I shouldn't rape" without realizing that they are, in effect, willing to rape if they can get away with it.

Bryant

[zazen]

3. I'm less surprised by the findings than by human subjects violation of identifying the institution

I thought IRB was tougher. It seems IRBs stop all sorts of trivial things—including keeping feminist scholars from doing serious studies on how violent pornography shapes (and IMO distorts sexuality)—and then let something like this violation of the respondents' identities get through. It's called "deductive disclosure."

Sorry, but we already knew the extent and recalcitrance of what this generation is calling rape culture. So now the university will be looking for the 20-some-odd potential rapists on the campus, and good luck getting honest responses in the future.

This will distract from the larger issue and will just cause much better, more original and rigorous research to get shut down--mark my words. Look for the upcoming debate in the Chronicle. I give it a week.

[cyberswede]

4. "force a woman to sexual intercourse" and rape" don't mean the same thing to these respondents?

Looks like some education is needed.

[seabeyond]

5. yes. it has been done in the past and consistent with percentages. one of the reasons i now really

dislike the word seduced. gives me the creeps now when i hear men use it.

[ismnotwasm]

6. Exactly

Seduction also needs to be a mutual experiance,not one filled with lies and coercion

[Tuesday Afternoon]

7. seduced/coerced/ravished ...

although I do vacillate on ravish ... but, yeah.

[geek tragedy]

8. Rape has a branding problem apparently.

30+ percent are okay with rape as long as that term isn't used.

[seabeyond]

9. that is an interesting comment geek. and may be the underlining issue we face on du.

thanks for the thought

[YoungDemCA]

10. Sexual violence is never justified

No ifs, ands, or buts about it.

That is the message we should be teaching.

[CrispyQ]

11. An astute observation and a sad commentary on our culture.

Somewhere is that survey of young people where the number of both young men & women who believe the woman owes the man sex if he buys her a nice dinner was boggling. The internet has also not contributed to a nicer culture. It seems the lowest common denominator is where we're headed.