Studied the effects of an acquaintance-rape prevention program on college students' attitudes (n=152) toward rape and attitudes toward women, perceptions of acquaintance rape scenarios, and rape empathy. Positive attitude change was stronger among men, who became more certain of rape definitions. Contains 53 references. (SLD)

A program to reduce women's risk of multiple sexual victimization was designed and evaluated. Participants (N=406) responded to surveys assessing history of sexual assault, dating, communication, and knowledge about sexual assault. The program was not found to be effective, nor was there a relationship to participants' histories of victimization.…

Tested the effects of viewing R-rated films on perceptions of female responsibility for and enjoyment of date or stranger rape. Participants viewed nonviolent scenes objectifying and degrading women sexually or animated film scenes. They read a fictitious magazine account of a date or stranger rape. The study showed that males who viewed the…

Investigated the role of gender, gender role identity, rape myth acceptance, and initial resistance in assigning blame in the case of acquaintance rape, and studied the perceived avoidability of the assault for 355 female and 179 male college students. The gender differences in responses are discussed. (SLD)

Examines the impact of an all-male rape prevention program on fraternity men. After participating in "The Men's Program," fraternity men were asked if the program impacted their attitude or behavior and what led to that change. Results point to the importance of establishing empathy with rape survivors to increase men's awareness and sensitivity…

Study compares women college students who reported unwanted sexual experiences judged to constitute date rape with controls who reported no rape. Findings suggest that compared to controls, date-rape group had significantly higher scores on measures of overall childhood stress. Concludes that early forms of maltreatment (not specifically sexual)…

Self-defense classes aim to prevent violence against women by strengthening women's capacity to defend themselves; however, little research has examined the effects of self-defense training on women's attempts to fight back during actual attacks. This study investigated the relationship of self-defense or assertiveness training and women's…

There is evidence that many women experience sexual assault, and that sexual assault can cause psychological and interpersonal problems. This study examined the psychological aftermath of sexual assault in a probability sample of female university students and employees (N=542), focusing on how various aspects of a victim's lifetime sexual assault…

Research studies on group versus individual bystander responses either have involved nonviolent emergencies or laboratory simulations. To investigate group versus individual bystander response to a violent assualt in a natural setting, 80 male college students (from an original pool of 393 white, male students) were observed either individually or…

This paper on rape on the campus addresses the following topics: definitions of rape and sexual assault; the incidence rate; attitudes about rape; the impact of rape on women's educational opportunity; legal implications, including Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; institutional responsibility and liability; the meaning of prevention,…

One explanation for male sexual aggression implicates certain adverse consequences of male gender socialization. Two studies tested the hypothesis that sexually aggressive men would be more gender stereotyped and would manifest lower capacities for empathy and intimacy. Results were mostly supportive of the hypothesis. (JBJ)

Explores the influence of gender and race on sexual attitudes and on experiences with sexual victimization. Analysis from 323 white and 60 black college students shows an influence of gender on sexual attitudes. There also is evidence of an interaction between race and gender on the acceptance of interpersonal violence and the acceptance of rape…

On campus as in society, male-centered paradigms of sex role and identity are being challenged. A relationship-centered model of psychological development is currently of great interest. Areas of conflict between male and female students include stereotypes and political correctness, violence and rape, hostility toward women, the economy,…

Explored myths about rape and tendency to blame victim in high school (n=54) and college (n=46) students. High school males believed more strongly than did high school females and college males in rape myths and assigned greater blame to victims. For high school students, belief in myths about rape was associated with assigning more victim blame.…

Intervention sought to improve first-year college students' attitudes about rape. Used the Elaboration Likelihood Model to examine men's and women's attitude change process. Found numerous sex differences in ways men and women experienced and changed during and after intervention. Women's attitude showed more lasting change while men's was more…