Finds that student journalists reacted differently to--and wrote different stories about--a woman news source who spoke about a rape crisis center, depending on whether they had been told that the woman was herself a rape victim. (GW)

Examined justifiability of date rape under various circumstances among male undergraduates. Rape was rated as significantly more justifiable if the couple went to the man's apartment rather than to a religious function, if the woman asked the man out, and if the man paid all the dating expenses. Differences between traditional and nontraditional…

Examined the effects of victim and defendent attractiveness on the judgments of 96 students responding to an account of a rape. Results showed subjects tended to be biased against the attractive victim but biased in favor of the attractive defendent. (JAC)

Describes victimization experienced by rape victims and determines whether any psychological variables were related to victimization status. Psychological variables examined included personality, attitudinal, and situational characteristics relevant to the three major models of rape victimization: social control, victim precipitation, and…

Assessed vulnerability to rape as a function of deficits in coping mechanisms. Comparison of 72 rape victims and 72 controls showed victims were characterized by low levels of psychosocial competency and higher scores on external locus of control. Drug abuse, psychiatric hospitalization, and suicidal thoughts also added to vulnerability. (JAC)

Reviews research since 1970 on the effects of pornography on men's treatment of, and underlying attitudes toward, women. Holds that anger is a greater social problem than pornography, particularly in men who are unable to resolve that anger and to distinguish it from sexual arousal and control over women. (Author/GC)

Developed a survey capable of reflecting hidden cases of rape and of documenting a dimensional view of sexual aggression/sexual victimization. The survey was administered to 3,862 university students. Results supported a dimensional view. Discusses the viability of a survey approach to sample selection for future rape research. (Author)

Establishes distinct patterns of characteristics differentiating nonsexually violent, sexually violent, and sexually nonviolent offenders. The data add to the evidence of a link between violence and alcohol. The defendants' high rate of suicide attempts is a manifestation of a general pattern of aggressive acting out. (Author/CS)

Describes the Positive Approaches for Sex Offenders (PASO) program which attempts to provide a treatment alternative to incarceration for sex offenders. (Author)

Studied the fears, beliefs, and behaviors of 139 college women about acquaintance and stranger rape. Women were more afraid of stranger rape and took more precautions against it but paradoxically believed that acquaintance rape was more common. Precautionary behaviors were best predicted by level of fear. Theoretical and educational implications…

Examined how sexual assault history and attributions of blame were related to measures of recovery from, and cognitive adaptation to, trauma in a convenience sample of sexual assault victims (N=155). Results indicate that attributions of blame were related to assumptions about self and world but were unrelated to self-rated recovery. (RJM)

Article describes an exploratory evaluation of a rape prevention program targeted toward fraternity members. The program is based on the Mean Against Violence model, which emphasizes the association between male role socialization and sexual aggression. Implications for college counselors who conduct rape prevention programs are provided.…

Reviews treatment issues in counseling survivors of rape, including sociocultural influences on a woman's response to rape, a survivor's history of victimization, the specific nature of the assault, and a survivor's experiences with victim-blame. A multimodal treatment approach for women who experience chronic symptoms of posttraumatic stress…

Examines how men and women judge the presence of risk factors in a scripted acquaintance rape scenario and if alcohol was a significant factor in assessing risk. Significant differences were found in African American and Caucasian participants' attitudes toward rape and risk appraisal. There was a negative correlation between risk appraisal and…

Urges use of familial context of adolescent sex offender as necessary direction to take when treating denial suppression among offenders and their families. Notes that families can contribute to or refuse to support denial of adolescents. Discusses some reasons for denial in the adolescent and his family and presents some transcripts of case…