Violence prevention, including rape and sexual assault prevention in the United States has become a major concern for public health professionals. As a result, educational institutions have implemented rape prevention programs in an attempt to change rape supportive attitudes and thus, deter rapes. As an initial step in testing the relationship between rape-supportive attitudes and rape, this study examined 851 adolescent males who completed attitude and behavior surveys as part of a larger longitudinal study. The focus of this study is twofold: first, to determine if attitudes that are accepting of forced sex will predict the initiation of forced sex by adolescent males; and second, if rape-accepting attitudes result from perpetration of forced sex. The data indicate that changing rape myth attitudes altered the behavior of forced sex in this population of males. Implications of the findings are discussed.
Learning Objectives: 1.Participants will be able to describe two rape-supportive attitudes that serve to deny and justify male sexual aggression against women. 2.Discuss how rapists may use rape-supportive attitudes after the act to deny the impact of their crime and to excuse their behavior. 3. Describe the effectiveness of altering rape-supportive attitudes in an effort to decrease the behavior of forced sex.
Keywords: Violence Prevention, Adolescents
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.