scholarly journals Why Women Are Blamed for Being Sexually Harassed: The Effects of Empathy for Female Victims and Male Perpetrators

2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renata Bongiorno ◽  
Chloe Langbroek ◽  
Paul G. Bain ◽  
Michelle Ting ◽  
Michelle K. Ryan
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
University Students ◽  
Victim Blame ◽  
Victim Blaming ◽  
Female Victim ◽  
Victim Empathy ◽  
Female Victims ◽  
Vignette Study ◽  
The Social ◽  
Male Perpetrator

The #MeToo movement has highlighted the widespread problem of men’s sexual harassment of women. Women are typically reluctant to make a sexual-harassment complaint and often encounter victim-blaming attitudes when they do, especially from men. Informed by the social identity perspective, two experiments examined the influence of empathy—both for women who are sexually harassed and for male harassers—on men’s and women’s propensity to blame victims. In Study 1, university students ( N = 97) responded to a vignette describing a male student’s harassment of a female student. Men blamed the victim more than women, which was explained by their greater empathy for the male perpetrator but not lesser empathy for the female victim. Using the same vignette, Study 2 asked university students ( N = 135) to take either the male perpetrator’s or the female victim’s perspective. Regardless of participant gender, participants who took the male-perpetrator’s perspective versus the female-victim’s perspective reported greater victim blame, and this was explained by their greater empathy for the male perpetrator and lesser empathy for the female victim. Together, the findings provide evidence to suggest that male-perpetrator empathy may be equally or more important than female-victim empathy for explaining victim blame for sexual harassment. Implications for social change, including policies to limit the effects of male-perpetrator empathy when responding to sexual-harassment complaints are discussed. Online slides for instructors who want to use this article for teaching are available on PWQ’s website at http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/suppl/10.1177/0361684319868730

scholarly journals Attributions of victim responsibility in revenge pornography

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 263-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeff Gavin ◽  
Adrian J. Scott
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Victim Blame ◽  
Male Victims ◽  
Female Victim ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Male Victim ◽  
Female Perpetrator ◽  
Victim Responsibility ◽  
Male Perpetrator

Purpose Revenge pornography is a growing risk among adolescents and young adults. Often stemming from sexting, some victims of revenge pornography report experiencing victim-blame similar to that accompanying the reporting of rape. The purpose of this paper is to explore the assumptions that underlie attributions of victim-blame, with a focus on perpetrator and victim responsibility, as well as gendered assumptions surrounding sexting. Design/methodology/approach A total of 222 UK university students (111 male, 111 females) read one of two versions of a hypothetical revenge pornography scenario, one involving a male victim of a female perpetrator, the other a female victim of a male perpetrator. They then responded to an open-ended question regarding responsibility. Findings Qualitative content analysis of these responses identified three inter-related themes: the victim’s behaviour, mitigating victim responsibility and minimising the behaviour. Social implications The majority of participants in this study attributed at least some responsibility to the victims of revenge pornography depicted in the scenarios. Sex of the victim played a less important role than assumptions around sexting. Originality/value The study suggests that victim-blame is linked to the consent implied by sharing intimate images with a partner, but is also mitigated by the normative nature of this relationship practice. There was some evidence that the experience of male victims of revenge pornography is trivialised. These findings have implications for e-safety and victim support.

scholarly journals Rape Crimes Reviewed: The Role of Observer Variables in Female Victim Blaming

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Clara Ferrão ◽  
Gabriela Gonçalves
Keyword(s):  
Ambivalent Sexism ◽  
Rape Myth Acceptance ◽  
Rape Myth ◽  
Victim Blame ◽  
Victim Blaming ◽  
Rape Empathy ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Male Perpetrator ◽  
Myth Acceptance

This article presents an overview of empirical research on the role of observer variables in rape victim blaming (female attacked by a male perpetrator). The focus is on literature from the last 15 years. The variables observer gender, ambivalent sexism, rape myth acceptance, and rape empathy are discussed in relation to victim blaming. Most research on rape is conducted using diverse methods and approaches that result in a great disparity regarding the role of these variables in predicting blame assignments. Despite the inconsistencies, most studies show that men hold the victim more responsible for her own victimization than women. Findings further indicate that higher scores on sexist ideologies and rape myth acceptance predict higher victim blame, and that higher rape empathy scores predict lower victim blame. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Acquaintance Rape: Attributions of Victim Blame by College Students and Prison Inmates as a Function of Relationship Status of Victim and Assailant

1994 ◽  
Vol 74 (2) ◽  
pp. 545-546 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine C. Kormos ◽  
Charles I. Brooks
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Prison Population ◽  
Acquaintance Rape ◽  
Relationship Status ◽  
Victim Blame ◽  
Prison Inmates ◽  
Female Victim ◽  
Male College ◽  
College Population ◽  
Male Perpetrator

53 male college students and 37 male prison inmates completed a questionnaire evaluating an hypothetical rape scenario with a male perpetrator and a female victim. The college students assigned equal blame to the victim regardless of whether the assailant was a stranger or an acquaintance, but the inmates assigned more blame to the victim when the assailant was a stranger than an acquaintance. The results may be interpreted as showing a greater awareness of date or acquaintance rape among the college population than among the prison population.

scholarly journals Discussing Atypical Sexual Harassment as a Controversial Issue in Bystander Programmes: One UK Campus Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 1252-1270
Author(s):  
Helen Bovill ◽  
Richard Waller ◽  
Kieran McCartan
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Controversial Issue ◽  
Female Victim ◽  
Ethical Subjectivity ◽  
Power Differentials ◽  
Convenience Sampling ◽  
Male Experience ◽  
Male Perpetrator ◽  
Enduring Power

AbstractThis research emanates from an anti-sexual violence bystander programme delivered at an English university. Fifteen students were identified through purposive and convenience sampling to take part in focus groups. Discussions emerged regarding atypical sexual harassment. There is a gap in the literature exploring sexual harassment outside of the male perpetrator and female victim narrative which this paper contributes to. This paper considers four conversational themes: ‘unwanted touching: women to men’, ‘sexual banter: women to men’, ‘sexual stereotypes: women and men’, and ‘developing stronger ethical subjectivity’. This paper recognises most sexual harassment occurs from men to women, and acknowledges criticism of focussing otherwise when resources are limited, noting this risks obscuring the enduring power differentials between the sexes. It contends that exploring a controversial issue, such as male experience of sexual harassment, might help bystander programmes by developing ethical subjectivity in undergraduate students. Exploring sexual behaviour as a spectrum may lead to counter hegemonic discourses to emerge.

Resilience and Support Networks for University Students with Disabilities

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 164
Author(s):  
María Leonila García Cedeño ◽  
Anicia Katherine Tarazona Meza ◽  
Robert Gonzalo Cedeño Mejía
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
University Students ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Support Networks ◽  
Pearson Correlation Coefficient ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Disabled Students ◽  
The Social ◽  
Student Resilience

Resilience is a phenomenon that can be studied in catastrophic situations but also in everyday matters such as disability, this being an alternative way of working in the environment that requires the adaptation of the social networks that contain and support people with this condition. The research was conducted at the Technical University of Manabí applied to the population of students with disabilities. The paper presents an analysis of support networks and their relationship with student resilience. The results related to the application of the Saavedra-Villalta test are shown, which allowed to correlate the level of resilience of the sample studied with the support networks. An analysis linked to the interpretation of the Pearson correlation coefficient is presented. The result obtained is presented by applying semi-structured interviews to a sample of 48 disabled students.

scholarly journals Social Study Resources and Social Wellbeing Before and During the Intelligent COVID-19 Lockdown in The Netherlands

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Llewellyn Ellardus van Zyl
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
University Students ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Rate Of Change ◽  
Latent Growth ◽  
Social Wellbeing ◽  
Latent Growth Modelling ◽  
The Social ◽  
Rate Of Decline

AbstractThe first intelligent COVID-19 lockdown resulted in radical changes within the tertiary educational system within the Netherlands. These changes posed new challenges for university students and many social welfare agencies have warned that it could have adverse effects on the social wellbeing (SWB) of university students. Students may lack the necessary social study-related resources (peer- and lecturer support) (SSR) necessary to aid them in coping with the new demands that the lockdown may bring. As such, the present study aimed to investigate the trajectory patterns, rate of change and longitudinal associations between SSR and SWB of 175 Dutch students before and during the COVID-19 lockdown. A piecewise latent growth modelling approach was employed to sample students’ experiences over three months. Participants to complete a battery of psychometric assessments for five weeks before the COVID-19 lockdown was implemented, followed by two directly after and a month follow-up. The results were paradoxical and contradicting to initial expectations. Where SSR showed a linear rate of decline before- and significant growth trajectory during the lockdown, SWB remained moderate and stable. Further, initial levels and growth trajectories between SSR and SWB were only associated before the lockdown.

Academic Harassment: Sex and Denial in Scholarly Garb

1988 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise F. Fitzgerald ◽  
Lauren M. Weitzman ◽  
Yael Gold ◽  
Mimi Ormerod
Keyword(s):  
Women Students ◽  
Structural Analysis ◽  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
University Students ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
University Professors ◽  
Sexual Interaction ◽  
Sexual Involvement ◽  
Male Faculty

Although much has been written concerning the sexual harassment of university students, no research has yet directly examined the behaviors of university professors themselves. The present study describes the responses of 235 male faculty members of a prestigious, research-oriented university who responded to a survey inquiring about social and sexual interaction among faculty and students. Although the majority of the responses focused on mentoring and social interactions, a sizable minority (26%) reported sexual involvement with women students. In addition to item frequencies, a structural analysis of the phenomenon of academic harassment is presented, and discussed in the context of the subjects' responses to an open-ended invitation to comment on the study.

How Snowden’s revelations have influenced youngsters’ attitude and behaviour in the PRC and Taiwan

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 213-231
Author(s):  
Kiyoshi Murata ◽  
Yasunori Fukuta ◽  
Andrew A. Adams ◽  
Dang Ronghua
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Studying Abroad ◽  
The Social ◽  
State Surveillance ◽  
Questionnaire Surveys

Purpose This study aims to investigate how Snowden’s revelations are viewed by young people in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan through questionnaire surveys of and follow-up interviews with university students in the two countries, taking into account the histories and current status of state surveillance in these countries and the current complicated and delicate cross-strait relationships. Design/methodology/approach Questionnaire surveys of 315 PRC and 111 Taiwanese university students (a majority studying in those places but a few studying abroad) and semi-structured follow-up interviews with 16 master’s course students from the PRC and one from Taiwan (all studying at Meiji University in Japan) were conducted, in addition to reviews of the literature on privacy and state surveillance in the PRC and Taiwan. The outcomes of the survey were statistically analysed and qualitative analyses of the interview results were also performed. Findings Youngsters living in the PRC had greater interest in and more knowledge about Snowden’s revelations than those living in Taiwan, and the revelations were positively evaluated in both countries as serving public interest. However, PRC students indicated they were less likely to emulate Snowden than those from Taiwan did. Originality/value This study is the first attempt to investigate the social impact of Snowden’s revelations on PRC and Taiwanese youngsters’ attitudes towards privacy and state surveillance as part of cross-cultural analyses between eight countries.

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