The Prevalence of Rape Myths and the Likelihood to Sexually Harass

Date

2018-05-08

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Abstract

This study assessed rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. These topics are heavily prevalent in today’s social media, where rape myths and victim blaming are promoted. The high frequency of sexual assault and sexual harassment among women creates an additional need for research. The researcher analyzed how predominant rape myths are and how likely individuals are to sexually harass. The researcher additionally examined how well people can define sexual assault, sexual harassment, and rape. Hypotheses stated that men would be more likely than women to exemplify rape supportive attitudes and higher likelihood ratings of sexual harassment. Former or current athletes were also predicted to depict higher scores on the rape supportive attitude scale and higher likelihood ratings of sexual harassment. Finally, it was predicted that sex education would decrease an individual’s level of rape supportive attitudes and their likelihood to sexually harass. Participants completed the Rape Supportive Attitude Scale and the Likelihood to Sexually Harass Scale (LTSHS). Participants also defined rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. Neither gender, athletic participation, nor knowledge of vocabulary significantly related to participants’ LSHS scores, RSAS scores, or their Comprehensive Sex Education (CSE) scores. Comprehensive sex education did not significantly relate to participants’ RSAS scores, LSHS scores, or their vocabulary definitions. There were no significant interactions between variables, but it is suspected that a small sample size contributed to the present findings.

Description

Thesis completed in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Alfred University Honors Program.

Keywords

Honors thesis, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment

Citation

DOI