Rape
Definition: Rape is defined as "nonconsensual oral, anal, or vaginal penetration, obtained by force, by threat of bodily harm or when the victim is unable of giving consent" (Koss, 1993, p. 1062)
Disclaimer: While men can also be victims of rape, the majority of rape victims are women. Hence, we will refer to the rapist as he and the victim as she. This helps simplify the writing but it does not mean that men cannot be victims. The article Rape by Women has more information on cases of rape where a female is the perpetrator.
|
Intro
Rape is a crime of violence--not passion. It is a traumatic and life-threatening experience--one that cannot be forgotten easily. It leaves a victim full of fear, doubt, and anger. Not only does it affect the victim, the pain ripples through her family and friends. Rape can take years to get over, if victims are ever able to fully recover. The most important thing to remember is that survivors are not to blame for the crime.
Date Rape
Although most people imagine rape to be committed by strangers in dark alleys at night, it is actually true that the majority of rapes are committed by someone that you know. Date rape and acquaintance rape are forced or unwanted intercourse with someone that you know. Both are acts of violence, violations of your body and rights, and are crimes. Rape is an attempt to exert power and anger over another person. Most rapists are sexually aggressive to make up for their insecurities. Forcing sex makes them feel stronger and feeds their egos.
Gang Rape
While acquaintance rape and date rape, which are commonly referred to as the same thing, are the most common types of rape, there are also several other types of rape that occur. The first is gang rape, occurring when a victim is sexually assaulted by more than one person. This type of rape tends to take place where there are pre-existing male bonds, such as on athletic teams, in fraternities, and within military units. According to a study done in 1991 by Boeringer, Shehan, and Akers, gang rapes tend to include more alcohol and drug use, fewer weapons, more night attacks, less victim resistance, and more severe psychological outcomes than individual rapes.
Marital Rape
The next kind of rape is marital rape, which is probably underreported and takes place in our society more often than most people think. This occurs anytime a wife is forced to have sex with her husband when she does not want to. Women who are victims of marital rape also tend to be victims of verbal and physical abuse from their spouses. Some others may believe the abuse was the fault of the victim because for not eagerly providing sex to their husbands as they "should". Until recently, there was no legal basis in the United States for a victim to claim marital rape. Defining and making martial rape illegal is a positive step in reducing its occurrence and empowering its victims. As in all instances of rape, it is important that the victim is not blamed for her rape, or expected to have sex with her husband just because she is married to him.
Prison Rape
A third type of rape is prison rape. This type of rape usually involves male on male forcible contact. It is believed that this type of rape may occur for several reasons, which are to assert dominance, to "prove their manhood," to satisfy sexual needs, and to exert power over other inmates. In most cases the assailant considers himself to be heterosexual, and is usually not prosecuted for the offence.
Wartime Rape
Another type of rape is wartime rape. Since ancient times it has been a common military war tactic for an attacking army to invade a village or city and rape the women there to establish dominance over and to humiliate their enemy. Nearly every war has had a history of women being raped by opposing soldiers. In most countries, it is now a punishable offence to carry out acts of rape on enemies as a means of gaining a militant advantage.
Motivations for Rape
While it is unclear what motivates a person to commit an act of rape, there are certain motives that have been classified. The first is power. Power rape is basically being motivated by the desire to control and dominate the victim. Most often the intent in these kind of rapes are not to injure the victim, but more to gain control by using just enough force to get a victim to comply with the rapist's wishes, but not enough force to actually hurt a victim.
The next motivation for rape is anger. Anger rape is generally very spontaneous, as emotions take over the rapist and make him do things he normally wouldn't do if he had a chance to think about it. Sexual gratification is typically never sought by the rapist; instead the rapist is consumed by a resentment towards women that makes him feel as though something should be done to punish them and achieve some type of revenge. Anger rape is more violent than power rape, and more often than not, it occurs between two total strangers.
Sadism rape is another motivation for rape. Sadistic rapes are usually preplanned and have a history of being the most brutal, with tactics such as torture, bondage, and sexual abuse involved. This is the least common type of rape, which is fortunate because it is the most gruesome, with the rapist getting pleasure from hurting and degrading his victim.
Finally, there is rape as a means of sexual gratification. Most acquaintance rapes and date rapes fall into this category, where only enough force is used to compel the victim to comply; and where violence only occurs if the victim offers resistance of some sort. This is the most common type of rape.
Common Rape Situations
Rape usually occurs when a man and woman are alone together, but they do not need to be completely alone. Some rapes occur in bedrooms at parties or when roommates are in the other room. Complete isolation is not needed for a rape to occur.
Alcohol and drugs are usually significant factors in date rape situations. These substances affect the judgment of both the rapist and the survivor. The man might not hear "No" and the woman might have difficulty expressing her negative feelings about the situation because she is too inebriated. Roofies are another drug that can make the victim pass out and put her at risk of rape. If a victim is under any type of influence and is not capable of giving consent, sexual encounters are actually rape. It is important to use moderation when using alcohol to reduce your chances of being raped, or raping someone else.
Causes of Rape
There are three main causes of rape: socialization, mixed signals (miscommunication), and changing times. Socialization explains how men and women are raised to have different gender roles. Some men are socialized to be aggressors and some women are socialized to be the nonassertive peacemakers. These roles often play out in date rapes if men become more aggressive and women become more passive--because that is their "role".
Date rape sometimes results from mixed signals and miscommunication. This can occur if the woman does not know what she wants and changes her mind as she goes. Instead, women need to set clear boundaries before the interaction begins. Men must also realize that "No" means "No." Some males think that they just need to persuade the woman if she says "No". This is not true. If a woman says "No", she means "No" and he should stop there.
Changing times have altered our ideas about sex in general. Women are beginning to engage in sexual activities at a younger age. More women are using birth control and having sex. These factors combined may cause men to have a general assumption that they are going to have sex on the first date. This assumption, when turned down, can cause the male to get upset. Some men may believe that they are entitled to sex after a certain number of dates. However, women always have the right to say "I don't want to", "I don't know you well enough", or "I don't love you" to prevent an unwanted situation or event to happen.
References
Bennice, J.A. & Resick, P.A. (2003). Marital Rape: History, Research, and Practice. Trauma, Violence and Abuse, 4(3), 228-246.
Bergen, R. K. (2004). Studying Wife Rape: Reflections On the Past, Present and Future. Violence Against Women, 10(12), 1407-1416.
Koss, Mary P. (1993). Rape: Scope, Impact, Interventions, and Public Policy Responses. American Psychologist, 48: 1062 – 1069
Whatley, M.A. (2005). The Effect of Participant Sex, Victim Dress, and Traditional Attitudes on Causal Judgments for Marital Rape Victims. Journal of Family Violence, 20(3), 191-200.
Updated 4/28/2007