Citation

Brennan CL, Swartout KM, Goodnight BL, Cook SL, Parrott DJ, Thompson MP, Newins AR, Barron SRB, Carvalho J, Leone RM. Psychol. Violence 2019; 9(1): 48-55.

Affiliation

Georgia State University.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, American Psychological Association)

DOI

10.1037/vio0000179

PMID

31011472

PMCID

PMC6474339

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Research on college sexual violence perpetration suggests there are multiple groups of male perpetrators. It is important to understand the distinctions between perpetrator subgroups to determine appropriate prevention strategies, as multiple strategies may be necessary to address multiple types of perpetrators. However, previous studies on subgroups of sexually-violent college men have relied on theoretically based distinctions, and there is currently no consensus on how to best classify perpetrators based on their sexually violent behaviors. The purpose of the current study was to take a data-driven approach to identifying subgroups of sexually-violent college men to help clarify: 1) the number and size of cohesive subgroups of sexually-violent college men, and 2) the types of behaviors that characterize each group.

METHODS: 1,982 college men across five universities in the U.S. self-reported their past sexually-violent behaviors, using the Sexual Experiences Survey (SES; Koss et al., 2007).

RESULTS: Latent class analysis uncovered evidence for three groups: (1) a group unlikely to perpetrate any SV (88.6%); (2) a group likely to perpetrate SV using coercive tactics (verbal coercion or victim intoxication), but unlikely to use physical force (9.8%); and (3) a group likely to perpetrate the full range of SV (1.5%). Although the coercive tactics group was composed of men unlikely to use forceful tactics, it included the majority who attempted or completed rape based on legal definitions.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that there are multiple, distinct perpetrator subgroups and signal the need for multiple prevention approaches, including approaches that address campus social norms.

Language: en

Keywords

higher education; rape; sexual assault; social norms; violence