Great Sexpectations: The Application of Sexual Social Exchange Theory to Date Rape

In a two-part study, dating sexual expectations will be evaluated and the sexual social exchange theory will be investigated in a date rape trial. In Part 1, participants (N = 100) will be presented with one of two fictional date scenarios that will differ only on the cost of the date (i.e., $30 or$175). Participants will then indicate what behaviors (sexual and not sexual) are appropriate at the end of a first date and then a fifth date. It is predicted that all participants will expect sexual intercourse more on the fifth date than the first, and that participants in the expensive date scenario will expect sexual intercourse more than participants in the inexpensive date condition. Part II will use the information gathered in Part I to investigate how sexual expectations in a dating scenario may manifest themselves as feelings of reciprocity in the sexual social exchange theory. In Part II participants (N = 160) will be presented with one of four trial summaries that differ depending on the cost of the date (i.e., $30 or$175) and the date number (i.e., first or fifth). Participants will render a verdict and then rate the defendant and alleged victim on various rating factors (e.g., credibility), in addition to completing the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance scale, short form. It is predicted that there will be fewer guilty verdicts and lower pro-victim judgments for both men and women when the cost of the date was high and when the couple was on their fifth date. It is also predicted that men will render fewer guilty verdicts and report lower pro-victim attitudes than women. Juror rating subscales (e.g., victim credibility) and rape myth acceptance scores are predicted to mediate the effects of the cost of date and date number on verdict. The results will be discussed in terms of how the sexual social exchange theory can explain juror perceptions in a date rape trial

Pulling the Trigger on Disarming Domestic Violence Abusers: Implementing Gun Confiscation Policy in Urban and Appalachian Kentucky

The present study investigated why communities differing in culture and resources are willing and able to implement gun confiscation as part of a protective order. Specifically, this study explored whether the perceived risk of intimate partner homicide and gun violence, benefits to engaging in gun confiscation, barriers to gun confiscation, community norms about guns, and community readiness to implement gun confiscation: (a) differ in urban and rural communities, (b) are perceived differently by victim service and justice system key professionals within urban and rural communities, and (c) are related to if a community is able and willing to consistently implement procedures that mandate gun confiscation of abusers as part of a protective order. Interviews, guided by an adapted guiding conceptual framework, were conducted with key professionals (N = 133) who work both in victim services and the justice system from a targeted urban community and four Appalachian communities in Kentucky. First, implementing gun confiscation procedures to disarm abusers in rural communities does not seem likely or feasible compared to the urban community given the lower perceived risk-benefit of gun confiscation, importance of gun culture, and limited resources in the selected rural communities. Second, urban justice system professionals, in comparison to urban victim service professionals, reported fewer barriers to enforcing the gun confiscation policy and were more likely to downplay law enforcement limitations in the community and attribute the ineffectiveness of the gun confiscation policy to reasons outside their control. Third, the perceived risk of intimate partner gun violence was associated with consistently implementing in gun confiscation at the emergency protective order (short-term) level, and the perceived community approval of the policy was associated with engaging in consistent gun confiscation at the domestic violence order (longer-term) level. Fourth, both urban and rural professionals pointed out potential unintended negative consequences to implementing the gun confiscation policy, such as violation of second amendment rights and increased danger for victims who seek protective orders. The results have implications for developing more effective strategies for increasing a community’s ability and motivation to enforce gun policy that keep guns out of the hands of dangerous abusers

Juror Bias in Perceptions of Lesbian Intimate Partner Violence

Homophobic attitudes pervade our society and specifically our justice system, which negatively impact legal protection for lesbian victims of intimate partner violence (IPV). Juror stereotypes about IPV victims and perpetrators as well as their biases based on sexual orientation may be a hindrance to IPV cases being reported and successfully prosecuted. The primary goal of this study was to investigate the impact that mock jurors’ attitudes toward homosexuals and gender roles, and their acceptance of myths about domestic violence had on their perceptions of lesbian IPV. Heterosexual undergraduate students (N = 259) read a trial summary in which the defendant was charged with physically assaulting her same-sex partner. The trial varied as to whether the victim and defendant were depicted via images as feminine or masculine and thus were either stereotypical or counter-stereotypical. Participants rendered verdicts and made judgments about the victim and defendant (e.g., credibility, sympathy). Results indicated that a masculine victim indirectly increased the likelihood of rendering guilty verdicts by increasing anger toward the defendant. Participants with negative attitudes toward lesbians rated the defendant as low in credibility, and when the victim was masculine, these participants had more anger toward the defendant than participants with more positive attitudes. Participants high on hostile sexism (i.e., attitudes that justify male power) or domestic violence myth acceptance (i.e., endorsement of false beliefs that justify physical aggression against intimate partners) minimized the seriousness of the incident, which decreased the likelihood of rendering guilty verdicts. Participants low in benevolent sexism (i.e., feelings of protectiveness toward women that support traditional gender roles) rated the incident as lower in seriousness and had less anger toward the defendant for a feminine victim paired with a masculine defendant. Participants high in benevolent sexism rated the incident as less serious when the victim and defendant were both feminine, and had more anger toward the defendant when the victim was masculine and the defendant was feminine. Results provide insight into the relationships between victim and defendant stereotypicality and individual differences in attitudes on mock juror decision-making in lesbian IPV cases

Breaking the silence : uncovering the gendered communication patterns before, during, and after instances of sexual assault at NESCAC colleges

Sexual assault is a pervasive problem that many college women face. This study explores the gendered communication patterns employed by men and women prior to, during, and after instances of heterosexual sexual assault on New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) college campuses. It was hypothesized that gender plays a role in instances of sexual assault in that norms of masculinity and femininity influence the communication employed by men and women, with women\u27s voices being silenced, muted, and ignored and men\u27s voices being assertive and dominant. Nine mental health and sexual assault professionals, from eight different colleges, were interviewed to discuss the communication patterns they have observed in working with survivors and perpetrators. The results of this study indicate that communication patterns are gendered in that women\u27s voices are muted and ignored during and after the assault, and their voices are silenced after the assault. The communication patterns of men appear to be either controlling in that they knowingly commit assaults, or unclear in that the perpetrators report acting on miscommunication. Most assaults occur after social situations of partying and substance use. This study demonstrates that internalized notions of masculinity and femininity play a role in sexual assault