Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The effect of sex role stereotype, victim and defendant race, and prior relationship on rape culpability attributions

  • Published:
Sex Roles Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The research addressed the influence of sex role stereotypes, victim and defendant's race, and the participants' relationship on perceptions of rape culpability by white respondents. Those who held traditional sex role stereotypes believed a rape victim to be more culpable than those with egalitarian stereotypes. In addition, respondents with traditional stereotypes perceived the defendant to be less culpable and less likely to commit a similar offense. Traditional stereotypes may contribute to a more stringent criteria for deciding that rape has occurred. Overall, respondents showed a bias against black rape victims and victims who had dated a black defendant. Rape defendants who had dated a black female were considered to be less likely to commit a similar act in future; thus, the propensity to rape was considered situationally specific.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Acock, A. C., & Ireland, N. K. (1983). Attribution of blame in rape cases: The impact of norm violation, gender, and sex-role attitude. Sex Roles, 9, 179–193.

    Google Scholar 

  • Billingham, P. & King, L. A. (1991). Sex role egalitarianism and heterosexual violence. Paper presented at the meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.

  • Bolt, M., & Caswell, J. (1981). Attribution of responsibility to a rape victim. Journal of Social Psychology, 114, 137–138.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bridges, J. S., & McGrail, C. A. (1989) Attributions of responsibility for date and stranger rape. Sex Roles, 21, 273–286.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brownmiller, S. (1975). Against our will: Men, women, and rape. New York: Simon and Schuster.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burczyk, K., & Standing, L. (1989). Attitudes toward rape victims: Effects of victim status, sex of victim, and sex of rater. Social Behavior and Personality, 17, 1–8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Calhoun, L. G., Selby, J. W., & Warring, L. J. (1976). Social perception of the victim's causal role in rape: An exploratory examination of four factors. Human Relations, 29, 517–526.

    Google Scholar 

  • Costin, F. (1985). Beliefs about rape and women's social roles. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 14, 319–325.

    Google Scholar 

  • Department of Health Education. (1987). Is dating dangerous? University of Kansas. Beak Healthy, 2, 5.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, S. S. M. (1989). Policing Domestic Violence. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Feild, H. S. (1979). A psycholegal analysis of the effects of victim, defendant, and case characteristics. Law and Human Behavior, 3, 261–284.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frazier, P. & Borgida, E. (1988). Juror common understanding and the admissibility of rape trauma syndrome evidence in court. Law and Human Behavior, 12, 101–122.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frieze, I. H., Parsons, J. E., Johnson, P. B., Ruble, D. N., & Zellman, G. L. (1978). Women and sex roles: A social psychological perspective. New York: Norton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giacopassi, D. J., & Dull, R. T. (1986). Gender and racial differences in the acceptance of rape myths within a college population. Sex Roles, 15, 63–75.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horowitz, I. A., & Willging, T. E. (1984). The psychology of law: Integrations and applications. Boston: Litte/Brown.

    Google Scholar 

  • Katkin, D. (1982). The nature of criminal law. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.

    Google Scholar 

  • Klein, K., & Creech, B. (1982). Race, rape, and bias: Distortion of prior odds and meaning changes. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 3, 21–33.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koss, M. P., & Burkhart, B. R. (1989). A conceptual analysis of rape victimization. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 13, 27–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koss, M. P., Dinero, T. E., Seibel, C. A., & Cox, S. L. (1988). Stranger and acquaintance rape. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 12, 1–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koss, M. P., Gidycz, C. A., & Wisniewski, N. (1987). The scope of rape: Incidence and prevalence of sexual aggression and victimization in a national sample of higher education students. Journal of Counseling, and Clinical Psychology, 55, 162–170.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krulewitz, J. E., & Kahn, A. S. (1983). Stereotypes for rape reduction strategies. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 7, 301–312.

    Google Scholar 

  • L'Armand, K. L., & Pepitone, A. (1982). Judgements of rape: A study of victim-rapist relationship and victim sexual history. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 8, 134–139.

    Google Scholar 

  • LaFree, G. D. (1982). Male power and female victimization: Toward a theory of interracial rape. American Journal of Sociology, 88, 311–328.

    Google Scholar 

  • LaFree, G. D., Reskin, B. F., & Visher, C. A. (1985). Juror's responses to victim's behavior and legal issues in sexual assault trials. Social Problems, 32, 389–407.

    Google Scholar 

  • Larson, K. S., & Long, E. (1988). Attitudes toward sex-roles: Traditional or egalitarian? Sex Roles, 19, 1–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • LeBeau, J. L. (1984). Rape and racial patterns. Journal of Offender Counseling Services, and Rehabilitation, 9, 125–148.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lipman-Blumen, J. (1984). Gender roles and power. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mazelon, P. M. (1980). Stereotypes and perceptions of the victims of rape. Victimology, 5, 121–132.

    Google Scholar 

  • Muehlenhard, C. L. (1988). Misinterpreted dating behaviors and the risk of date rape. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 6, 20–37.

    Google Scholar 

  • O'Brien, R. M. (1987). The interracial nature of violent crimes: A reexamination. American Journal of Sociology, 92, 817–835.

    Google Scholar 

  • Remer, R., & Whitten, B. J. (1988). Conceptions of rape. Violence and Victims, 3, 217–232.

    Google Scholar 

  • Renner, K., & Wackett, C. (1987). Sexual assault: Social and stranger rape. Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health, 6, 49–56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, K. M. (1988). Rape and seduction scripts. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 12, 237–245.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sherman, B. (1985, October). A new recognition of the realities of date rape. New York Times, pp. C1, C14.

  • Shotland, R. L., & Goodstein, L. (1983). Just because she doesn't want to doesn't mean it's rape: An experimentally based causal model of the perception of rape in a dating situation. Social Psycholgy Quarterly, 46, 220–232.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. E., Pine, C. J., & Hawley, M. E. (1988). Social cognitions about adult male victims of female sexual assault. Journal of Sex Research, 24, 101–112.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spencer, C. C. (1987). Sexual assault: The second victimization. In L. L. Crites & W. L. Hepperle (Eds.), Women, the courts, and equality. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tetreault, P. A., & Barnett, M. A. (1987). Reactions to stranger and acquaintance rape. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 11, 353–358.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ugwuegbu, D. C. E. (1979). Racial and evidential factors in juror attribution of legal responsibility. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 15, 133–146.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weidner, G., & Griffitt, W. (1983). Rape: A social stigma? Journal of Personality, 51, 152–166.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, L. S. (1984). The classic rape: When do victims report? Social Problems, 31, 459–467.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, J. & Holmes, K. (1982). In judgement of victims: The social context of rape. Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, 9, 154–169.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willis, C. E. (1990). The effect of opposite sex schemas and relationship intimacy on rape culpability attributions. Paper presented at the meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.

  • Willis, C. E., & Wrightsman, L. S. (1990). The influence relationship intimacy and victim eye contact rape responsibility attributions. In M. Saks (Chair), Decision-making in the courtroom. Symposium conducted at the meeting of the American Psychology and Law Society, Williamsburg, VA.

  • Wolfgang, M. E. (1974). The social scientist in court. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 65, 239–247.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wolfgang, M. E., & Reidel, M. (1975). Rape, race, and the death penalty in Georgia. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 45, 658–667.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wrightsman, L. S. (1987). Psychology and the legal system. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wyer, R. S., Bodenhausen, G. V., & Gorman, T. F. (1985). Cognitive mediators of reactions to rape. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 324–338.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska, 209 Burnett Hall, 68588-0308, Lincoln, Nebraska

    Cynthia E. Willis

Authors
  1. Cynthia E. Willis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Additional information

Appreciation is extended to Lawrence S. Wrightsman, Nyla Branscombe, Mark Barnett, and an anonymous reviewer for comments on an earlier draft of this paper. Data was collected at Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Willis, C.E. The effect of sex role stereotype, victim and defendant race, and prior relationship on rape culpability attributions. Sex Roles 26, 213–226 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00289708

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00289708

Keywords

Search

Navigation