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Rape Myth Acceptance in College Students: How Far Have We Come?

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Abstract

Researchers have emphasized the significant roleof rape myth acceptance in individuals' predispositionto engage in sexually aggressive behavior, includingrape. The purpose of this study was to examine the current state of rape myth acceptance incollege students and the factors which differentiatedacceptance vs nonacceptance of rape myths. One hundredfifty-eightprimarily Caucasian respondents were provided with two measures of attitudes towardrape and asked the degree to which they agreed ordisagreed with each statement. Results indicated thatcollege students reported disagreement with rape myth statements. However, variations in the degreeof disagreement emerged; men and individuals who had notattended a rape awareness workshop expressed weakerdisagreement with rape myths than women and individuals who had attended a rape awareness workshop.Discriminant analysis of these variables successfullyidentified a core set of rape myths which differentiatedindividuals in terms of the degree to which they subscribed to rape-supportive attitudes.Conclusions were drawn regarding rape myth acceptanceand the need for further research.

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Hinck, S.S., Thomas, R.W. Rape Myth Acceptance in College Students: How Far Have We Come?. Sex Roles 40, 815–832 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018816920168

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