Alcohol’s Role in Sexual Assault Perpetration

n Definitions Rape includes some type of penetration due to force, threat of force, lack of consent, or inability to give consent Sexual Assault any type of forced sex including forced touching or kissing; verbally coerced intercourse, and vaginal, oral, or anal penetration

Sexual assault researchers usually : –focus on adolescent and adult sexual assault experiences (not child abuse) –focus on female victims and male perpetrators because this is by far the most common situation –rely on self-reports rather than criminal records because most go unreported

n Approximately half of all sexual assaults involve alcohol consumption -- by the perpetrator, victim, or both n Usually when one is drinking alcohol, both are n If only one person is drinking, it is more likely to be the perpetrator than the victim

Sexual Assault Prevalence Rates n vary based on questions asked and sampling strategy n higher rates reported by victims than perpetrators n behaviorally-specific items produce higher rates

Victims’ Reports: n Tjaden & Thoennes (1998) –nationally representative sample of women (N = 8000) –18% victims of attempted or completed rape n Merrill et al. (1998) –women Navy recruits (N = 1891) –45% victims of attempted or completed rape n Koss et al. (1987) –nationally representative sample of college women (N = 3187) –27% victims of attempted or completed rape –additional 27% victims of other types of sexual assault

Perpetrators’ Reports: n Senn et al. (2000) –195 men from one city –8% committed rape or attempted rape –27% reported some type of sexual assault n Merrill et al. (1998) –1754 Navy recruits –15% committed rape or attempted rape n Koss et al. (1987) –2972 college men (nationally representative sample) –7.7% reported committing rape or attempted rape –25% reported committing some type of sexual assault

n Question phrasing and confidentiality assurances particularly important in assessing perpetration n Among college samples, range of reports based on these factors –up to 15% reporting rape –up to 58% reporting sexual assault

Phrasing of alcohol items important n Two types of alcohol strategies: –intentionally get women intoxicated (some states require this to be without her knowledge; some do not) –take advantage of a woman who is too intoxicated to give consent

Some general assumptions about perpetrators: n not all motivated by the same factors n no one theory or variable will explain all perpetrators’ behavior n common characteristics –traditional gender role beliefs –hostility toward women –early and frequent sexual experiences –childhood violence –delinquency –supportive peers –lack of empathy

What makes alcohol-involved sexual assaults unique? –alcohol consumption may help precipitate the assault – it may be a post hoc justification for the assault –or it may be confounded with other variables such as the perpetrator’s impulsivity

Two General Theories about Alcohol’s Effects on Perpetrator: Pharmacological Route Alcohol’s effects on cognitive processing –narrowed attention –focused on most salient cues –cognitive impairments make it easy to focus on own sexual arousal not victim’s discomfort or long-term consequences

Two General Theories about Alcohol’s Effects on Perpetrator (cont): Expectancy Route –beliefs about alcohol’s effects sex aggression disinhibition –stereotypes about drinking women –alcohol as a sexual signal Self-fulfilling prophecies

Describe findings from several studies: n Cross-sectional survey comparing characteristics of college perpetrators who committed assaults involving alcohol vs. those who did not n Longitudinal survey of college perpetrators focusing on those who committed assaults at multiple timepoints n Cross-sectional survey of community residents

Cross-Sectional Survey Alcohol-Involved Sexual Assaults Are there systematic differences between perpetrators who commit sexual assaults when they or the victim have consumed alcohol as compared to other perpetrators? Is there something unique about alcohol- involved sexual assaults?

Method n 356 male college students n urban, commuter university n average age: 24 n 57% Caucasian, 30% African American, 6% Arabic, 3% Asian n completed self-administered survey

Sexual Assault Measure n 16 item expanded version of SES –3 sexual contact –6 verbal coercion –7 attempted or completed rape n after each affirmative response, asked if alcohol consumed

Sexual Assault Perpetration Rates n 42% no perpetration n 58% at least one sexual assault –9% forced sexual contact –31% verbal sexual coercion –18% attempted or completed rape n Among sexual assaults –46% no alcohol –54% alcohol Almost always drank together so could not separate perpetrator’s and victim’s drinking

Results n Discriminant Function Analyses to compare the 3 groups of men: –no sexual assaults (n=151) –sexual assaults without alcohol (n=94) –sexual assaults with alcohol (n=111) n one significant function n conducted analyses of variance and Tukey tests to examine patterns of means

Hypothesis 1: Alcohol and No Alcohol Perpetrators Are Similar to Each Other – and Different from Nonperpetrators No Sex Asslt Sex Asslt Sex Asslt w/out Alc with Alc Antisocial Behaviors Delinquency1.57 a 1.99 b 2.32 b Aggressiveness1.48 a 1.55 b 1.58 b Dominance1.64 a 1.72 b 1.70 b Dating/Sexual Behaviors Misperception 1.42 a 2.44 b 3.55 c Casual sex behavior 3.01 a 5.03 b 6.92 b Hostile attitudes 2.42 a 2.66 b 2.81 b Sexual dominance1.68 a 1.94 b 2.09 b Means in the same row with different subscripts differ, p <.05

Hypothesis 2: Alcohol Perpetrators are Different from No Alcohol Perpetrators No Sex Asslt Sex Asslt Sex Asslt w/out Alc with Alc Alcohol Related Measures Monthly consumption a b Drink: sex 7.09 a 7.21a b Drink: misperception 2.52 a 3.07a 7.22 b Alcohol increases sex drive 3.09 a 3.20 a 3.78 b Women drink sexual cue 1.79 a 1.90 a 2.18 b Impulsivity 1.28 a 1.31 a 1.39 b Means in the same row with different subscripts differ, p <.05

Summary n Perpetrators of sexual assaults that involved alcohol and those that did not were similar to each other, and different from nonperpetrators, on traditional predictor variables: – antisocial traits and behaviors –impersonal approach to sex –hostile attitudes toward women

Summary n Perpetrators of sexual assaults that involved alcohol differed from other perpetrators and from nonperpetrators on alcohol-related predictor variables: – alcohol consumption –beliefs about alcohol –beliefs about drinking women –impulsivity

Future Research Directions n Alcohol as a specific strategy n Large enough samples to separate perpetrator’s and victim’s alcohol consumption n Focus on quantity of alcohol consumed

Longitudinal Survey Are Their Unique Characteristics of Repeat Assailants? Lack of longitudinal studies of perpetrators Makes it impossible to determine temporal precedence or causality Do some perpetrators learn from their mistakes?

Method n 197 college men completed survey twice, one year apart n first survey asked about sexual assault perpetration since age 14 n second survey asked about sexual assault perpetration since last survey n average age: 23 n 66% Caucasian, 18% African American, 6% Asian, 5% Arabic

Measures assessed at Time 1 n Hostility toward women n Callous attitudes toward women n Acceptance of verbal pressure to obtain sex n Age of first consensual sexual experience n Number of dating and sexual partners n Misperception of women’s sexual intentions n Alcohol consumption – in general as well as in dating and sexual situations n Delinquency n Peer approval of forced sex

Results n 35% reported committing some type of sexual assault at Time 1 n 14% reported committing some type of sexual assault in the one year time interval between the two surveys

4 mutually exclusive groups were formed: Non Assaulter: 59% (n=117) Past Assaulter: 26% (n=52) New Assaulter: 6% (n=11) Repeat Assaulter: 9% (n=17)

Hypothesis 1: Men who commit sexual assault at multiple timepoints (repeat assaulters) have the most extreme scores on many traditional predictors of perpetration. Repeat Assaulters vs. All Other Groups NoPastNewRepeat Hostile beliefs2.86a2.82a b Callous attitudes.47a.68a.25a1.36b Verbal pressure2.39a3.32b3.09ab5.13c Drink: sex1.91a1.82a1.29a3.32b Drink: date2.01a a2.95b Delinquency1.41a1.76b c Means with different subscripts differ significantly (p <.05) based on follow-up Tukey tests.

Hypothesis 2: Men who committed sexual assault earlier in life, but not during one year follow up (past assaulters) will be similar to repeat assaulters in their early and frequent sexual behavior and delinquency, but not in their hostility toward women. Assaulters in Past (Repeat or not) vs. No and New Groups No Past New Repeat # dates at T a 26.86b b Age 1st cons. sex 17.60a 16.47b b # sex partners at T1 5.14a 9.28b Means with different subscripts differ significantly (p <.05) based on follow-up Tukey tests.

Hypothesis 3: Men who committed sexual assault earlier in life but not during the one year follow up will influenced more than other men by situational factors including alcohol consumption, peer approval, and misperception. Assaulters in Past (only) vs. All Other Groups No Past New Repeat # women 1.31a 2.29b.73.82a misperceived Means with different subscripts differ significantly (p <.05) based on follow-up Tukey tests.

Hypothesis 4: There will be few men who first perpetrated sexual assault after the initial interview. These men will have scores similar to nonperpetrators on most measures and may be delayed sexually. Assaulters in Present vs. Other Groups NoPastNewRepeat # cons sex partners 1.33a b2.56b since T1 Means with different subscripts differ significantly (p <.05) based on follow-up Tukey tests.

Hypothesis 5: Among Time 1perpetrators, those who committed additional sexual assaults between the two timepoints can be distinguished from those who did not based on Time 1 responses to the sexual assault: men who repeat are less likely to experience remorse or to have learned from the experience. Past Repeat Felt remorse.78.31* Learned.50.13* Woman responsible * Self responsible

Summary n Men who committed sexual assaults at multiple timepoints had the most extreme scores on a number of traditional predictors of sexual assault perpetration n delinquency n hostile attitudes toward women n willingness to use verbal pressure to obtain sex n alcohol consumption

Summary (cont.) Men who committed sexual assault fairly early in life, but not again n Like repeaters, had more early and frequent dating and sexual experiences than other men n More likely than all other men to have frequently misperceived women’s sexual intentions n Unlike repeaters, experienced more remorse, felt they’d learned something, and held victim less responsible

Summary (cont.) n Past (only) comments: –“taught me a lesson early on” –“even now I feel like hell when I remember it” versus n Repeaters comments: –“I felt I had gotten something I was entitled to” –“trying to get something out of a dead end date”

Directions for Future Research n Follow a group of men from early adolescence into adulthood n Examine different trajectories – putting sexual assault into larger context of problem behavior n Develop and test interventions that intervene with early offenders that encourage remorse and empathy