Sheri E. Pegram

Review of Survey and Experimental Research That Examines the Relationship Between Alcohol Consumption and Men’s Sexual Aggression Perpetration:

This article systematically reviews empirical studies that examine associations between alcohol consumption and men’s sexual aggression with the goal of identifying major findings; gaps in current knowledge; and directions for future research, practice, and policy. We identified 25 cross-sectional surveys, 6 prospective studies, and 12 alcohol administration experiments published between 1993 and August 2013 with male college students and young adult (nonincarcerated) samples. Many cross-sectional surveys have demonstrated that distal and proximal measures of men’s alcohol consumption are positively associated with sexual assault perpetration, although very few of these studies evaluated how alcohol interacts with other risk and protective factors to exacerbate or inhibit sexual aggression. There are surprisingly few surveys that examine alcohol’s effects at the event level and over short-time intervals to identify how changes in alcohol consumption are associated with changes in perpetration status. Alcohol administration studies suggest some important mechanisms that warrant additional investigation.

Sexual Assault Perpetrators’ Justifications for Their Actions Relationships to Rape Supportive Attitudes, Incident Characteristics, and Future Perpetration

Perpetrators use rape supportive attitudes and sexual assault incident characteristics to justify forcing sex on their victims. Perpetrators who can justify their behaviors are at increased risk for future perpetration. This study examined the relationships between rape supportive attitudes, sexual assault incident characteristics, and the post-assault justifications of 183 men sampled from the community who self-reported committing at least one act of sexual aggression. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that rape supportive attitudes, expectations for having sex, misperceptions of sexual intent, victims’ alcohol consumption, attempts to be alone with her, and the number of consensual sexual activities prior to the unwanted sex were significant predictors of perpetrators’ post-assault use of justifications. Greater use of justifications was a significant predictor of sexual aggression over a 1-year follow-up interval. These findings demonstrate the need for further research exploring when and why perpetrators use post-assault justifications and whether they are amenable to change.

Friends matter: Protective and harmful aspects of male friendships associated with past-year sexual aggression in a community sample of young men

OBJECTIVES We extended past research on sexual violence etiology by examining the impact of perceived pressure to have sex by any means and the types of objectifying and egalitarian language that friends used when discussing women. METHODS We examined a community sample of young single men interested in dating women (n = 423) who completed audio computer-assisted self-interviews at baseline (spring/summer 2008) and 1 year later (spring/summer 2009). We used hierarchical logistic regression analyses that controlled for baseline sexual aggression. RESULTS Approximately one quarter of participants (n = 108) reported that they made a woman engage in some type of sexual activity during the past year when they knew she was unwilling or unable to consent. Past-year perpetrators perceived more pressure from their friends to have sex by any means, felt less comfortable with their friends making egalitarian statements about women, and used more objectifying statements when describing how their friends talked about women compared with nonperpetrators. Seventy-eight percent of men were correctly classified by these predictors. CONCLUSIONS Mens discussions with each other about women could foster an environment that encourages or discourages sexual violence. We discussed future research and prevention implications.

Associations Between Sexual Assault Severity and Psychological and Physical Health Outcomes Similarities and Differences Among African American and Caucasian Survivors

There are well-established associations between sexual assault victimization and deleterious psychological and physical health outcomes. The present study contributes to the emerging health disparities literature by examining similarities and differences in relationships between the severity of the sexual assault and health in a community sample of African American and Caucasian survivors. Although the overall pattern of relationships was expected to be comparable for all survivors, some associations were hypothesized to be stronger for African American survivors as compared with Caucasian survivors based on theories of chronic stress. Single, African American, and Caucasian women were recruited for a study of dating experiences through random digit dialing in one large metropolitan area. Participants who experienced a sexual assault since age 14 were included in this study (121 African American and 100 Caucasian women). Multigroup path analyses indicated that for both African American and Caucasian survivors, sexual assault severity was significantly positively associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and depressive symptoms were significantly positively associated with physical health symptoms. Among African American survivors, sexual assault severity affected physical health symptoms indirectly through its impact on depressive symptoms, and assault severity indirectly affected drinking problems through its impact on PTSD symptoms; these relationships were not found for Caucasian survivors. These findings highlight the need for additional research that focuses on health disparities in sexual assault survivors’ recovery process, so that treatment programs address culturally relevant issues.

Men’s responses to women’s sexual refusals: Development and construct validity of a virtual dating simulation of sexual aggression.

Objective: To provide evidence regarding the construct validity of a sexual aggression proxy in which male participants go on multiple virtual dates with a woman. A unique strength of this proxy is participants’ opportunity to make choices throughout the simulation about how they interact with their virtual date. These decisions determine their exposure to the female agent’s sexual refusals. Method: Piloting included focus groups (n = 82), surveys (n = 95), and cognitive interviews (n = 32). To establish construct validity, 87 male participants completed 2 separate sessions: a) an online survey with measures of discriminant and convergent validity; and b) a lab session in which they went on multiple dates that included nonsexual options, sexual options that the female agent accepted, and sexual options she refused. Sexual aggression was operationalized as the total number of sexual refusals that participants’ received. Results: There was strong correlational evidence for discriminant and convergent validity. As hypothesized, there were some differences in the risk factors associated with refusals received on casual as compared to steady dates. Additionally, the number of refusals received was associated with the types of thoughts and actions commonly reported by perpetrators. Conclusions: This simulation provides a new approach for examining sexual aggression in controlled experiments that vary factors within the simulation such as the man’s and woman’s intoxication and past sexual history. Because what happens is based on each individual’s responses, it could be adapted for use in prevention and treatment programs.

Psychological Trauma Exposure and Pain-Related Outcomes Among People with Chronic Low Back Pain: Moderated Mediation by Thought Suppression and Social Constraints

Background Research links people’s lifetime frequency of traumatic events to chronic pain. Attempts to suppress intrusive thoughts about trauma can paradoxically increase rumination, distress, and pain. Moreover, trauma-exposed individuals may experience social constraints against disclosure about their trauma, which might amplify thought suppression’s effect on pain.

Men Who Sexually Assault Drinking Women: Similarities and Differences With Men Who Sexually Assault Sober Women and Nonperpetrators

Little is known about the attributes of men who sexually assault drinking women as compared with men who sexually assault sober women and nonperpetrators. Findings from a cross-sectional survey of 548 men and a laboratory computer-simulated date completed by a subset (n = 87) support the hypothesis that both groups of perpetrators would share some common risk factors and differ regarding alcohol beliefs and consumption. Men who had previously assaulted a drinking woman gave their simulated date more alcohol to drink and perceived her as being more disinhibited. These findings demonstrate the power of alcohol expectancies and stereotypes about drinking women.

Predicting Men’s Immediate Reactions to a Simulated Date’s Sexual Rejection: The Effects of Hostile Masculinity, Impersonal Sex, and Hostile Perceptions of the Woman.

Objective: Aggression is a common response to many types of social rejection. Men who respond aggressively to a woman’s sexual rejection are likely to score high on risk factors associated with sexual aggression and to convince themselves that she is at fault. This study investigated how sexual dominance motivation and casual sex attitudes interact with “in-the-moment” hostile perceptions of the woman to predict the likelihood of an aggressive response. Method: Male participants (N = 77) completed an online survey including self-report measures of sexual dominance motivation and casual sex attitudes. In a separate session, participants completed a laboratory study in which they interacted with a female agent in a dating simulation, allowing them to make nonsexual choices, sexual choices that were accepted, and sexual choices that were rejected. Immediate responses to sexual rejection were categorized as aggressive (n = 25) or nonaggressive (n = 52). After the simulation ended, participants answered questions about their perceptions of the situation and the woman. Moderated multiple logistic regression analyses were used to test the hypotheses. Results: The hypothesized interactions were found such that men with high scores on sexual dominance motivation and positive attitudes about casual sex had a greater probability of responding aggressively when they formed extremely hostile perceptions of the woman who rejected them. Conclusions: These findings provide insight into the processes by which men respond aggressively to women’s refusals and highlight the need for training that encourages benevolent attributions and nonviolent strategies to deal with sexual rejection.

60 Men who sexually assault intoxicated women: similarities and differences with other perpetrators

Statement of purpose In approximately half of sexual assaults, the victim was under the influence of alcohol. The purpose of this study was to examine similarities and differences between perpetrators whose victims were drinking alcohol as compared to those whose victims were sober. Methods/Approach 556 men completed an online survey. Discriminant function analysis was conducted to distinguish between perpetrators with victims who had consumed alcohol (n=87) and perpetrators with sober victims (n=109). Some participants later completed a laboratory dating simulation in which they went on virtual reality dates. Univariate analyses of variance were conducted to compare perpetrators with intoxicated victims (n=19) and sober victims (n=26). Results Discriminant function analysis indicated that both groups of perpetrators had similar scores on personality traits including narcissism, and empathy. However, they differed on many attitudinal and behavioural characteristics. Men who assaulted women who had consumed alcohol reported higher levels of sexual dominance, positive attitudes about casual sex, rape myth acceptance, alcohol consumption, sex-related alcohol expectancies, and peer approval of getting drunk and forced sex. Further, they engaged in more sexual activity in the laboratory dating simulation, and gave themselves and the female agent more alcoholic drinks. Conclusions These findings illuminate important differences between men who assault intoxicated women as compared to men who assault sober women. Perpetrators who sexually assault women under the influence of alcohol have a constellation of beliefs and behaviour associated with women and alcohol that increase their risk of perpetration. Significance of Contributions to Injury and Violence Prevention Science Prevention programs need to consider the wide range of risk factors associated with sexual assault perpetration. Men who drink heavily and have strong sex-related alcohol expectancies need tailored programs to address these additional risk factors.