Terry P. Humphreys

Perceptions of Sexual Consent: The Impact of Relationship History and Gender

The current study examined how situational (i.e., couple-specific relationship experience) and participant (i.e., gender) factors influence attributions about sexual consent. Four hundred and fourteen undergraduates were randomly assigned to read one of three vignettes in which consent for sexual intercourse was ambiguous. Within the three conditions the couples relationship history was manipulated. A 2 × 3 between subjects multivariate analysis of variance revealed that, as the degree of intimacy between the couple increased, perceptions of consent, acceptability, and clarity increased. A main effect for participant gender also was found. Men, more than women, perceived the scenarios as more consensual, acceptable, and clear regardless of relationship experience. No interaction was found. These findings are discussed in light of sexual precedence and sexual scripts.

The Complexities of Sexual Consent Among College Students: A Conceptual and Empirical Review

Headlines publicize controversies about sexual assault among college students, and universities face pressure to revise their sexual consent policies. What can the social science literature contribute to this discussion? In this article, we briefly discuss reasons for the recent upsurge in attention to these issues, the prevalence of sexual assault among college students, and aspects of college life that increase the risk of sexual assault and complicate sexual consent. We then review the conceptual challenges of defining sexual consent and the empirical research on how young people navigate sexual consent in their daily lives, focusing primarily on studies of U.S. and Canadian students. Integrating these conceptual issues and research findings, we discuss implications for consent policies, and we present five principles that could be useful for thinking about consent. Finally, we discuss some of the limitations of the existing research and suggest directions for future research.

The Sexual Consent Scale–Revised: Development, Reliability, and Preliminary Validity

The Sexual Consent Scale–Revised (SCS–R) measures an individuals beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors with respect to how sexual consent should be and is negotiated between sexual partners. This study extends previous research on sexual consent by revising a scale using the Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1991, 2001, 2005) as its theoretical foundation. The psychometric properties of the SCS–R were established using factor analysis, construct validity tests, as well as internal consistency and test–retest reliability. Five factors emerged: perceived behavioral control, positive attitude toward establishing consent, sexual consent norms, indirect consent behaviors, and awareness of consent. Results indicated that the SCS–R can be useful for examining a variety of research questions relating to sexual consent.

Evaluating the One-in-Five Statistic: Women’s Risk of Sexual Assault While in College

In 2014, U.S. president Barack Obama announced a White House Task Force to Protect Students From Sexual Assault, noting that “1 in 5 women on college campuses has been sexually assaulted during their time there.” Since then, this one-in-five statistic has permeated public discourse. It is frequently reported, but some commentators have criticized it as exaggerated. Here, we address the question, “What percentage of women are sexually assaulted while in college?” After discussing definitions of sexual assault, we systematically review available data, focusing on studies that used large, representative samples of female undergraduates and multiple behaviorally specific questions. We conclude that one in five is a reasonably accurate average across women and campuses. We also review studies that are inappropriately cited as either supporting or debunking the one-in-five statistic; we explain why they do not adequately address this question. We identify and evaluate several assumptions implicit in the public discourse (e.g., the assumption that college students are at greater risk than nonstudents). Given the empirical support for the one-in-five statistic, we suggest that the controversy occurs because of misunderstandings about studies’ methods and results and because this topic has implications for gender relations, power, and sexuality; this controversy is ultimately about values.

Cognitive Frameworks of Virginity and First Intercourse

Research has begun to examine the subjective meanings of virginity and first coitus, but little is known about how these understandings influence the first sexual intercourse event. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between virginity scripts and the approach taken and decisions made during first coitus. A quantitative measure of virginity interpretations (as gift, stigma, or process) was developed based on Carpenters (2001, 2005) qualitative interviews. Participants were university students (184 women and 31 men), all of whom had experienced consensual first penile–vaginal intercourse. Participants completed a quantitative questionnaire in the lab. Fifty-four percent of participants classified themselves as process oriented, 37.7% as gift oriented, and 8.4% as stigma oriented at the time of first coitus. The virginity scripts or frameworks were found to be related to age at first coitus, partner choice, length of relationship with first partner, planning, affective reaction to first coitus, and perceived impact on life. Virginity frameworks were unrelated to contraceptive use at first coitus. Results from this study suggest that Carpenters virginity frameworks can be successfully translated into quantitative measures that support links between how individuals interpret their virginity and the decisions they make at first coitus.

Sexual resourcefulness and the impact of family, sex education, media and peers

Building on a recently developed theoretical model of sexual self-control, 178 undergraduate women completed measures of learned resourcefulness, reasons for consenting to unwanted advances, and sexual self-efficacy – variables consistently shown to be unique predictors of sexual resourcefulness. Additional measures assessed in this investigation included media internalisation, peer values, parental and school discussions of sexual topics, body image preoccupation, body image satisfaction, and perceived timing of pubertal development. Along with the aforementioned unique predictors of sexual resourcefulness, receiving more information from the mother about dealing with unwanted sexual advances emerged as another direct contributor. Also in concurrence with past research, it was found that women scoring lower in sexual resourcefulness and having more reasons for consenting were more likely to engage in unwanted non-coercive sexual activities, with greater media pressures, higher appearance orientation and lower learned resourcefulness having a shared impact. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.

The role of learned resourcefulness in helping female undergraduates deal with unwanted sexual activity

We examined the relationship between learned resourcefulness skills and the manner in which undergraduate heterosexual women handle unwanted sexual advances/activity. Participants consisted of 150 females completing a set of questionnaires assessing general learned resourcefulness, sexual giving-in experience, sexual resourcefulness, sexual self-efficacy and reasons for consent. The hypothesis that possessing a higher general repertoire of learned resourcefulness skills would uniquely predict greater sexual self-control with unwanted sexual advances was supported. Physical contact with men, greater sexual victimization, more reasons for consenting, and less use of sexual resourcefulness skills all directly contributed to voluntarily giving-in behavior. Implications for sexuality education and counseling are discussed.

Development of the Virginity Beliefs Scale

Past research on first sexual intercourse experiences and virginity has largely focused on using demographics such as age at first intercourse as predictors of future sexual behaviors and beliefs. Carpenter (2002, 2005) suggested a model of three virginity metaphors that describe how individuals perceive their virginity: gift, stigma, and process. Using Carpenters framework as a starting point, scale items were developed based on the conceptual understanding of the three metaphors. In Study 1 (N = 223, mean age = 19.9, SD = 2.4), 50 items were factor analyzed, yielding 22 items found to be strong indicators of the three metaphors; ten items for gift, eight for stigma, and four for process. The three subscales were validated using measures of gender-role beliefs and affective reactions to first intercourse. In Study 2 (N = 359, mean age = 19.7, SD = 2.4), confirmatory factor analysis was used to confirm the 22-item factor breakdown. The resulting Virginity Beliefs Scale is discussed in terms of how it applies to Carpenters original framework and its future research potential.