NCJ Number
227107
Journal
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology Volume: 53 Issue: 3 Dated: June 2009 Pages: 305-315
Date Published
June 2009
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This study investigated the levels and types of rape myths and their relationship to various demographic and behavioral variables in a sample of men arrested for soliciting sex.
Abstract
The participants in this study indicated low rape myth acceptance, with half of the sample endorsing no rape myths. Of the three rape myths most frequently endorsed, only one seemed directly related to prostitution ("when women go around braless or wearing short skirts and tight tops, they are just asking for trouble") in the sense that men who endorse this myth might see rape and violence toward prostitutes as being justified or they might believe that prostitutes were deserving of violence because of their provocative clothing. Nonetheless, the finding that rape myth was similarly low in both sex trade consumers and nonconsumers had positive implications for prostitution diversion programs. In an effort to characterize the attitudes and characteristics of men who solicit sex, this study investigated rape myth acceptance as assessed by a modification of Burt's Rape Myth Acceptance Scale. Rape myths, defined as "prejudiced, stereotyped, or false beliefs about rape, rape victims, and rapists" (Burt, 1980) serve to justify sexual violence in part by blaming victims for the rape. The 530 male study participants took part in the Prostitution Offender Program of British Columbia after being arrested for attempting to solicit sex from an undercover police officer. Tables and references