Attributions of Victim Responsibility, Pleasure, and Trauma in Male Rape

Journal of Sex Research, Nov, 1999 by Damon Mitchell, Richard Hirschman, Gordon C. Nagayama Hall

It has been shown in laboratory experiments that people often hold rape victims somewhat responsible for their fate (Dietz & Byrnes, 1981; Kanekar & Kolsawalla, 1980; Muehlenhard, 1988). Typically, the focus of such studies is on participants' perceptions of female victims who have been sexually assaulted by men. An often overlooked and underestimated sexually aggressive behavior is that of male-on-male sexual assault. This type of sexual assault has been recognized as a widespread occurrence in prisons (Sagarin, 1976; Scacco, 1982). In recent years there have been a growing number of clinical reports on male rape among nonincarcerated adults (Goyer & Eddleman, 1984; Groth & Burgess, 1980; Hickson et al., 1994; Kaufman, Divasto, Jackson, Voorhees, & Christy, 1980), but little empirical research in the area (Whatley & Riggio, 1993). The available clinical research suggests that male rape victims experience significant physical and psychological trauma from the assault (Goyer & Eddleman, 1984), and the limited empirical research suggests that, like their female counterparts, male rape victims are held somewhat responsible for being assaulted (Whatley & Riggio, 1993).

An accurate picture of the frequency of male rape in the general population is difficult to determine. Surveys of college students have indicated that a significant proportion of college males have been pressured or forced into sex by both males and females (Struckman-Johnson, 1988; Struckman-Johnson & Struckman-Johnson, 1994). A recent survey of sexual assault among homosexual men in England found that about 25% of the sample had been subjected to nonconsensual sex at some point in their lives (Hickson et al., 1994). However, such surveys reflect a range of sexually harassing and sexually aggressive behaviors other than male rape. The FBI does not report figures for male rape because it defines rape as a sexual assault involving a female victim (Allison & Wrightsman, 1993), and available crime statistics provide a crude estimate of its true incidence. According to 1995 crime estimates, approximately 19,390 males above the age of 12 were the victims of rape or attempted rape (U.S. Department of Justice, 1997). However, this figure also reflects males sexually assaulted by females. Furthermore, the vast majority of male rapes are thought to go unreported (Calderwood, 1987). Given the social stigma associated with male rape, it seems likely that male rapes are even more under-reported than rape involving a female victim.

Clinical research on male rape has only recently begun to appear in the literature and tends to concern relatively small numbers of patients presenting to emergency rooms or seeking some type of psychological help (Goyer & Eddelman, 1984; Kaufman et al., 1980; Myers, 1989). These studies do not support the stereotype that male rape is primarily committed by homosexual assailants against heterosexual victims. In contrast, both homosexual and heterosexual assailants assault men of either sexual orientation (Groth & Burgess, 1980; Hickson et al., 1994). Typically, male rape victims are sodomized and/or forced to perform fellatio on their attacker(s) and are often physically assaulted as well. In addition, male rape victims are more likely than female rape victims to be gang raped. Although the stereotype may be that men would not be as powerfully affected by such an event as women because they are supposedly tougher emotionally and better able to cope, there is a similarity in the reaction between male rape victims and the rape trauma syndrome observed in female rape victims (Calderwood, 1987; Mezey & King, 1989).

Reactions to rape victims are different from reactions to victims of other kinds of assault in that victims of other crimes are not viewed with such suspicion and doubt (Allison & Wrightsman, 1993). If heterosexual men have strong fears about reporting their assault, what does that suggest for gay men who have been sexually assaulted? It seems likely that when it comes to reporting a male rape, homosexual victims may have even more misgivings than heterosexual victims. Mezey and King (1990) noted that many homosexual victims did not report being raped because they believed the police would be unsympathetic and perceive them as "asking for it."

Research on observer reactions to rape victims has been largely laboratory based due to the constraints of studying such phenomenon in a naturalistic manner (Edmonds & Cahoon, 1986; Muehlenhard, Friedman, & Thomas, 1985). Similarly, laboratory analogues have been used to examine the expression of sexually aggressive and physically aggressive behavior (Hall & Hirschman, 1994; Taylor, 1986). Laboratory research on observer reactions to rape victims has focused almost exclusively on victims of male-on-female sexual assault. In one of the few studies of observer reactions to a sexual assault of a male victim by a female perpetrator, the male victim was rated as more likely to have encouraged or initiated the assault, to have experienced more pleasure from the assault, and to have experienced less trauma from the assault than other victim-assailant combinations (e.g., female victim-male assailant). Male participants seemed especially unsympathetic to the victim; 47% rated the assault as pleasurable for the victim (Smith, Pine & Hawley, 1988). The limited research on victim blame in male-on-male sexual assault suggests that (a) males