Some sources on sexual abuse of men and boys, part 1-5

facts_onfire2 · 2021-07-03T17:07:11+00:00

Here the king strikes again 😩👌

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:40:21+00:00

Additional studies:

High rates of female perpetration

Women's Sexual Aggression Against Men: Prevalence and Predictors

"In this study, we investigated the prevalence of women's sexual aggression against men and examined predictors of sexual aggression in a sample of 248 women. Respondents reported their use of aggressive strategies (physical force, exploitation of a man's incapacitated state, and verbal pressure) to make a man engage in sexual touch, sexual intercourse, or oral sex against his will. ... Almost 1 in 10 respondents (9.3%) reported having used aggressive strategies to coerce a man into sexual activities. Exploitation of the man's incapacitated state was used most frequently (5.6%), followed by verbal pressure (3.2%) and physical force (2%). An additional 5.4% reported attempted acts of sexual aggression."

Sexual Assaulters in the United States: Prevalence and Psychiatric Correlates in a National Sample

This is a 2012 research paper using data from the U. S. Census Bureau's nationally representative National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC, 2001-02). It found in a sample of 43,000 adults little difference in the sex of selfreported sexual perpetrators. Of those who affirmed that they had “ever force[d] someone to have sex … against their will,” 43.6% were female and 56.4% were male.

Sexual Victimization Perpetrated by Women: Federal Data Reveal Surprising Prevalence

"A 2013 survey of 1058 male and female youth ages 14–21 found that 9% self-reported perpetrating sexual victimization in their lifetime; 4% of youth reported perpetrating attempted or completed rape, which, again is defined to include any unwanted intercourse regardless of directionality (i.e., respondent reported that he/she “made someone have sex with me when I knew they did not want to”). While 98% of perpetrators who committed their first offence at age 15 or younger were male, by age 18–19 self-reports of perpetration differed little by sex: females comprised 48% of self-reported perpetrators of attempted or completed rape."

Religiosity and Delinquency among LDS Adolescents

In this study, data was collected from Mormons between the ages of 14 and 19. In a sample of 636 males and 754 females, 5% of both genders reported that they "forced or pressured someone to engage in sexual activities." Though, it's important to keep in mind that "pressure" is a very loose term and "sexual activities" does not necessarily mean intercourse, so that 5% figure most probably includes many things outside of the scope of "forced sex" (rape).

Sexually Aggressive Women: Current Perspectives and Controversies

Here is a survey from 1998 by Peter B. Anderson which found extremely high rates of sexual aggression in a sample of 461 women (on page 88 to 89 of the source).

Many of the women reported using abusive (but non-violent) strategies to obtain sexual contact with a man. These strategies were: using your position of power or authority (reported by 26.5% of women), getting him drunk or drugged (reported by 36.5% of women) and taking advantage of a man while he was in a compromising position (reported by 30.6% of women).

A staggering proportion of women used much more violent means, however. Approximately 20% (1 in 5) of the women reported using physical force, 27% (more than 1 in 4) reported using the threat of physical force, and 9% (almost 1 in 11) reported using a weapon to obtain sexual contact with a male partner.

Experiences With Dating Aggression and Sexual Coercion Among Polish College Students

In this 2008 study, dating aggression and sexual coercion was studied in Polish college women and men using the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS2). Data was gathered on the proportion of men and women reporting their own perpetration of sexual aggression, as well as the proportion of men and women reporting perpetration of sexual aggression by their partners.

While there was a larger sex difference in men and women's reports of their partners' perpetration of sexual aggression, self-reports of one's own perpetration of sexual coercion did not differ much by sex. 42% of men and 40% of women reported engaging in sexually coercive behaviours. A much smaller minority, 4% of men and 6% of women, reported engaging in severe sexual coercion. The authors note with regards to severe sexual coercion "It is important to recall that these behaviors meet legal standards for sexual assault (rape) in Poland". Chi-square analysis found no differences between men’s and women’s reports of their own sexually coercive behaviors.

Denial, Minimization, Partner Blaming, and Intimate Aggression in Dating Partners

Here is a 2007 study investigating intimate aggression towards a dating partner. Participants in the current study were 62 male and 77 female students from a large university located in southwestern Ontario. The CTS2 was used to survey participants. Sexual abuse was broken down into "minor" (3 items; e.g., “I made my partner have sex without a condom”) and "severe" forms (4 items; e.g., “I used force [like hitting, holding down, or using a weapon] to make my partner have sex with me”).

In the past year 15% and 7% of male students reported perpetration of minor and severe sexual coercion, respectively. Rates of sexual abuse perpetration were higher among female students, with 20% and 11% of female students reporting minor and severe forms of sexual coercion respectively.

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:41:03+00:00

Studies demonstrating shockingly high rates of sexual abuse of males

13,915 reasons for equity in sexual offences legislation: A national school-based survey in South Africa

"Occurrence of male child rape [in South Africa:] Weighted by province and urban/rural areas, 9% (based on 13915/127097) reported forced sex without consent in the last year. In answer to a separate question, 44% of 18 year-olds said they had "ever" been forced to have sex (weighted value of 5385/11450)."

"In response to the question about the sex of the perpetrator, 32% of those who answered (7755/23889) said the perpetrator was male, 41% (weighted value for 9879/23889) said she was female and 26% (6255/23889) said they had been forced to have sex by both male and female perpetrators. Male abuse of schoolboys was much more common in rural areas while female perpetration was more an urban phenomenon."

"Male schoolchildren in South Africa suffer high rates of sexual abuse, many of the assaults perpetrated in school. By the age of 18 years, two in every five schoolboys reported being forced to have sex, mostly by female perpetrators."

"This study was a cross-section of children present at sample schools during a single field visit. The anonymous, facilitated self-administered questionnaire prevented registering class members not present at the time of the visit, and no effort was made to contact those who were not present as this would make them identifiable as individuals. It seems reasonable to assume that, if anything, the survey underestimated sexual violence among schoolboys."

Commercial sexual exploitation of boys

It's not what you think: Sexually exploited youth in British Columbia

"Males were just as likely to be sexually exploited as females. Among younger street-involved youth (ages 12-18), a greater percentage of males were exploited (34% vs. 27% of females in 2006). Among older street-involved youth (ages 19-25), a higher percentage of females reported sexual exploitation (53% females vs. 32% males)."

"Both men and women sexually exploit youth. Although the majority of youth (70%) had been exploited by males, half of youth (50%) had also been exploited by females." Around 1 in 5 youth had been exploited by both men and women, nearly 1 in 3 had been exploited only by women, and half only by men.

The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in New York City

This is a study conducted by John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan on youths working as prostitutes in NYC. When the researchers put out a call for commercially sexually exploited children (CSEC), they ended up with far more boys than they expected. The boys ended up outnumbering the girls to such a degree that the researchers stopped accepting boys and tried to gather more girls who were being pimped.

Yet despite this effort, the researchers still found that almost half of the victims of CSEC were boys. Of the 249 children they included in the study, 119 were girls, 111 were boys, and 19 were transgender. Those results debunk the idea that only or mostly girls are prostitutes.

The researchers reported their own surprise at the large number of boys who showed up to be interviewed for their “self-reporting” study, which was not looking for gender differences. The report said:

“The large number of boys that were recruited was a surprise to the researchers because even though boys had been occasionally mentioned by policymakers, practitioners and some researchers prior to the beginning of data collection for this project, no one focused on boys as a significant segment of the market or said anything about the unique sets of problems – quite different from those of girls – that these boys face. For example, heterosexual boys that described their disgust and shame about having sex with men for money provided some of the most riveting, harrowing and heartbreaking accounts to come out of the mouths of the youth. And yet, they remain almost entirely invisible in the shadow cast by the stereotypical CSEC victims: pimped girls. While we might argue about the relative proportion of boys versus girls in the CSEC market, there can be little doubt that boys are far more numerous in CSEC markets than is commonly acknowledged. Policy makers and practitioners who are concerned about the growth of CSEC markets need to account for and respond to all of the youth that are swept into it, yet there is scant discussion about boys, and no services for them at all. "

Sex for overlevelse eller skyggebilder av kjærlighet?

This is a Norwegian report and is written in Norwegian, but there is an English summary towards the end. "The Ung i Oslo study, a representative study of approx. 12,000 youths in Oslo, showed that 2.1 percent of the boys and 0.6 percent of the girls had given sexual favours for payment. The mean age for first time sex selling experience was 13.5 years for boys and 14.1 years for girls."

Prevalence and correlates of exchanging sex for drugs or money among adolescents in the United States

This study examined the prevalence and correlates of exchanging sex for drugs or money among a nationally representative sample of 13,294 adolescents in the United States. Data was taken from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, waves I and II, and the lifetime prevalence of exchanging sex was estimated and a cross sectional analysis of sociodemographic and behavioural correlates was conducted. They found that two thirds (67.9%) of the youths who exchanged sex were boys.

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:49:13+00:00

If anyone wants to read the full text of these articles, just use sci-hub. Paste the link of the study here any of these websites and you can get the full text. It's how I'm accessing them.

https://sci-hub.se/

https://sci-hub.do/

https://sci-hub.st/

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:44:53+00:00

Discrimination in favour of female sex offenders

Decisions and attitudes concerning child sexual abuse: does the gender of the perpetrator make a difference to child protection professionals?

Here is a 1994 research paper. An investigation was conducted into whether child protection investigators, specifically social workers and the police, are as likely to take seriously a case of child sexual abuse if it had been perpetrated by a female rather than a male. What they found was that "social services involvement and social services investigation were considered significantly more appropriate by male social workers if the perpetrator was male as opposed to female. Registration of incidents as cases of child sexual abuse was viewed as more appropriate by all participants as a group if abuse had been carried out by a man rather than a woman. Finally, imprisonment was viewed by all participants and, particularly, policemen as more appropriate for male perpetrators rather than female child sexual abusers." The only finding of theirs that runs counter to the pro-female/anti-male biases here was that female social workers viewed prosecution of the perpetrator as more appropriate if the perpetrator was female than male.

Sex-Based Sentencing: Sentencing Discrepancies Between Male and Female Sex Offenders

I find this one uproariously funny. This is an article published in the journal "Feminist Criminology" attempting to examine the utility of the evil woman hypothesis by examining sentencing discrepancies between male and female sex offenders. They used National Corrections Reporting Program data to identify sex offenders for the years 1994 to 2004 and the sentences they received for specific sex offences.

The hypothesis for their study predicted that women would receive longer sentences than men for sex offences. And they did indeed find a significant difference in sentence length between men and women, but not in the direction they expected. Men received longer sentences for sex offences than women.

Evaluations of sexual assault: perceptions of guilt and legal elements for male and female aggressors using various coercive strategies

Participants (N = 423; 276 women and 147 men) read a vignette depicting either a couple having consensual sex (control), or a male or female aggressor who initiates sexual intercourse via verbal coercion, use of alcohol, or physical abuse. College students were provided with legal instructions of sexual assault then asked to provide a verdict, degree of guilt, and legal components. Female aggressors were rated less guilty than male aggressors.

Punitive Attitudes Toward Individuals Convicted of Sex Offenses: A Vignette Study

"The public holds stereotypical beliefs about sex crimes, its perpetrators, and its victims, which may influence punitive attitudes toward individuals convicted of sex offenses (ICSOs)."

"Using a nationally representative vignette survey experiment, we examined whether this punitivity toward ICSOs was influenced by deviations from the stereotypical sex crime case. We also explored whether these influences differed between adult and child victim crimes, and whether they differed between sentencing and post-release supervision policy preferences."

"We found that the respondents consistently recommended more lenient punishments for female perpetrators and harsher punishments for child victim crimes."

"Overall, while punitivity toward ICSOs was generally high, the most punitivity was reserved for male perpetrators and child victim crimes."

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:44:48+00:00

Discrimination against male victims of sexual assault.

Differences in Legal Outcomes for Male and Female Children Who Have Been Sexually Abused

"The goal of the present study was to determine whether or not there were sex differences in legal outcomes for children who were sexually abused. Using the methodology of Joa and Edelson (2004), the results indicated that males who were sexually abused had poorer legal outcomes than females. Specifically, it was found that cases involving male victims were less likely to be filed with the District Attorney (DA) than cases involving female victims and had fewer criminal counts charged. For those children seen at a Child Abuse Assessment Center, cases involving female victims were significantly more likely to be filed by the DA's office than were cases involving male victims."

Gender differences in medical students' attitudes towards male and female rape victims

A study examining attitudes towards female and male rape victims among 240 UK medical students (120 females and 120 males) using the Attitudes Towards Rape Victims Scale (ARVS). Half of the participants received the female rape questionnaire (where the statements referred to female rape victims) and half of the participants received the male rape questionnaire (the questions were the same as on the female rape questionnaire but the focal victim in the statements was male).

The researchers found that "Attitudes towards male rape victims ... were significantly more negative than attitudes towards female rape victims".

“Honey, We Don't Do Men”: Gender Stereotypes and the Provision of Services to Sexually Assaulted Males

This is an old study from 1996 (so the situation might have improved), but it is the only research study I am aware of which has sought to examine the provision of services to adult, noninstitutionalised male victims of sexual assault. This investigation found that many of the rape crisis providers and law enforcement agencies contacted held common stereotypes about male rape. The belief that men could not be raped or that they were raped only because they wanted to be was frequently endorsed.

One law enforcement representative bluntly stated "Honey, we don't do men". She laughingly asked, "What would you want to study something like that for? Men can't be raped." Another law enforcement representative said "Most males which are fondled or sodomized are males that want to be sodomized."

In addition, more than one third (37%) of the agencies initially contacted reported that they would not provide services to a male victim because their crisis services were geared specifically toward the needs of women.

Perceptions of sexual coercion in heterosexual dating relationships: The role of aggressor gender and tactics

"There is a double standard in how sexually coercive behaviors are viewed when perpetrated by a man and woman. He is aggressive; she is promiscuous. Likewise, there is a double standard in how the victims are viewed. In the conditions where the woman was the victim, she was perceived as primarily victimized; however, when the man was the victim, he was primarily viewed as romantically interested. These findings support previous research (e.g., Hannon et al., 2000; Harris, 1991; Harris & Knight-Bohnhoff, 1996) which argued that there is trivialization of women's coercion against men."

Bahrain Penal Code

The penal code of Bahrain discriminates based on the sex of the victim when it comes to sexual assault. Chapter 2 "Rape and Sexual Assault" covers this.

According to Article 344, sexually assaulting a woman will result in the following penalties:

"Life imprisonment shall be the penalty for any person who assaults a woman without her consent."

"The penalty shall be a death sentence or life imprisonment if the victim is less than sixteen years of age."

"The non-consent of the victim shall be presumed if she is less than fourteen years of age."

So what are the penalties for sexually assaulting a man? Article 346 lays this out:

"A prison sentence for a period not exceeding ten years shall be the punishment for any person who assaults another against his will."

"The punishment shall be a prison sentence if the victim is less than sixteen years."

"The non-consent of the victim shall be presumed if he is less than fourteen years."

The laws in Bahrain are blatantly sex-discriminatory and treat the rape of women as a worse offence than rape of men. If a woman or girl is raped, the perpetrator will receive a death penalty or life sentence. If a man or boy is raped, the perpetrator will receive a prison sentence for a period not exceeding ten years.

INTO THE MAINSTREAM: ADDRESSING SEXUAL VIOLENCE AGAINST MEN AND BOYS IN CONFLICT

This brochure notes that:

90 per cent of men in conflict-affected countries are in situations where the law provides no protection for them if they become victims of sexual violence;

62 countries, representing almost two-thirds of the world’s population, only recognise female victims of rape;

67 states criminalise men who report abuse;

In 28 countries only males are recognised as perpetrators of sexual violence – not females.

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:44:31+00:00

Studies comparing the physical effects of sexual assault on male and female victims

Effects of Sexual Assaults on Men: Physical, Mental and Sexual Consequences

"Most research suggests that the sexual assault of men is more likely to be violent, and accompanied by more and greater corollary injuries, than sexual assaults of women (however, also see Kimerling, Rellini, Kelly, Judson, & Learman, 2002; and McLean et al., 2005). Here it is important to acknowledge that not all sexual assaults are violent, and often center on coercion of victims. However, “rapes” in the traditional sense of the word have been shown to be more violent when perpetrated against male victims. King (1995) reported that when men are raped in almost all instances some form of physical force is used against the victim, and weapons are commonly involved. Weapons are most likely to be involved when men are sexually assaulted by a stranger (Stermac et al., 2004). Kaufman et al. (1980), describing data drawn from male rape survivors seen in hospital emergency rooms, report men who are sexually assaulted are more likely than women to have nongenital injuries (see also Hillman, Tomlinson, McMillan, French, & Harris, 1990). However, they also conclude that men who are sexually assaulted are not likely to seek medical attention, unless they suffer significant physical injuries."

Studies comparing the emotional effects of sexual assault on male and female victims

Study finds emotional effect of assault on men is understudied, just as traumatic as for women

This study found that "Men and women equally experienced traumatic emotional effects post-assault. Dario suspects that it’s possible that men are even more affected by sexual assault emotionally than women, due to social stigma regarding male rape, and because they have fewer social outlets and support systems than women in which to discuss the trauma. This may lead to men internalizing their feelings about the assault."

Gender Differences in the Context and Consequences of Child Sexual Abuse.

This review of the literature surrounding child sexual abuse found that "Overall, the picture, especially from the meta-analyses, is that for the most part, there is no significant difference or ‘moderating effect’ of gender in the mental health and psychosocial functioning of male and female survivors of childhood sexual abuse."

Long-Term Consequences of Childhood Sexual Abuse by Gender of Victim

This study found in a sample of 17,337 people that there was a similar relative impact on behavioural, mental health, and social outcomes for both men and women survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA). Not only that, but they note that "Among male victims of CSA, the risk of negative outcomes was similar when the gender of the perpetrator was compared. Thus, perpetration of CSA by a female appears to exert negative effects that are similar in magnitude to CSA perpetrated by males."

The Long-Term Effects of Child Sexual Abuse by Female Perpetrators: A Qualitative Study of Male and Female Victims

Here is a small qualitative study which involved interviews with 14 adult victims (7 men, 7 women) of child sexual abuse by females. Both the males and females experienced severe effects from the abuse. Only one male participant reported not feeling damaged by the female sexual abuse experience, and the remaining participants (93%) reported that the sexual abuse was highly damaging and difficult to recover from.

Sexual molestation of men by women

This is the first systematic report on male victims of female perpetrators, from way back in 1982. Sarrel and Masters in this report describe eleven cases of male sexual molestation by females, four of which involved forced assault. All four men described a post-trauma reaction occurs in which sexual function and psychological state were affected. One of the men did not initiate sex with his wife during the next 2 and a half years and became nauseated when his wife attempted to initiate sexual activity with him. Another of the men presented for sex therapy 2 years after the assault with complaints of feeling isolated from women and fearful of initiating contact with a female partner.

Not a large sample whatsoever and shouldn't be bandied around as the last word on the issue, but I have a hard time believing that their experiences are particularly uncommon among male victims of female perpetrators.

Effects of Sexual Assaults on Men: Physical, Mental and Sexual Consequences (again)

"More specifically, drawing on a stratified random sample of the American population, Elliott et al. (2004) report higher scores on the Trauma Symptom Inventory for sexually assaulted men than women. On eight of the ten scales of the Inventory, sexually assaulted men report higher levels of distress than sexually assaulted women. Depression also frequently leads to attempts to self-medicate (Burnam et al., 1988; Choquet et al., 1997; Coxell et al., 1999; Iseley & Gehrenbeck-Shim, 1997; Plant, Miller, & Plant, 2004; Ratner et al., 2002; Walker et al., 2005) in efforts to block out memories or overcome feelings of low self-worth (Scarce, 1997). Self-medication includes use/abuse of alcohol, illicit drugs and licit (both prescription and over-thecounter) medications. Male sexual assault victims are more likely than female sexual assault victims to report subsequent alcohol abuse problems, although abuse of illicit drugs does not show a gender difference (Burnam et al., 1988). Additionally, researchers in both England (Plant, et al., 2004) and Australia (deVisser et al., 2003) report that sexually assaulted men are more likely than other men to smoke tobacco."

And:

"Men who are sexually assaulted commonly present a high degree of depression and hostility (Iseley & Gehrenbeck-Shim, 1997; Walker et al., 2005). Several community-based studies have shown that male sexual assault victims are, in the short run at least, more likely than female victims to present with greater degrees of depression and hostility (Carmen, Ricker, & Mills, 1984; Frazier, 1993; Goyer & Eddleman, 1984)."

Experiences of men forced-to-penetrate women in the UK

A report which explores the experiences of men who have self-identified as having been forced-to-penetrate (FTP) women. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 men who self-identified as having been FTP a woman. Almost all of the participants indicated that their FTP experiences had negatively impacted their personal lives and relationships in some way. 14 men reported that they had experienced varying types of sexual dysfunction since their FTP experience(s). This included erectile dysfunction; "when I started trying to have another relationship, I found that I was having impotence problems" (Participant 7). A lack of libido or reduced sex drive, as well as a desire to avoid sex and sexual relationships was also discussed.

Sexual Assault, Overweight, and Suicide Attempts in U.S. Adolescents

The study analyzed data from a Youth and Risk Behavior Survey that sampled more than 31,000 teenagers in 2009 and 2011. The research continued a preliminary study from 2011 that found similar results using a smaller sample of teens. The poll surveyed students ages 14 to 18 and examined whether the two variables influenced suicide attempts within a year of the survey.

What they found was that 3.5 percent of healthy-weight males with no sexual assault history attempted suicide. That percentage climbed to 33.2 percent for healthy-weight males with sexual assault history, which Anderson attributes to stigma, shame, possible gender role conflict if the attacker was male and the lack of an open support system. Weight alone was not a significant factor in suicide attempts for males. Only 3.9 percent of overweight males with no sexual assault history attempted suicide. For males who were both overweight and had a history of sexual assault, the percentage who attempted suicide was 33 percent.

In contrast, 5.8 percent of healthy-weight females with no sexual assault history attempted suicide. The percentage rose to 27.1 percent for healthy-weight girls with a history of sexual assault. Weight influenced the suicide rate among women: 8.2 percent of overweight girls with no sexual assault history attempt suicide. However, both factors did not increase suicide rate: 26.6 percent of overweight girls with sexual assault histories attempted suicide.

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:42:24+00:00

Men are less likely to view to acknowledge their experiences of sexual assault and are less likely to report it, which likely affects data and statistics on the topic.

Gender Differences in the Context and Consequences of Child Sexual Abuse (again).

"Widom and Morris (1997) found men were much more reluctant to label child sexual experiences as ‘abuse’ than women (16% compared with 64%). Fondacaro, Holt and Powell’s (1999) study of male prison inmates also found that 41% of those who met the criteria for contact child sexual abuse did not consider their experiences as ‘abusive’ ... Other research that has linked men’s identification as a survivor of child sexual abuse to higher levels of psychological distress suggests that perceiving early sexual experiences as non-abusive may be a form of protective denial for men shielding them against painful memories (O’Leary and Gould 2010; Steever, Follette and Naugle 2001). This may mean that ‘nondisclosure is actually more adaptive for males than is disclosure’ (O’Leary and Barber 2008:135)."

And:

"The disclosure of child sexual abuse and the response the victim receives are integral to how a victim experiences the aftermath of abuse, and to their recovery (Lovett 2004). While there are some similarities in the patterns of disclosure for males and females, most notably a tendency towards non-disclosure and delayed and indirect disclosure, the research also points to some significant gender differences. The main differences are that males are less likely than females to disclose child sexual abuse at the time of abuse, and that when they do disclose, they take longer to do so, and make fewer and more selective disclosures (Gries, Goh and Cavanaugh 1996; Hébert et al 2009; Hunter 2011; O’Leary and Barber 2008; Priebe and Svedin 2008; Schoen et al 1998)."

Big Boys Don't Cry: A Critical Interpretive Synthesis of Male Sexual Victimization

This is a review of the literature surrounding male sexual victimisation. It notes that "Prevailing stereotypical gender roles and sexual scripts are in favor of women’s ability to acquire (ideal) victim status. However, quite the opposite is true for men who must reject their gender roles and sexual script in order to be considered an (ideal) victim."

"Existing expectations shape the way that people perceive sexual victimization and may therefore influence the victim’s own perception of their sexually unwanted experiences (see Figure 2). Davies (2002) suggests that men may never have considered that they could become sexual victims since prevailing gender stereotypes cause them to internalize the belief that male sexual victimization is beyond the realm of possibility. If such an event does occur, they may have trouble accepting not only that it happened to them but also that it happened at all. It is often presumed that men are able to defend themselves if they do not want sexual activity to occur and would find the experience pleasurable given their sexual opportunist nature. In addition, given the existing assumption that the presence of an erection is an indication of a pleasurable erotic experience, it is claimed that men are less traumatized in comparison to women (Bullock & Beckson, 2011). Since men often get an erection, ejaculate, or both during an assault (Bullock & Beckson, 2011), many male victims might feel as if they cannot label their experience as sexual victimization. Furthermore, the nature of male-to-male sexual victimization frequently leads to the conclusion that it is a homosexual act, suggesting that the victim must be gay (Davies et al., 2013). Additionally, men who acknowledge their sexually unwanted experience as rape feel as if they have failed to uphold the masculine ideal (Artime et al., 2014), resulting in a sense of “stolen or harmed masculinity.” Men may therefore remain silent, to avoid being viewed as unmasculine and gay."

"A stereotypical description of rape (i.e., rape scripts) may therefore lead victims to refrain from defining their experience as rape or sexual assault if the rape does not fit into this narrow definition (Peterson & Muehlenhard, 2004). Research has shown that many male victims do not seek help, or wait longer because of difficulties in self-identifying as victims (Machado et al., 2016). Machado, Hines, and Matos (2016) state that masculine gender socialization, social stigmatization, and strong endorsement of sociocultural values appear to be the main reasons why male victims do not seek help. This further increases their already high risk of developing PTSD (Larsen & Hilden, 2016), generating even more negative consequences when they do not get the help they need. Overall, these differences in the possibility of being considered a sexual victim will lead many male victims to refrain from reporting their experience or seeking help. Subsequently, this may be reflected in prevalence rates of sexual victimization being generally lower for males in comparison to females."

A systematic review of the prevalence rates of sexual violence is conducted in this report, and the authors note that all of the studies reporting high male victimisation rates use BSQs (behaviourally specific questions) as opposed to non-BSQs which use more generic terms (e.g., “rape,” “sexual abuse,” “sexual assault”) without further clarification. The authors assert that using BSQs is preferable partially because many male victims do not label their sexually unwanted experiences as rape. Not using BSQs may thus cause lower prevalence rates of sexual victimisation (especially among men), since reports of nonconsensual sex by victims who do not define their own experiences as sexual victimisation are not detected. They conclude "it is recommended that future research should consistently use BSQs".

Forced-to-penetrate cases: Lived experiences of men

This is a report investigating men who have been forced-to-penetrate women. It notes that "The majority of men did not report being compelled to penetrate a woman, either to the police or to friends and family. The reporting rate to the police of 1.7% is even lower than the reporting rate for women who have experienced serious sexual violence, which stands at around 15%. The extremely low reporting rate in compelled penetration cases suggests a clear lack of engagement by these men with the police and criminal justice process."

Thus, data based on police reports may understate male victimisation more than it does female victimisation.

SILENT SUFFERING: SUPPORTING THE MALE SURVIVORS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT

"Across the United Kingdom (UK) there has been a steady increase in the number of males who feel confident enough to report their experiences to the police. However, research conducted by SurvivorsUK has suggested that the percentage of men who actually report their experiences is as low as 3.9 per cent."

"In 2013 a joint piece of work by the Home Office, Ministry of Justice and Office for National Statistics suggested that around 20 per cent of victims don’t report incidents of sexual assault and rape to the police. However, these estimates were developed using data on reporting habits collected only from women. This does though show that there is a clear acknowledgement that a large number of victims decide never to inform the police of their experiences."

"Figures collected from all the UK’s police forces show that between 2010 and 2014 there were 26,483 recorded incidents of males being victims of sexual assault or rape. This includes 3,748 incidents recorded by the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) – the highest rate in the UK."

"Using these figures alongside the research conducted by SurvivorsUK, we can estimate the number of males over the age of 16 who were sexually assaulted or raped between 2010 and 2014, who did not report their experiences to the police."

"These numbers suggest that across the entire UK between 2010 and 2014, 679,051 sexual assaults and rapes of males took place. Of these – 652,568 were not reported to any police force."

"In the geographical area covered by the MPS this would equate to 96,103 sexual assaults and rapes of males between 2010 and 2014 – with 92,355 of them not being reported."

problem_redditor · 2021-07-03T03:41:40+00:00

The majority of men who rape women are sexually abused by women in childhood

Heterosexual Molestation of Children Who Later Became Rapists

This is a report of a serendipitous finding from another study of childhood heterosexual molestation of men who were incarcerated as adults for rape. Subjects were 83 men in a medium security penitentiary who had been convicted of raping women at least 17 years of age. They found that forty-nine (59%) of the rapists had been heterosexually molested.

The Male Survivor

"Briere and Smiljanich (1993) administered Koss and Oros's Sexual Experiences Survey (SES) and found that sexually abused men were significantly more likely than nonabused men to report having had sexual intercourse with a woman against her will either because they 'became so sexually aroused [they] could not stop [themselves]' or 'by pressuring her with continual arguments'. Briere and Smiljanich reason that their childhood experiences modeled aggression in sexual relationships and conditioned sexual arousal to coercive or aggressive behavior. (It seems reasonable to suspect that childhood sexual abuse would also model a lack of impulse control and ability to delay or deny gratification.) Briere and Smiljanich also noted that those who experienced their own abuse as something they had minimal control over were most likely to be sexually aggressive. They view rape and other sexual offenses as a maladaptive attempt to master or gain control over the trauma."

"Freeman-Longo (1986) focused on connections between sexual abuse and later sexually abusive or aggressive behavior. Based on his work with sexually abused sex offenders, he argues that 1) the offender's offense(s) are a replication of what happened in his sexual victimization; 2) the offender's offense(s) are an anger reaction to his sexual victimization; or 3) the offender's offense(s) are a modelling of his sexual victimization because his personal and/or misinterpreted view(s) of his victimization was that it was not that harmful to him, that there were pleasurable aspects of it, and in some cases it was thought of as sexually arousing."

"Freeman-Longo emphasizes the enormous amounts of anger, pain and frustration experienced by the men he studied. He states that they are unable to deal with feelings for fear of becoming vulnerable to others. They often possess tremendous hatred toward their abuser and a desire to retaliate against him or her. At the same time they feel vulnerable towards their abuser and may feel in his or her control. They tend to experience themselves as having a lack of power and control in their lives; powerlessness is among the most dominant features of their psychology. Sexual assaults are attempts to regain power and control by sexually abusing others."

"Freeman-Longo found two features to be critical risk factors for the repetition of sexual abuse: (1) victimization by more than one perpetrator on separate occasions, (2) abuse that occurs repeatedly over a long period of time. His theory, that the offender's offenses replicate his own victimization, gains some support from the findings of other studies of convicted sex offenders. Groth (1979b) found that rapists (of women) are more likely to have been victimised by females in childhood, whereas child molesters were more often abused by males. Petrovich and Templer (1984) found that 59% of convicted rapists had been molested by females during childhood and that the majority of this abuse was quite severe. Briere and Smiljanich (1993) found that 80% of sexually abused men who reported sexually aggressive behaviour towards women had themselves been sexually abused by women during childhood. Summit (1983) also sees the perpetuation of child molestation and rape as part of the sexually abused boy's legacy of rage."

Protecting boys from the risk of sexual abuse

Because few male victims admit their victimisation to academic researchers, it has been assumed that either boys are less vulnerable to sexual abuse than girls or that their abuse is less damaging. As a result, very little attention has been given to the protection of boys. This negligence is surprising given the known relationship between male sexual victimisation and the later commission of sexual offences (Kohn, 1987; Dimock, 1988; Briggs, Hawkins and Williams, 1994). In his current British study, Bentovim (1994) has found that one in five male victims becomes a juvenile offender.

Richardsnotmyname · 2021-07-03T16:27:58+00:00

Honestly, 50%, 30 or 20% or not, it should not matter how many men are victims. If it affects men, it's our problem too, even if it's 1%. This may sound a bit radical, but think about this, is there any problem that we think of as a gendered issue apart from sexual violence? We don't treat suicide as a men only issue. We don't treat workplace death as a men's issue either. So why should it be any different?

Greg468 · 2021-07-14T17:58:03+00:00

Very informative! May I use the sources to make a post in instagram about it? I will give you credit

CaptBerlin · 2021-10-13T18:17:18+00:00

Upload this on r/men's rights

	Women (%)	Men (%)
No victimisation	22.4	34.5
Sexual contact	27.0	14.0
Attempted coercion	0.5	0.4
Coercion	1.0	0.6
Attempted rape	10.0	7.0
Rape	39.1	43.5

Comments