Rape Crimes Reviewed: The Role of Observer Variables in Female Victim Blaming

This article presents an overview of empirical research on the role of observer variables in rape victim blaming (female attacked by a male perpetrator). The focus is on literature from the last 15 years. The variables observer gender, ambivalent sexism, rape myth acceptance, and rape empathy are discussed in relation to victim blaming. 

Most research on rape is conducted using diverse methods and approaches that result in a great disparity regarding the role of these variables in predicting blame assignments. Despite the inconsistencies, most studies show that men hold the victim more responsible for her own victimization than women. 

Findings further indicate that higher scores on sexist ideologies and rape myth acceptance predict higher victim blame, and that higher rape empathy scores predict lower victim blame. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

...Overall, the analysis of the literature showed that men are more likely to score higher on victim blaming, that higher scores on sexist ideologies and rape myth acceptance predict higher victim blaming, and that higher levels of empathy towards the victim predict lower victim blaming. As such, this theoretical article provides an overview of the current knowledge regarding the impact of these variables upon victim blaming biases. Additional empirical research is needed, however, in order to clarify how these factors affect such biased attributions. As a final point, similar theoretical articles may prove useful in summarizing the influence of other variables on blame attributions, namely those related to situational factors (e.g., type of relationship with the rapist) or the victim’s characteristics (e.g., type of woman, sexual history, clothing, and substance misuse).

Full article at: HTML  http://goo.gl/wKcdyf  PDF https://goo.gl/Fx90CL

By:   Maria Clara Ferrão^*a, Gabriela Gonçalves^ab

[a] Psychology and Educational Sciences Department, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal.[b] CIEO – Research Centre for Spatial and Organizational Dynamics, Faro, Portugal.

 

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