title: Perceptions of stranger and acquaintance rape: the role of benevolent and hostile sexism in victim blame and rape proclivity.
abstract: In Studies 1 and 2, after reading an acquaintance-rape but not a stranger-rape scenario, higher benevolent sexist but not hostile sexist participants blamed the victim significantly more. In Study 2, higher hostile sexist but not benevolent sexist male participants showed significantly greater proclivity to commit acquaintance (but not stranger) rape. Studies 3 and 4 supported the hypothesis that the effects of benevolent sexism and hostile sexism are mediated by different perceptions of the victim, as behaving inappropriately and as really wanting sex with the rapist. These findings show that benevolent sexism and hostile sexism underpin different assumptions about women that generate sexist reactions toward rape victims.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Centre for the Study of Group Processes, University of Kent, Canterbury, England. d.abrams@ukc.ac.uk
authors.forename: Dominic
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Abrams
authors.forename: G Tendayi
authors.initials: GT
authors.lastname: Viki
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Masser
authors.forename: Gerd
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bohner
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019548:Crime Victims; D005260:Female; D006791:Hostility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011287:Prejudice; D011897:Random Allocation; D011902:Rape; D012938:Social Perception