title: Is it love or sexual abuse? Young adults' perceptions of statutory rape.
abstract: Adults under age 25 comprise the majority of statutory rape perpetrators, yet we know little about their perceptions of statutory relationships. We assessed 210 (50% male) young adults' perceptions of statutory rape involving a 15-year-old female adolescent and a male who was either 2, 4, or 6 years older. Across all age gaps, 73.7% of participants felt the relationship should not be a crime. Participants who read about a 4- or 6-year (versus 2-year) age gap perceived the relationship as significantly more of a crime and the older partner as more responsible and in need of legal intervention. Effects were partially mediated by perceptions of the relationship as exploitive. Results suggest a need to educate young adults about statutory rape.
authors.affiliation: a University of Virginia, Charlottesville , Virginia , USA.
authors.forename: Barbara A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Oudekerk
authors.forename: Rachel H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Farr
authors.forename: N Dickon
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Reppucci
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D003415:Crime; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008149:Love; D008297:Male; D011902:Rape / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000523:psychology*