title: "Come on Baby. You Know I Love You": African American Women's Experiences of Communication with Male Partners and Disclosure in the Context of Unwanted Sex.
abstract: We examined African American women's experiences of communication with their male intimate partners a couple of hours before and after an incident of unwanted sex. We also examined women's experiences of disclosure following an incident of unwanted sex. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with a community-based sample of sexually active African American women (n = 19) reporting at least one incident of sexual coercion (i.e., being pressured into unwanted sex without consent) by an intimate male partner since the age of 18. Our analysis was guided by "the sexual division of power" from Connell's (1987) theory of gender and power. Data were analyzed inductively by examining the interviews for common themes in the following domains: communication before the unwanted sex, communication after the unwanted sex, and disclosure to others. Men pressured partners for unwanted sex through verbal and non-verbal tactics, ranging from pestering and blunt requests for sex to verbal bullying and violence. Many women responded by clearly saying no. However, many women also described eventually ceasing to resist their partners and engaging in unwanted sex. After the unwanted sex, men actively and passively avoided discussing the incident. Although many women discussed the unwanted sex with family and friends, less women disclosed to trained professionals. In some cases, women did not discuss the incident with anyone at all. These findings indicate that, when addressing sexual violence against women, there is a need to target men as well as the norms of masculinity that underpin physical and sexual violence against women.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.|Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Kyle
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gutzmer
authors.affiliation: Division of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, MC 0507, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0507, USA.
authors.forename: Natasha T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Ludwig-Barron
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Gail E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Wyatt
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.|VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Alison B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Hamilton
authors.affiliation: Division of Global Public Health, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, MC 0507, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0507, USA. jstockman@ucsd.edu.
authors.forename: Jamila K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Stockman
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003068:Coercion; D003142:Communication; D030881:Disclosure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008149:Love; D008297:Male; D057228:Masculinity; D008875:Middle Aged; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012307:Risk Factors; D012742:Sex Offenses / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: African American women; Disclosure; Partner communication; Unwanted sex