SEXUAL VIOLENCE QUIZ 2

Sexual Violence Quiz

Why are first year college women at greater risk for sexual assault and/or rape?
First year college students are at greater risk of sexual assault and/or rape because it is
often the first time that they are away from their parents (Warshaw, 1970). They are, therefore,
more susceptible to submit to social pressures to experiment sexual acts, after using drugs. These
social pressures make them vulnerable to acquaintance rape, a common phenomenon in
universities (Muehlenhard et al., 2016).
Susan Griffen argues that rape is an outgrowth of a society where women and men must
live up to specific, distinct gender roles. What does she mean by this statement? What
ironies does she find between the socialization of men and women and the reality of rape?
Susan Griffen means that men are not born rapists. Rather, they learn the vice through
socialization which teaches men to be sexually aggressive and women to be sexually passive
(Griffen, 1971). Griffen believes that rape is a result of gendered socialization because there are
societies such as the Arapesh that do not have a conception of rape (Griffen, 1971). In analyzing
gendered socialization that creates the culture of rape, Griffen notices ironies of this socialization
in relation to rape. For instance, women are encouraged to be feminine (submissive to men, wear
skirts etc). However, these feminine characteristics that society encourages also make women
perfect victims of rape and other forms of sexual aggression.
What role does race play in a discussion of sexual violence?
The ethos of white men teach them to consider women of color, unlike white women, to
be “impure” from birth (Griffen, 1971). Women of color are also considered to be “hypersexual”
while white women are stereotyped as being more “chaste” and “moral” (Griffen, 1971). These

SEXUAL VIOLENCE QUIZ 3
racial stereotypes encourage white men to rape women of color. When raped, law enforcement
authorities also tend to treat the rape of women of color as normal thus encouraging the vice.
What surprised you the most about the material of this week?
The most surprising thing about material for this week was learning that rape and sexual
aggression among men are universal. Even though I was aware of the role that socialization
plays in the development of sexual behaviors, I thought every society socialized men to be
sexually aggressive and women to be submissive. I was, therefore, pleasantly surprised to learn
that such kind of socialization does not occur among the Arapesh and other societies.

SEXUAL VIOLENCE QUIZ 4

References
Griffen, S. (1971). Rape: The All-American Crime
Muehlenhard, C. L., Humphreys, T. P., Jozkowski, K. N., & Peterson, Z. D. (2016). The
complexities of sexual consent among college students: A conceptual and empirical
review. The Journal of Sex Research, 53(4-5), 457-487.
Warshaw, R. (1970). The Reality of Acquaintance Rape