As I promised in class, I plan to follow-up on each of the family's chapter reports from Crime Types. Yesterday (Tues, 11/6) there were two reports on Chapter 3, as well as reports on Chapters 4 & 7. I am going to hold off commenting on 4 & 7 since we did not get to their short-answer questions.
220A (8:00) Black family
Chapter 3: Violent Sex Crimes
A. In citing some of the statistics at the beginning about the prevalence of sex crimes, it should be pointed out that violent sex crimes accounted for only a small fraction of all violent crime -- 4% (which the black family did note)
But there are other statistics which suggest that it is serious and a persistent concern of American women.
For example: sexually assaultive action present in 1 of 10 violent crimes involving a female. Also, over a lifetime women have a 1 in 6 chance of being a victim of rape. And that the U.S. is the "violent sex crime capitol of the world" with a rate of 35.9/100,000. (although as we noted in class, it appears that is just the case in comparison with other developed societies. We guessed that rape is much more prevalent in some less developed countries such as in Africa.)
B. Be familiar with the theories offered in the Introduction (pp. 82-3):
Namely, gender inequality, pornography, social disorganization(which clearly relates to earlier lectures), legitimation of violence.
They all make sense, although the pornography theory is not very strongly supported, and correlating rape rates with subscription rates to adult magazines is weak evidence at best.
C. I would also stress that 70% of rapes and sexual assaults are committed by someone known to the victim. (i.e., acquaintance or date rape) I believe this was overlooked.
D. Also overlooked was a rather startling finding from a 1990 study (bottom, p.85) that suggested that violent resistence to rape serves as an effective means of preventing rape completion and reducing the level of injuries sustained.
E. Just a note about recidivism rates (p. 86): Langin & Levin reported 42% of released rapists were rearrested within 3 years. But also, 1 in 10 rapists will be re-arrested for a similar charge at some time in the future. There is an obvious discrepancy here which I believe has to do with the specificity of the latter statistic because it specified re-arrested for rape. Nonetheless, both figures are actually fairly low compared to other crimes.
#6 Riding the Bull at Gilley's...
A. Let me underscore, as I did briefly in class, that a larger context or meaning of this article is to suggest that rape is not so much a product of "sick" individuals (the psychopathologial model) but a sick culture.
as the authors state: "... the psychopathological model ignores evidence which links sexual aggression to environmental variables and which suggests that rape, like all behavior, is learned." (p. 92) (Of course, that last statement alludes to Social Learning theory. Moreover, the article addresses various ways rapists neutralize or rationalize their behavior.)
#7 Acquaintance Gang Rape on Campus
A. Especially important, as was brought out, is the group nature of this offense -- how group pressure can overcome individual reluctance. Remember,
diffusion of responsibility
de-individualization
modeling aggression (p.108)
B. I would also stress a recommendation the authors make -- that it is not just stranger rape college campuses need to guard against with increased lighting, etc., but we need to work on profound attitudinal changes among males.
#8 Understanding Women's Experiences of Wife Rape
A. Important to stress how relatively recently our criminal justice system has acknowledged this as a crime.
B. Again, we are dealing with male attitudes which can lead to this. Perhaps the bottom line is that men must be taught not to treat women as sex objects, even if they happen to be their wives.
Finally, in all this, we should acknowledge that drugs and alcohol play a huge role.
Short-answer questions:
1. Identify and briefly describe two of the three factors that attempt to explain why people in groups act more aggressively than they would on their own. (2pts)
Answer: (1) Diffusion of Responsibility -- responsibility for the situation is diluted by the presence of others who share the blame.
(2) Deindividualization -- the loss of individual awareness of one's beliefs, attitudes, and personal standards.
(3)Modeling of Aggression -- follow your peers in acting. For example, watching members of a group rape a woman indicates the appropriateness of the act and would also demonstrate how it is done.
2. Briefly describe the social disorganization theory of violent sex crimes. (2pts)
Answer: Crime rates up with social disorganization: institutional infrastructure breaks down; poverty, collapse of traditional nuclear family, racial tension, decreased religiousity, breeds alienation and desperation, which in turn produces frustration reaction. (p. 82)
________________________________________
220B (9:30) Black family
Chapter 3: Violent Sex Crimes
SEE MY COMMENTS ABOVE FOR 220A.
Also, one additional point I wanted to clarify had to do with a couple statistics you presented which conveyed a false impression:
You noted that 62.7% of individuals arrested for forcible rape were white.
Then, you cited the fact that black women have the highest victimization rate. And you went on to (inadvertently) suggest that white males were preying on black females. No. These are two separate statistics. Most violent crimes, including rape, are intra-racial, that is, within racial groups.
Short-answer question (I am only accepting one of yours):
1. What are three of the six "motivational themes" found among incarcerated rapists in Selection #6: "Riding the Bull at Gilley's:..."? (3pts)
Answer: 1. revenge & punishment
2. an added bonus
3. sexual access
4. impersonal sex & power
5. recreation & adventure
6. feeling good (pp. 94-100)
That's all for now. See you tomorrow.
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2 comments:
B lists legitimation of violence as a theory that may explain what causes rape. Many would argue that our culture glorifies the use of physical problem solving through the media, but as I was reviewing "Hallow Claims About Fantasy Violence" it became clear to me that the research does not support the idea that the entertainment industry is responsible for violent behavior. Our country has the highest rate of rape amongst its equals, yet we do not glorify or condone the use of violence as a society other than through our entertainment industry which is notorious for glorifying violence, but this has not been shown to be a major factor in influencing behavior. Does this suggest that the legitimation of violence theory is not relevant to what causes violent behavior sexual or otherwise?
I also found it really interesting that, while changing male attitudes towards women is key to preventing rape, an effective way to prevent rape on campuses is to have non-sex-segregated housing (Dabney, 110).
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