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Testing the Extent of the Gender Trap: College Students’ Perceptions of and Reactions to Intimate Partner Violence

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Abstract

Prior research has explored perceptions of intimate partner violence (IPV), and how these perceptions differ based on gender of the participant, victim, and perpetrator. In the current study, 178 undergraduate students (n = 88 males; n = 90 females) attending a university in the Southwestern United States read a hypothetical IPV scenario, experimentally crossed by victim gender and perpetrator gender, and completed measures exploring gender (i.e., participant gender, victim gender, and perpetrator gender) and situational perceptions on participants’ intended responses to an IPV scenario. Results indicated that perceptions of the IPV situation and responses varied by genders of the participant, victim, and perpetrator. Specifically, males were more likely than females to hold the victim responsible for the violence, and ignore the situation; females were more likely than males to encourage the victim to seek professional help and seek help from another person regarding the IPV scenario as presented in the vignette. When the victim was a male, participants viewed the situation as less serious, the victim as more responsible, and were more likely to ignore the situation, than when the victim was female. Overall, results indicated that gender factors (especially participant gender) had a stronger and more consistent influence on responses to the IPV scenario than perceptions of the situation. The findings of the current study are discussed in light of implications for future research to expand an understanding of the role of gender and perceptions influencing anticipated helping behavior for victims of IPV, which will inform intervention.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Edward O’Brien for his statistical assistance.

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Correspondence to Kateryna M. Sylaska.

Appendix

Appendix

Sample Vignette: Female Perpetrator/Male Victim

Josh is one of your best friends. The two of you have been friends since early high school and have remained close since coming to college. Josh has been in a dating relationship with Julie for about 10 months. You’ve hung out with Josh and Julie together and feel that they make a good couple; Josh has told you that he’s in love with Julie and you have sensed that Josh seems very happy with his life.

Since the school year started, Josh has mentioned casually some of Julie’s behavior that has made you suspicious of their relationship. Julie has been starting fights quite frequently because she is jealous that Josh spends much of his time with other women; Julie genuinely believes that Josh is cheating on her. Julie gets very heated during these fights and, in her anger, has been known to throw things around the room. Based on these conversations with Josh, you have noticed that these fights have been happening more and more frequently. This morning, you saw Josh and noticed that he has some deep purple-ish bruises around his lower arm, as well as a long scratch along the side of his forehead. After you made a comment to Josh about these injuries, he said that last night he slipped on a wet stair and fell. Josh then laughed nervously and quickly changed the topic. You suspect, however, that these injuries are due to a fight between Julie and Josh, which you sense has turned physically violent.

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Sylaska, K.M., Walters, A.S. Testing the Extent of the Gender Trap: College Students’ Perceptions of and Reactions to Intimate Partner Violence. Sex Roles 70, 134–145 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-014-0344-1

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