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Risk Factors for Male Sexual Aggression on College Campuses

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Abstract

Risk factors for college male sexual aggression that were both theoretically and empirically based were tested using multivariate regression analyses. These included substance abuse patterns, pornography consumption, negative gender-based attitudes, and child sexual abuse experiences. Regression analyses indicated that some gender attitudes, pornography use, and alcohol abuse were significant predictors of perpetration of sexual violence. Although a number of men were sexually abused as children, this risk factor did not predict sexual aggression as an adult. Many men reported alcohol-related sexual coercion and held many rape-supportive attitudes and beliefs. These practices by college men contribute to the prorape cultures found on many campuses. Strategies are needed to identify and intervene with high-risk men to prevent sexual victimization of women in college.

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Carr, J.L., VanDeusen, K.M. Risk Factors for Male Sexual Aggression on College Campuses. Journal of Family Violence 19, 279–289 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JOFV.0000042078.55308.4d

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