Collegiate Perception of Rape

Chwee Lye Chng (Dec. 1999) An Assessment of College Students' Attitudes and Empathy Toward Rape. College Student Journal

Methods:

The study is a descriptive cross-sectional survey implemented to assess students' attitudes toward rape and empathy toward survivors of rape. A pilot study using 30 college students with a two-week interval was used to establish reliability of the ATR and RES. Subject's birth day, month, and first three digits of their phone numbers were used as identifiers for the retest portion of the pilot study. A two-tailed t test was performed comparing test scores across the 2-week interval. Statistical analysis found a 1.0 correlation for demographic data, .91 alpha reliability coefficient for the ATR, and a .80 alpha reliability coefficient for the RES. Therefore, the ATR and RES were deemed reliable for the study.

Purpose:

The purpose of this study is to assess rape attitudes and empathy levels of college students in a selected university setting in North Texas.

Sample:

A total sample of 300 subjects was needed to ensure representation within a confidence interval of 95% and .05 sampling error. The sample was drawn from the following courses: from the College of Business Administration, the course "Principles of Real Estate" provided 107 subjects; from the College of Arts and Sciences, the course "U.S. History to 1865" provided 89 students; from the College of Education, "Family Life/Human Sexuality" and "Health Emergency/First Aid" were selected, providing 110 subjects.

Hypotheses:

1. Students who either have known a rape survivor or have themselves been a survivor of rape, will express more rape-intolerant attitudes toward rape and greater empathy levels toward rape survivors than students who have not known a rape survivor or have been the survivor of a rape.

2. Students with female siblings will report more rape-intolerant attitudes toward rape and greater empathy toward rape survivors than students without female siblings.

3. Female students will have more rape-intolerant attitudes toward rape and greater empathy levels toward rape survivors than those of their male counterparts.

4. Students over the age of twenty-six will demonstrate more rape-intolerant attitudes and greater empathy levels toward rape survivors than the students under the age of twenty-six.

Variables:

The dependent variables are attitudes toward rape and empathy toward rape survivors, while the independent variables include: prior history as a rape survivor (knowing a rape survivor or personally being raped), having female siblings, gender, age, and marital status.

Findings:

1. While 2% of the population reported being the survivor of rape by a stranger, 6% indicated they were the survivors of rape by someone known to them. Thirty percent (30%) reported knowing a close friend or family member who had been raped, 74% reporting they had been raped and had also known someone who was raped. In contrast, 55% had never been sexually assaulted or known someone who was assaulted sexually. In regard to safety, 59% reported taking precautions (i.e. self-defense courses, carry mace, or a gun) while 41% did not.

2. ANOVA showed that prior experience as a rape survivor was significant for rape-intolerant attitudes (F 2, 359 = 14.23, p [is less than] .05), supporting the first hypothesis. Higher rape-intolerant attitudes than for those who had not been raped or had known someone who was a survivor of rape.

3. The ANOVA revealed significance for attitudes and gender, with males reporting a significantly lower mean score than females. Females had more rape-intolerant attitudes than males. ANOVA have less empathy for rape survivors.

Conclusions:

Prior victimization as a rape survivor or personally knowing a rape survivor affects rape attitudes and empathy towards rape survivors. Having a female sibling does not affect rape attitudes or empathy towards rape survivors. Gender affects rape attitudes and empathy toward rape survivors. Age has no effect on rape attitudes or empathy towards rape survivors.

Implications:

1. Programs would be more effective if they specifically targeted males and those without prior experience with a rape survivor.

2. Suggestions for future programs could include using testimonials from rape survivors, editorials, and panel discussions raising student "personal knowledge" of a rape survivor, which in turn could raise empathy levels.

3. Future rape-prevention programs could address the male population as a target group for awareness of attitudes, rape myths, and stereotypes.

4. Future research should continue to examine how ethnicity affects attitudes and empathy toward rape. Prevention programs that target the individual perceptions and needs of various ethnic and racial backgrounds could provide a more effective framework for rape awareness.

5. More assessment should be conducted to examine the possible effectiveness of empathy and how it may affect rape awareness programs on college campuses.

Limitations:

Ð" This study is limited to collection of data in the fall semester of 1998.

Ð" The study is limited to self-reported data which may limit internal validity.

Ð" The study is subject to possible response bias because subjects may feel they have to respond in a manner that is socially acceptable, particularly on an emotionally charged, "politically correct" topic such as sexual assault.

Ð" The study analyzes attitudes and does not make an attempt to verify that these self-reported attitudes are consistent with the behavior of subjects.

Ð" The study utilized a sample based on convenience, which in turn may have affected both internal and external validity.

Ð" Health 2200 is a human sexuality course, which may have resulted in a selection bias since it may have attracted subjects who are permissive in their attitudes toward sexual issues such as rape.

Ð" This study was conducted during