Access Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Date of Award

January 2020

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Antonia . Abbey

Abstract

Men’s sexual aggression against women is distressingly common. Some men use sexual aggression as a way to reassert their masculinity when they have been rejected by a woman (Malamuth, 1995). Some men who perpetrate aggression may not intentionally overlook women’s refusals to unwanted sexual advances, rather they might not perceive a refusal as resistance at all. Social perception research has shown that people’s perceptions are influenced by their motivations, allowing them to only perceive what they wish to see. Masculinity threat may be one such motivation. A sample of 106 men completed an experimental survey with a 2 (threatened masculinity vs. no threatened masculinity) x 2 (woman’s direct refusal vs. woman’s indirect refusal) design to test the effect of threatened masculinity and woman’s refusal directness on men’s perceptions a woman’s willingness to have sex and his own willingness to continue having sex in a sexual encounter. Threatened masculinity did not have a significant effect on men’s perceptions of the woman as more willing to have sex with them, nor on men’s willingness to continue engaging in sexual activities despite her refusal. Refusal directness also did not have a significant main effect on men’s perceptions of the woman as more willing to have sex with them, nor on men’s willingness to continue engaging in sexual activities despite her refusal. There was also not a significant interaction between masculinity threat and refusal directness on participants’ perceptions of the woman’s willingness to continue having sex, nor on their own willingness to continue having sex despite her refusal. The study was underpowered, so more data will be collected in the future. Strength, limitations, future research, and implications for sexual aggression prevention are discussed.

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