Male Peer Support and Sexual Assault: The Relation Between High-Profile, High School Sports Participation and Sexually Predatory Behaviour
Amanda Goodson, Cortney A. Franklin, and Leana A. Bouffard
Journal of Sexual Aggression 27, no. 1 (2020): 64-80, doi:10.1080/13552600.2020.1733111.
A survey of 280 undergraduate male college students found that those who more frequently consumed pornography expressed a greater likelihood to rape if they were assured they would not be caught. Endorsement of rape myths was the strongest predictor of likelihood to rape and increased odds of sexual assault perpetration by 4.83 times, however the role of pornography in the formation of rape myths was not considered in the analysis. The influence of pornography on likelihood to rape and actual sexual assault perpetration may be greater than these researchers surmised if pornography’s influence on formation of rape myths had been taken into account.
This study of undergraduate male college students (n=280, age 18 to 41 years old) explored whether males involved in high-profile sports during high school were more likely to endorse higher levels of hostility toward women, sexual entitlement, endorsement of rape myths, frequent consumption of pornography (and other behaviors), as well as engage in actions meeting the definition of sexual assault compared to men who did not participate in high-profile high school sports. The study also probed the role of both adolescence and Male Peer Support Theory in the development of sexually hostile and predatory behavior in college-aged males. Contrary to expectations and prior research, participation in high-profile high school sports was not a statistically significant predictor of maladaptive attitudes or sexually predatory behavior in this study.
The study found the following:
As cross-sectional research on the predictors of behavior, this study demonstrates that within male groups, certain attitudes, violence against women and pornography are correlated, not whether pornography or sports participation causes violence against women or self-reported likelihood of rape.
While this study found that endorsement of rape myths was the strongest predictor of likelihood to rape, and that men who consume pornography more frequently express a greater likelihood to rape, it did not explore the role of pornography in supporting the formation of rape myths. It is no secret that mainstream pornography presents acts of physical aggression of men against women as sexually pleasurable1 and presents women as always sexually available. Other research has found that pornography contributes to the formation of “sexual scripts” that influence a range of sexual experiences,2 as well as men’s endorsement of rape myths and sexual aggression.3 Thus, the influence of pornography on likelihood to rape and actual sexual assault perpetration may be greater than these researchers surmised if pornography’s influence on formation of rape myths is taken into account.
Other research leaves little doubt that, “on average, individuals who consume pornography more frequently are more likely to hold attitudes conducive to sexual aggression and engage in acts of sexual aggression than individuals who do not consume pornography or who consume pornography less frequently.”4
