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MALE SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIMS
Shane Schimming and Tyler Klopper
University of Central Missouri
Myths About Male Sexual Assault Victims
References
Conclusion
.
Research
The One in Six Statistic
Size of original
Sexual Offenses Reported in 2008-2013
1. It rarely happens to men
2. When it does happen to males they are less traumatized
than females
3. Men should be held more responsible and should have
fought off their attacker
5. If they are homosexual they wanted it
6. If they become aroused during their attack they wanted it
7. Men that are raped by women are “lucky”
8. This is only a problem in prisons
One in six men experience sexual abuse BEFORE the age of
18. Many of these boys will go on to become abusers later on
in life. This number is more than likely even higher because
males disclose their abuse far less than females. It is
impossible to know how many sexual assaults are not
disclosed, but it is estimated that only ten to twenty percent of
females report their attack and the estimate for men is much
smaller. Also, many men later deny that they were ever abused
even though abuse was documented earlier in life. Only sixteen
percent of males that have a documented sexual abuse history
consider it abuse. On the other hand, 64% of females that have
a documented sexual abuse history consider it abuse. One of
the reasons men often have a hard time admitting they are
victims is because there still is a stigma for male sexual assault
victims. Our society expects people to comply with gender
roles, so men are expected to be strong and never show
emotion, even when they are victims of sexual assault. Victims
often feel like “less of a man” and they regret that they did not
fight their attacker off. They also fear that people will think they
are homosexual if they admit they were sexual assaulted. .
• A study by Coxell and King concluded that men who have consensual sex with other men are six times more likely to be
sexually assaulted than men who have consensual sex with women. Another study by Pesola, Westfa, and Kuffner collected
information about victims at St. Vincent’s Medical Center Emergency Department. From the group that they surveyed, twelve
percent of the victims were male. Sixty-three percent of those males identified as homosexual or bisexual and only knew their
attacker for less than twenty-four hours. Even though the majority of male sexual assault victims are homosexual, the
offenders are typically heterosexual. Their motive is not sexual; they are more focused on power and domination.
Heterosexual males often attack homosexual males to belittle and humiliate them. Most sexual assaults against females only
have one assailant, but it is more common for there to be multiple assailants when men are sexual assaulted. It is also more
common in institutions, like prison, where there are no possible heterosexual relations. However, sexual assault does not
occur exclusively in prisons.
• Donnelly and Kenyon surveyed forty-one agencies that deal with sexual assault victims, such as, police departments and
hospitals. They interviewed thirty of these agencies, but only four said they had provided services to a male sexual assault
victim in the past year. “Many believed that men couldn’t be raped or that they were raped only because they ‘wanted to be.’
One law enforcement representative bluntly stated, ‘Honey, we don’t do men. . . . What would you want to study something like
that for? Men can’t be raped.’. . . Other respondents indicated that they did not treat men because . . . ‘so few get raped” (p
445). Another law enforcement official assumed that because they never had a male report a sexual assault to them, it must
not be a problem. The study found that many resources for sexual assault victims are completely focused on women and do
not have the proper tools or training to help male sexual assault victims. Many resources for sexual assault victims view males
as perpetrators and females as victims, so it can be uncomfortable for males to use some resources.
• Burt and DeMello conducted a study about how people view victims responsible for their assault. They gave University
students in Australia three rape scenarios. All three scenarios were the exact same. The only difference in each scenario was
the victim: a female, a heterosexual male, and a homosexual male. They asked the students to rate how responsible each
victim was for their attack. Most of the students felt that the female was the least responsible and the homosexual male was
the most responsible. Some students admitted they were homophobic and also said that homosexual men probably enjoyed
their attack.
• It is not uncommon for victims, male and female, to become aroused during their attack. Unfortunately, some people still
believe that arousal is considered consent. However, Mezey, King, and Kell noted: “An extreme form of loss of control is
demonstrated by those victims who were physiologically aroused while being terrorized. This would accord with other findings
which suggest that sexual arousal may be provoked by extreme anxiety” (p 208). Even the criminal justice system fails male
victims because they sometimes will not prosecute cases in which the victim became aroused. The offender will often get their
victim to ejaculate for many different reasons. They may want to show that they have complete control or it helps them believe
that their victim truly wanted to be attacked or even to discourage the victim from reporting their attack.
Bullock, C., & Beckson, M. (2011). Male victims of sexual assault: phenomenology, psychology, physiology. Journal of the
American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online, 39, 197-205.
Burt, D. L., & DeMello, L. R. (2002). Attribution of rape blame as a function of victim gender and sexuality, and perceived similarity
to the victim. Journal of Homosexuality, 43, 39−58.
Coxell A. W., & King M. B. (1996). Male victims of rape and sexual abuse. Sexual & Marital Therapy, 11, 297–308.
Coxell, A. W., King, M. B., Mezey, G. C., & Kell P. (2000). Sexual molestation of men: interviews with 224 men attending a
genitourinary medicine service. International Journal of STD and AIDS, 11, 574-578.
Donnelly, D. A., & Kenyon, S. (1996). “Honey, we don’t do men” Gender stereotypes and the provision of services to sexually
assaulted males. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 11, 441-448.
Pesola, G. R., Westfal, R. E., & Kuffner, C. A. (1999). Emergency characteristics of male sexual assault. Academic Emergency
Medicine, 6, 792-798.
Sexual assault occurs more often to females; however, that
does not mean that male victims are rare. It is a much more
common problem than people realize and it does not only
occur in prisons. Unfortunately, resources for male victims
are severely underdeveloped and even the criminal justice
system fails these victims. Myths about male sexual assault
victims are still widely believed by many, including the
people who administer services to these victims. Most men
do not report their attacks and the ones that do often do not
get the help that they need. It is time that all sexual assault
victims be taken seriously so more people will have the
courage to come forward.