Rape: Encyclopedia II - Rape - Types of rape

Rape - Types of rape

Rape - Violent rape

"Violent rape" occurs when violence beyond the rape itself is a part of the assault. This may include physical force or threat of harm, including a death threat or threat against a family member. Proportionally more violent rapes are likely to be reported (Bachman and Saltzman, 1995).

Rape - Statutory rape

National and/or regional governments, citing an interest in protecting "young people" (variously defined but sometimes synonymous with minors), treat any sexual contact with such a person as an offense (not always categorised as "rape"), even if he or she agrees to the sexual activity. The offense is often based on a presumption that people under a certain age are unable to give informed consent. The age at which individuals are considered competent to give consent is called the age of consent. The age set by each state varies in accordance with local standards, and range from 12 to 21. Sex which violates age-of-consent law, but is neither violent nor physically coerced, is sometimes described as "statutory rape", the name of a legally-recognized category in the United States.

Rape - Acquaintance date rape

The term, "acquaintance rape" (or "date rape") refers to rape or non-consensual sexual activity between people who are already acquainted, or who know each other socially — friends, acquaintances, people on a date, or even people in an existing romantic relationship — where it is alleged that consent for sexual activity was not given, or was given under duress. In most jurisdictions, there is no legal distinction between rape committed by a stranger, or by an acquaintance, friend or lover.

There is often more difficulty in securing conviction against an assailant who is known by the victim at the time. This is due to the "gray" nature of the situation. In what is colloquially described as a "gray rape" case, the victim is unable to demonstrate non-consent although he or she expresses displeasure at the encounter. The expression "gray rape" refers to the absence of information — there is nothing "gray" in the act itself: if the act was non-consensual at the time it occurred, then it is considered rape, even if not actionably so. Contributing factors to "gray" rape include poor communication by either party, misleading or (possibly deliberate) misreading of body language, or the feeling by one party of being unsure or unable to express what one wishes (which may be due to many reasons). The standard of proof required for non-consensual sexual activity is often harder to meet (or easier to deny) than when two strangers meet, or where there has been violence.

In general, evidence suggests that 80% of all rapists know their victims [1].

Rape - Rape of males

Although rape and sexual assault is usually known as a crime against women by men, men can also be raped by men and by women. According to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics, for 2003 [2], 9.9% of rape and sexual assault victims in the United States, age 12 and older, are male; therefore, nearly 17 out of every 100,000 males are victims. According to the data for 2004 [3], this number has fallen to 2.95%; therefore, slightly more than 5 out of every 100,000 males are victims. Many of these male victims are likely children and there may be many more male victims under age 12 (not included in BJS figures).

While statistics are unreliable regarding the gender of rapist compared to that of victim, male rape victims are often victimized by other men. Women also can commit an act of rape with force or deception to make a man (or adolescent) engage in a non-consensual penetrative sexual act. According to Court TV's Crime Library, women commit about 10% of all sexual offenses and their abuse often involves their own child or children which is incest. Men and young men are traumatized by rape and sexual assault just as female victims.

Male rape victims, like female victims, do not want to be raped, nor does the involuntary physiological response of erection or orgasm mean that the act was enjoyable for the victim. A capable assailant, male or female, can induce these involuntary physical responses in the majority of males with force and/or with deception.

Male-on-male rape does not imply homosexuality. This is not a widely accepted view; people will view the male aggressor as a homosexual (despite it being more of a tool of power and general lust in settings like prison), and may think the recipient as having homosexual desires if he shows signs of sexual stimulation during the experience. No one logically believes that the victim is a homosexual if he shows no enjoyment or stimulation at all, though.

Rape of males by females is widely, but incorrectly, considered impossible because male erectile response is seen as voluntary, when, in fact, it is involuntary. Therefore, male victims of rape by females often face a social, political, and legal double-standard. Female rapists are usually seen as much less culpable than male rapists by the courts. In addition, male victims of female rape often endure a double-bind because men are considered to always want sex with a woman which means that female-on-male rape can be seen, by others, as desireable. In addition, since rape by females is much less well known, the male victims often find little support from rape crisis counselors. Finally, since the incidence of female-on-male rape is on record at much higher rates (31% compared to 10%), in Canada, it is likely being substantially under-reported in the US.

In many countries, male rape is legally classified under a different law or name. However, the nature of the incident, and its consequences, are similar. It is said that male rape is taken less seriously as a result of the stereotypical views held about males in many societies, including modern Western society. Men's rights lobbyists are pushing for tougher male rape laws, and have gained some success.

Rape - Rape of females by females

Sexual violation of females by other females is just beginning to be researched by psychologists. The professional literature shows an incidence of between 3-10% of all serious sexual offenses are female-female, sometimes against their own female children (see parental incest. Bobbie Rosencrans, co-author of the The Last Secret: Daughters Sexually Abused by Mothers (1997), a systematic study of 93 women and 9 men sexually abused by their mothers was flooded with responses from female subjects when she began her study. Other professionals in the counseling professions believe that female-on-female sexual offenses are significantly under-reported.

Rape - Group Rape

Group rape, (also known as "gang rape" or "pack rape") occurs when a group of people participate in the rape of a single victim. It is far more damaging for the victim, and in some jurisdictions, is punished more severely than a rape by one person. Gang bang has been a synonym for gang rape during the times the activity in general was considered taboo, however in the advent of porn industry and relaxed sexual tensions it is now used as a slang term for consensual group sex only.

According to Roy Hazelwood, a profiler of sexual crimes, gang rape "involves three or more offenders and you always have a leader and a reluctant participant. Those are extremely violent, and what you find is that they're playing for each other's approval. It gets into a pack mentality and can be horrendous."

The term "group rape" is now often preferred to "gang rape", as the word "gang" can have racial connotations. The term "gang rape" when used against minority defendants has perceived racial overtones.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Types of rape", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki