Transcript Document

FORENSIC & APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
SEXUAL OFFENDING RAPE
Dr Ann Henry
Tues 5 th
November
2013
LAST LECTURE
Theories of crime
LECTURE OVERVIEW
Sexual Offending (part 1) – Rapists
DEFINITIONS OF RAPE
 Howitt (2009) defines rape as:
 Unwanted penetration of the vagina, anus or
mouth of another person.
 This means that women who abuse children or
adults are covered by the most recent Sexual
Offences Act (2003)
 Statutory rape is penile penetration of any child
below the age of consent to sexual intercourse
 Issue of ‘consent’ has been controversial
LEGAL ASPECTS
Sexual Offences Act (2003) includes a legal
definition of ‘consent’
Active consent of the parties, free from
factors that might mitigate against the freely
given choice such as threats of violence,
drugs, alcohol or being asleep.
No longer sufficient for someone to ‘assume’
that consent had been given.
New approach is based on presumption that
consent had ‘NOT’ been given.
FREQUENCY OF RAPE
Difficult to assess frequency of rape as
much under reporting (dark figure of
unreported crime
Estimated between 75-95% of rapes are
not reported to the police (Her Majesty’s
Inspector of Constabulary, 2007)
FREQUENCY OF RAPE
Occupational police culture that treats
with suspicion allegations of rape
(Reiner, 2000)
Controversy over how many allegations
of rape are false (between 1%-50% in
various studies (Rumney, 2006)
FREQUENCY OF RAPE
Hence, the frequency of rape cannot be
assessed with certainty.
British Crime Surveys – random surveys
of households which attempts to assess
the rate of crime, including those not
reported to the police.
4 women in a 1,000 described incidents
that could be classified as rape in
previous year
BRITISH CRIME SURVEYS
49 women in 1,000 claimed to have been
raped since age of 16 years.
9 women in 1,000 claimed to have suffered
some form of sexual assault victimisation in
the previous year
97 women in 1,000 had suffered some form
of sexual assault since the age of 16
BRITISH CRIME SURVEY
 Victims of rape usually know the rapist
 45% of rapists were the women’s current
partner
 16% were acquaintances
 11% were ex-partners
 11% were dates
 10% were other intimates
 Women raped by a stranger more likely to
report it to the police (36% agreed in survey,
whereas only 8% reported rape by known man)
 Howitt (2012)
HOME OFFICE (2010)
AN OVERVIEW OF SEXUAL OFFENDING IN
ENGLAND AND WALES (2013)
MINISTRY OF JUSTICE, HOME OFFICE &
THE OFFICE FOR NATIONAL STATISTICS
ALSO AVAILABLE ON THE MINISTRY OF
JUSTICE, HOME OFFICE AND OFFICE FOR
NATIONAL STATISTICS WEBSITES AT
WWW.JUSTICE.GOV.UK
WWW.HOMEOFFICE.GOV.UK/RDS/INDEX.
HTM WWW.ONS.GOV.UK
HOME OFFICE (2013)
Table 2.1 - Prevalence of being a victim of a sexual offence in the last 12 months among
adults aged 16 to 59, average of 2009/10, 2010/11 and 2011/12 CSEW
Persons aged 16 to 59
Percentage
who were
victims once
or more
England and Wales
Offence
Males
Females
All
0.4
2.5
1.5
Most serious sexual offences (including attempts)
Rape (including attempts)
Assault by penetration (including attempts)
0.1
0.1
0.0
0.5
0.4
0.2
0.3
0.2
0.1
Most serious sexual offences (excluding
attempts)
Rape (excluding attempts)
Assault by penetration (excluding attempts)
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.4
0.3
0.1
0.2
0.2
0.1
Other sexual offences
0.4
2.3
1.3
Any sexual offence (including attempts)(1)
Unweighted base(2)
20,692
24,203
44,895
(1) Subcategory figures will not add up to the figures above them because respondents may
have been victims of separate incidents of different types of sexual offence.
(2) The bases given are for any sexual offence, the bases for the other measures presented will
be similar.
ESTIMATED NUMBERS OF VICTIMS (2013)
Table 2.2 - Estimated numbers of victims of sexual offences in the last 12 months among adults aged 16 to 59, average of
2009/10, 2010/11 and 2011/12 CSEW
Persons aged 16 to 59
Numbe
r of
victims
per
year
(thousa
nds) (1)
England and Wales
Estimate
Males
Range(2)
72
54 - 90
404
Most serious sexual offences (including
attempts)
Rape (including attempts)
Assault by penetration (including attempts)
12
9
4
5 - 19
3 - 15
0- 8
Most serious sexual offences (excluding
attempts)
Rape (excluding attempts)
Assault by penetration (excluding attempts)
9
6
4
68
Offence
Any sexual offence (including attempts)(1)
Other sexual offences
Unweighted base(3)
20,692
Females
Estimate
Range(2)
All
Estimate
Range(2)
366 - 442
473
430 - 517
85
69
31
68 - 103
54 - 85
20 - 41
97
78
34
77 - 116
60 - 95
23 - 46
3 15
1 - 11
0- 8
62
52
21
47 77
39 - 66
12 - 30
70
58
25
54 87
43 - 73
15 - 34
51 - 85
369
333 - 406
436
395 - 477
24,203
44,895
(1) Subcategory figures will not add up to the figures above them because respondents may have been victims of separate incidents of
different types of sexual offence.
(2) The ranges presented in this table have been calculated using a 95 per cent confidence
interval.
SEX OFFENDERS AS SPECIALISTS/
GENERALISTS?
 General Theory of Crime (Gottfredson & Hirschi,
1990)
 Argues that offending is a manifestation of a
broader & more pervasive antisocial character
which involves not just crime, but other similar
behaviours.
 E.g. employment instability, absenteeism from
work, alcohol & drug abuse, cigarettes,
irresponsible driving, marital instability, truancy
& unprotected sex.
SPECIALIST SEX OFFENDERS
Harris, Mazerolle & Knight (2009)
Argues that sex offenders largely specialise in
sexual crimes & do not engage in other types
of activity.
They argue that there is an ‘implicit’
assumption that those who commit sex
offences are not the same as non-sexual
offenders.
GENERALIST OR SPECIALIST SEX
OFFENDERS?
Leclerc, Cale & Proulx (2007)
Argue that sex offenders include both
‘generalists’ and ‘specialists’
Case for generalists is compelling e.g.
previous histories of non-sexual offending is
common amongst sex offenders
When they reoffend, it’s likely to be for a non sexual offence.
GENERALIST OR SPECIALIST SEX
OFFENDERS?
Harris et al (2009) found that –
There is a group of generalist (versatile) sex
offenders – more likely to show signs of
‘psychopathy’
There is a group of ‘specialist’ sex offenders
who are likely to show emotional congruence
with children, preference of male victims,
victims known to them & sexual
preoccupation.
GENERALIST OR SPECIALIST SEX
OFFENDERS?
 Harris et al (2009)
 Rapists are ‘generalist’ offenders
 Child molesters are ‘specialist’ offenders
 Study based on sample of 572 sex offenders in
Massachusetts between 1959- 1984.
 Considered a ‘specialist’ if the majority of their
crimes are of a particular type.
 Within their sample, they found that ‘specialist’
rapists were rare, but specialist child molesters were
more common.
VICTIM CATEGORY CROSS-OVER
Cross-over is the extent to which a sex
offender offends against victims in a variety
of categories. E.g. adult women, girl children,
boy children.
The more the cross-over, the harder to explain
the sexual offending in terms of different
patterns of conditioning or social learning.
Also harder to predict future sexual offending.
VICTIM CATEGORY CROSS-OVER
 Cann, Friednship & Gozna (2007)
 Looked at cross-over of sexual offenders in terms
of victim age, gender & relationship to offender
 Sample – 1,345 adult male sex offenders who
had offended against multiple victims &
sentenced to min of 4 years.
 Found 25% of offenders showed cross-over on a
min of 1 dimension
 Cross-over offenders higher risk of re-offending
according to Static-99 (risk assessment)
YOUNG SEX OFFENDERS
 Childhood abuse commoner in sex offenders
 Rape often associated with anger
 Worling (1995) adolescent sex offender.
 Those who offended against women rather than
peers had experienced more physical &/or sexual
abuse as children.
 Those sexually abused by men as children, lead
to abuse against younger children
 Victims of female sexual abuse tended to become
offenders against peers and older women.
YOUNG SEX OFFENDERS
Haapasalo & Kankkonen (1997)
Self-reported experiences of childhood abuse
in men whose victims were over 18 years
Compared with violent offenders with no
record of abuse.
Matched on number of family problems, being
in care, parental divorce, parents who were
substance abusers etc.
YOUNG SEX OFFENDERS
 Haapasalo & Kankkonen (1997)
 Found that sex offenders
 claimed to have experienced more psychological (verbal)
abuse e.g. yelling, threatening, ridiculing etc.
 Experience of psychological rejection & isolation was
more common
 Parents more openly hostile & negative towards them as
children
 Tended to be ignored, siblings favoured
 Were locked up in closed environments
 Mother/ father belittled them, did shameful things to
them
 Didn’t want them near them etc.
PATTERNS IN RAPE
Different characteristics in rape behaviour
Australian study have explored what happens
during the rape (e.g. type of penetration
(vaginal, oral, anal), language used in assaults
(e.g. caring, abusive, angry, revenge). McCabe
& Wauchope (2005)
PATTERNS IN RAPE
 Canter et al (2003)
 British study explored the verbatim transcripts made by rape
victims & classified the rape characteristics as:
 Control- about a tenth of rapes (victim bound or gagged or
blindfolded, weapon used etc)
 Theft – about a twentieth of rapes (goods demanded & stolen
from the victim)
 Involvement – about a third of rapes (victim complimented
about her appearance & kissed & implies that he knows the
victim)
 Hostility – about a quarter of rapes ( victims clothing removed
in violent manner, victim threatened, attempted anal
penetration, victim demeaned or verbally insulted)
 Some rapes showed mixed patterns
T YPES OF RAPISTS
Groth, Burgess & Holmstrom (1977)
Power-assurance rapist
Power-assertive rapist
Anger-retaliatory rapist
Anger-excitement rapist
POWER ASSURANCE RAPISTS
 Howitt (1991a) argues that sexual deprivation is not an
essential component of rape
 Power-assurance rapist is the most common type
 Rape deals with insecurities about masculinity
 Rape only provides short term reassurance about masculinity,
so needs to rape again
 Force is not great & threats may be involved, but weapon not
used
 Rape is planned – prior surveillance of victim
 If victim is passive enough, sexual fantasies might be
expressed during rape
 Trophy items of clothing might be taken for future
masturbation
POWER ASSERTIVE RAPISTS
 Howitt (1991a)
 Offender is usually sexually confident
 Rape expresses his virility & sexuality & power over women
 Victims may be found in social locations e.g. discos, pubs or
parties
 Initially his manner might be friendly, but changes very quickly
 Violence is extreme, especially in later stages
 Offences may be scattered & irregular in terms of frequency
ANGER-RETALIATORY RAPIST
 Howitt (1991a)
 High levels of anger towards women
 Involves short intense attacks (blitz)
 Often a similarity between the victim & the woman he has the
grudge against
 Attacks may be fairly regular as a consequence of the build -up
of anger
ANGER-EXCITEMENT RAPIST
 Howitt (1991a)
 Least common type
 Rapist gains pleasure & sexual excitement from the distress
of the victim
 Infliction of pain is common & high levels of violence. Victim
may be killed & torture is common
 Careful, methodical planning
 Will bring blindfold, gags & ropes to the rape
 Victims are usually total strangers to of fender
 Photographs & video recordings might be taken
 Attacks are usually irregular
RAPE MY THS
 Burt (1980) work on cultural myths concerning rape
 She develop the ‘Rape Myth Acceptance Scale’
 Based on victim-blaming & notions that women deserve to be
or want to be raped
 E.g. “if a girl engages in necking or petting & she lets things
get out of hand, it’s her own fault if her partner forces sex on
her”
 “ if a girl gets drunk at a party & has sex with a man she’s
just met there, she’s fair game for other males at the party
who want to have sex with her”
 “ a woman who is stuck up & thinks she is too good to talk to
guys on the street, deserves to be taught a lesson”
SOCIO-CULTURAL FACTORS
 Hall & Barongan (1997)
 Explored rape statistics in 50 states in the USA
 Cultural spillover – measured in terms of ‘Legitimate Violence
Index e.g. acceptance of corporal punishment in schools
 Gender inequality – economic, legal & political status of
women e.g. proportion of the state’s senate that were women,
average income of employed men & women
 Social disorganisation- stability of population e.g. divorce,
lone parent families & religiosity.
SEXUAL FANTASY & SEXUAL OFFENDING
 Conflicting evidence of the role played by sexual fantasies &
sexual of fending.
 Williams et al (2009) found that rates of sexual fantasies in
of fender & non-of fender populations were similar (using
university students)
 Maniglio (2010) did a systematic review of 7 studies involving
171 sexual murderers. Concluded that sexual fantasies might
lead to sexual murder when the of fender had a traumatic
early life experiences and/or more extreme social/ sexual
dysfunctions.
THEORIES OF RAPE
FEMINIST THEORY
 Ellis (1989) argues that rape is built into the gender
structure of society
 Rape is likely to be associated with disparities in
social status & power
 Rape motivated primarily by desire for power &
dominance, rather than desire for sex
 Rapists hold more rape-prone attitudes to women
than non-rapists – but not supported by recent
research.
THEORIES OF RAPE
Social learning theory
That rapists learn to be rapists
Ellis argues that pornography is key factor in
this theory
Rapists hold more favourable attitudes to
rape & violence than other men
THEORIES OF RAPE
Evolutionary theory
Adaptive transmission of one’s genetic
material to the next generation
Forced copulations should impregnate victims
Rape victims primarily of reproductive age
Victim should vigorously resist rapist
Rapist should be less likely than other males
to attract voluntary sex partners
USEFUL REFERENCES
 Harris, D.A . Pedneault, A . & Knight, R.A . (2012). An
exploration of burglary in the criminal histories of sex
of fenders referred for civil commitment, Psychology, Crime &
Law, pp. 1-17.
 Howitt, D. (2009). Introduction to Forensic & Criminal
Psychology, 3 rd edition, Harlow, Pearson Education Ltd.
 Norton, R. & Grant, T. (2008). Rape Myth in true & false rape
allegations. Psychology, Crime & Law , vol.14 (4), pp 275 -285.
 Philip N.S. Rumney (2006).False allegations of rape. The
Cambridge Law Journal, 65, pp 128-158.
doi:10.1017/S0008197306007069.
USEFUL REFERENCES (CONT)

 Strickland, S.M (2008). Female Sex Of fenders: Exploring
Issues of Personality, Trauma and Cognitive Distortions, J
Interpers Violence, 23; pp. 474-489.
 Swart, M.D., De Keseredy, W.S., Tait, D. & Alvi, S. (2006). Male
peer support & a feminist routine activities theory:
understanding sexual assault on the college campus, Justice
Quar terly, vol. 18 (3), 623-649.
USEFUL WEBLINKS
 A gap of a chasm? Attrition in repor ted rape cases – Home Office
Research Study 293, February 2005
 http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110218135832/rd
s.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs05/hors293.pdf
 70
 The Stern Review: A repor t by Baroness Vivien Stern CBE of an
independent review into how rape complaints are handled by
public authorities in England and Wales –Home Office, 2010
 http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110608160754/ht
tp:/www.equalities.gov.uk/PDF/Stern_Review_acc_FINAL.pdf
 Providing anonymity to those accused of rape: an assessment of
evidence – Ministry of Justice Research Series 20/10, November
2010
 www.justice.gov.uk/publications/research -andanalysis/moj/2010/anonymity -rape-assessment-evidence
 71