Journal international de victimologie

JIDV 17 (Tome 6, numéro 2 - Janvier 2008)       

Authors

Background

ased on self-report questionnaires, this study explores Israeli high school students' dating scripts and engagement in unwanted sexual activities while on a heterosexual date.  In this context, a sexual activity was defined as unwanted when it was performed without the mutual desire of the dating partners (Kaplan, Feinstein, Fischer, & Klein, 2001). From the perspective of schema theory sexist constructions of gender and sexuality shape and structure adolescents' understanding of dating and victimization through the meanings and stereotypes they render available to them (Fiske & Taylor, 1991).   Males are attributed the traits of dominance, violence, and sexual prowess; females those of passivity, subordination, and lack of sexual desire (Connell 1995; Hatty, 2000; Fine, 1988).          

Gender schema or cognitive structures give rise to dating scripts and rape myths that cast partners on a heterosexual date into specific roles with related expectations concerning the sequence of behaviors they are to engage in.  Consequently, any missing information about the gender and/or the role played by each one of the partners will be filled in based on these scripts (Johnson & Lee, 2000).

In the traditional heterosexual dating script, the male is to invite the female on a date, pay for her, pick her up from and return her home (Muehlenhard, Friedman, & Thomas, 1985; Warshaw, 1988).   He is expected to take the sexual initiative, while the female is to show sexual disinterest and voice token resistance in order not to appear promiscuous. The rule in the dating-game is for the male to conquer his female partner and overcome her resistance (Feltey, Ainslie, & Geib, 1991; Muehlenhard & Linton, 1987). Mass media and advertising industry reinforce these characteristics by fusing pleasure with sexual coercion, and eroticizing the sex-driven male who conquers the passive female (De Lauretis, 1984; Scully, 1995; Williams 1991).

  Recent research conducted in the US and Israel shows that 21^st. century adolescents continue to endorse some of the date-rape myths that traditionally have led to the perception of rape as an essential part of male nature.  Males are viewed as interpreting the world through sexual lenses, as always wanting sex, and as being ready to rape if they could get away with (Anderson, 2007; Cassidy & Hurrell, 1995; Gilmartin-Zena, 1988).  Endorsement of such myths has been found to be gender and age related, with more males than females, and younger than older males, endorsing such myths (Feltney et al, 1991; Geiger, Fischer, & Eshet, 2004; Lonsway & Fitzgerald, 1994).  

            In an Israeli study (N=900), 29 percent of the male and 32 percent of the female high-school students surveyed endorsed the statement "All men would rape if they could get away with it!"  (Geiger et al., 2004).   Females' interest in sex ,as reflected by the stereotypes "All girls are interested in having sex" and "Girls who say no to sex do not really mean it", was endorsed by a larger percentage of male than female students, respectively, 35% vs. 14%,  and  34% vs. 13% (Geiger et al., 2004).    

 The discourse on male sexual prowess, strength, and dominance normalized in the Israeli and US cultures also renders males too powerful to be overpowered and/or sexually victimized by a female on a date. Consequently, the only conceivable male-as-sex-victim scenario is the one occurring within homosexual dating-encounter.  Male victims in such a context were often be blamed for not being strong enough, not resisting enough, and/or for wishing to engage in indiscriminate sex (Anderson, 2004, 2007; Anderson & Struckman-Johnson, 1998; Burt & DeMello, 2002).  

Similar rape myths and cognitions were found in Israeli research.  Respondents showed little empathy for male victims and blamed them regardless of their sexual orientation (Ben David & Schneider, 2005; Sabbah, 1992).  Sabbah (1992) explained these findings based on the following rape myths: (1) Males cannot be raped, they are strong enough to defend themselves and prevent victimization; and (2) Males who are actually raped, do not really experience any trauma because they are physically and emotionally stronger. 

Researchers in the US and Israel concluded that the knowledge of these stereotypes often prevented male rape-victims from reporting victimization (Anderson, 2007; Hegelson, 2002; Sabbah, 1992).  In fact, based on the report of the Israeli Organization against Sexual Aggression, only one percent of male-rape victims in Israel did so (Kurman, 2000).

The suppression of female sexual desire and reduction of females into a sex-object with no agency of their own further precludes the possibility of females being initiators and males the victims of unwanted sexual behaviors on a heterosexual date (Anderson, 2004, 2007; Fine, 1988; Fine & McClelland, 2006). Males' sexual victimization by a female on a date is so discrepant with our stereotypical conception of male and female roles in rape that the reality and gravity of the phenomenon is often denied.  The eventuality of a male being sexually aggressed by a female partner on a date is pushed aside as wishful thinking flattering to the "so-called" victim.  Consequently, the male victim is considered lucky when such unexpected opportunity for sex arises (Anderson & Swainson, 2001; Hannon, Hall, Holly, Formati, & Hopson, 2000).   Male victims of female sexual aggression are often perceived with derision (Ben David & Schneider, 2005; Sabbah, 1992).   They are blamed for encouraging and seducing the female aggressor and provoking her aggression (Anderson, 2007; Anderson & Struckman-Johnson, 1998; Forbes & Adam-Curtis, 2001; Struckman-Johnson & Struckman-Johnson, 2001).

            Recent research conducted with adolescents in Israel and several other western countries such as the US, England, Germany, and New Zealand, and Russia helped dissipate some of the traditional rape myths and sex-roles stereotypes concerning gender polarities in dating violence by showing that male and female adolescents' victimization on a heterosexual date is equally likely.   In a study conducted in the United States, up to 57 percent of male high-school students reported unwanted sexual activities on a date, with one-third of them engaging in unwanted sexual intercourse (Feltey et al., 1991).  Similar findings were indicated in a survey of 1965 adolescents, with no significant difference between genders in the reported dating violence (39.4 % males and 36.5% females).  Moreover, in a survey conducted in New Zealand, 67 percent of the 13 to 19 year old male youths reported unwanted sexual experience on a date (Jackson, Cram, & Seymour, 2000). 

Research in Israel reveals a similar extent of physical, emotional, and sexual aggression on a heterosexual date (Etgar & Stuisky, 1998). In Ronel, Rahavy, & Edan's survey (2001) of 171 Israeli 14 to 18-year-old adolescents, a higher percentage of males (32.2%) than females (12.4%) reported physical aggression by the opposite-sex partner on a date.   Similarly, a higher percentage of males (59.3%) than females (39.3%) reported, at least once, being subjected to sexual violence on a date.  Data of the Israeli Organization against Sexual Aggression reinforce these findings by showing that of one percent of the males reporting  sexual victimization, 96 percent of them indicated that their aggressor was a female (Kurman, 2000). 

            Israeli adolescents' dating scripts have also undergone some changes over the past 20-years (Shahar, 1988, 1977; Shahar & Avivi, 2001). In comparison to the youths' dating patterns in the 1970's, Israeli youth in the 1990’s adopted more egalitarian and androgynous patterns of behavior. Female adolescents called and invited their male partner on a date, and gave them compliments on their appearance. Similarly, male adolescents in 1997 were found to show care and concern, and were more attentive to their girlfriend's emotional needs than the males in 1977.  They bought their girlfriend presents and remembered important dates. 

            The research literature on the relative impact of partner vs. peer pressure to engage in unwanted sexual intercourse on a date is scarce.   In the United States  males were found to more often report peer pressure whereas females more often reported dating-partner pressure to engage in unwanted sex on a date (Feltey et al., 1991; Knox & Wilson, 1983; Rice, 2002).  In contrast, a study conducted in Russia on dating violence (Lysova, 2007)  shows  a similar percentage of male and female students (29%) reporting partner pressure to engage in unwanted sexual intercourse, with females more frequently using threats than males (4.5 % vs. 1.3%).   Interestingly, some researchers (Roberts, Auinger, & Klein, 2006) found that the length of the relationship and intensity of the emotional commitment influenced the extent to which partners of either gender felt pressured/coerced by the other partner to engage in unwanted intercourse.  So far no research on this topic has been conducted in Israel. Our study is, therefore, expected to compensate for this lack.   

Goals of this Study

This exploratory study examines Israeli high-school students' engagement in unwanted sexual activities on a heterosexual date and the relative impact of gender grade/age, dating-partner, and peer pressure on such engagement.  The following questions were addressed:

1.      Are there gender differences in students' endorsement of dating patterns?

2.       Are there gender differences in students' report of unwanted sexual activities, i.e., unwanted kissing, petting, undressing, and/or intercourse, on a date?

3.      Are there gender and age differences in students' report of peer pressure to engage in unwanted sexual intercourse on a date? 

4.      Are there gender and age differences in students' report of partner pressure to engage in unwanted sexual intercourse on a date? 

The independent variables of the study are gender and age/grade in which students were enrolled in.

The dependent variables are (1) dating scripts, (2) engagement in unwanted sexual activities on a date, (3) peer pressure to have sex on a date and (4) dating-partner pressure to have sex on a date.

Method

Sample Selection

A multistage sampling method was used to obtain the purposive sample of 566 high-school students, quasi-randomly selected from several high schools in Northwestern Israel. Initially, ten secular high-schools located in the Northwestern region of Israel were chosen based on similarity of their SES and ethnic breakdown to that of the Israeli population (Statistical Abstracts of Israel, 2006, p. 27). Three high schools were randomly selected from these 10 high schools, by drawing lots from a hat. Religious Jewish and Arab schools were not included in the study.

The three selected schools were further stratified into three strata of 10^th, 11^th, and 12^th grades.  Three classes from each stratum were randomly selected from each one of the three schools by drawing lots from a hat.  The original sample included 900 students clustered into 27 classrooms.    Of the 900 questionnaires distributed to the students 334 were eliminated from our data analysis.  Two hundred sixty of them were returned partially completed because the students reported never dating and consequently left blank the section on engagement in unwanted sexual activities. The remaining 74 questionnaires discarded were returned blank, probably because the questions were too personal and intrusive to be answered.  The 30 percent non-response rate was expected given the nature of this study. 

The gender breakdown of the 566 high school students included in the data analysis was 240 males (42.4%) and 326 females (57.6%).  Their gender breakdown by grade was as follows:  165 males and 143 females in 10th grade, 118 males and 148 females in 11th grade, and 112 males and 187 females in 12th grade. Most of these students (90%) were enrolled in the academic track, preparing for the national examinations given in the final three years of high school. The remaining 10 percent were enrolled in the vocational track.  The sample was multi-ethnic, one with 19 percent of students born outside of Israel, i.e. the former USSR, South America, and Africa. The students' socioeconomic background as determined by their father's profession was divided into three categories: white-collar professionals (39%), bureaucrats, security and services (36%), and working class, such as factory workers (17%).  The remaining 8 percent was not specified due to the father's lack of employment.  

Instrument   

Our research tool was a gender-neutral survey questionnaire that included questions equivalent to those asked by Muehlenhard & Linton (1987) and Feltey, Anslie, & Geib (1990).  Some of these questions inquired about the students' background, their dating patterns, and sexual orientation.  Other questions asked the students whether they ever had gone out on a date with a person of the opposite sex, and whether they had engaged in unwanted sexual activities, ranging from unwanted kissing to unwanted sexual intercourse on a date. Additional questions inquired about dating-partner and peer pressure to have sex on a date (see Appendix A).

The relevance, degree of clarity, and understanding of the Hebrew translation of these questions was examined by reading the questions to 10 high-school students who volunteered for this task.  Revisions and reformulation of some of the questions were performed based on the researchers’ and students' comments.  Cronbach alfa coefficient of reliability for the questions relating to unwanted sexual activities was alfa = 0.83, which was indicative of the construct validity of our research tool.  

Procedure

The research proposal and questionnaire were submitted for approval to the human subject review board of the Ministry of Education.   Parents were sent a letter explaining the purpose of the study and were requested to sign and return the letter in case they refused to have their child participate.    Administration of the questionnaire took place during regular education classes in the presence of a graduate student. At that time, the teacher was requested to leave the room.  The purpose of the study was explained to the student as wanting to know more about adolescents' dating habits. It was clarified that participation was voluntary, no pressure would be applied to return the questionnaire completed.  Anonymity and confidentiality were, furthermore, guaranteed.

Operational Definition and Scoring of the Dependent Variables

The dependent variable dating scripts was operationally defined by the following behaviors: (a) inviting the other partner out, (b) calling the other partner, and (c) paying for the date.  Students responses were scored on a nominal scale from 1 to 4 as follows:  1=male, 2=female, 3=both, 4=don’t know.

The variable engagement in unwanted sexual activities on a date was operationally defined as kissing, undressing, petting, fondling, and sexual intercourse performed against the will of one of the dating partners who made clear, verbally or nonverbally, to the opposite-sex partner that he or she did not want to engage in any one of these activities.   This definition was based on that of Muehlenhard & Linton (1987, p. 188), with slight variation, to render the definition gender neutral. This definition also appeared in the questionnaire at the top of the section on unwanted sexual activities. Students' responses were scored on an ordinal scale ranging from 1 to 4 as follows:   1 = oftentimes, 2 = rarely, 3 = at least once, and 4 = never (See Appendix A).  

A compound dependent variable unwanted sexual activities on a date was created by adding and then averaging students' scores obtained on the ordinal variables: unwanted kissing, unwanted undressing, unwanted petting, unwanted fondling, and unwanted sexual intercourse. This compound average score ranged on an interval scale from 1 to 4.  The lower the mean score (M=1), the greater the frequency with which the student had engaged in unwanted activities. 

Peer pressure to engage in unwanted sex on a heterosexual date was defined as one of the dating partners being pressured, in words or deeds, by his or her peer(s) to engage in sexual intercourse against his or her will while on a date. Similarly, the variable dating-partner pressure to engage in sexual unwanted sex on a heterosexual date was defined as one of the dating partners being pressured, in words or deeds, by the opposite-sex partner to engage in sexual intercourse on a date despite his or her expressed refusal do so.

Students' responses concerning the extent to which they had experienced partner's and/or  peers' pressure to have sexual intercourse on a date were scored on an ordinal scale ranging from 1 to 4 as follows: 1=oftentimes, 2=rarely,  3=at least once, and 4=never. 

Data Analysis

Chi-square, t-test and F-tests, and MANOVA were performed  to find out the effects of gender and grade or interaction of gender X grade on students' report of unwanted sexual experiences on a date and on their experience of partner or peer pressure to engage in such activities. All these operations included two-tail tests with a confidence interval of 95 percent.  A stepwise regression analysis was also conducted to find out the proportion of the variance in students' experience of unwanted sexual activities that could be explained by gender, grade, and dating partner and/or peer pressure to have sex on a date. The R-squares obtained were unadjusted and the beta scores standardized.

Results

Data were first analyzed to examine students dating scripts and the frequency with "male", "female" or "both genders" called, asked out, or paid on a date.  Our analysis showed no significant gender differences in the frequency with which students reported “both genders”  to be asking out (73% males and 73% females), and/or calling (57% males and 55.4% females) the opposite-sex partner on a date.  The only significant gender difference indicated was for "paying on a date", with a significantly lower percentage of males (47.9%) than females (60.1 %) answering "both" to this question. 

Gender differences in the students’ report of unwanted sexual activities were analyzed by computing means, percentages, and t-tests.

Data in Table 1 show no significant gender differences in students' percentage report of unwanted sexual activities or mean score obtained. The mean score for engaging in unwanted kissing was 3.68 for  males, and 3.73 for females  (t(552, 0.95)=.87, p>.05), with 18.9 percent of the male and 15 percent of female students reporting engaging, at least once, in such activity.  The mean score for unwanted sexual intercourse was 3.86 for males and 3.88 for females t(552, 0.95)=.54, p>.05),  with  10.9 percent of the male and  8 percent female students reporting engaging, at least once, in such activity.  The means score for the compound variable "unwanted sexual activities" was 3.75 for males and 3.81 for females (t(555, 0.95) = 1.53, p>.05), with 13.4 percent of the male and 10.4 percent of the female students reporting to have engaged, at least once, in such activity.

The extent of peer and partner pressure to engage in sexual intercourse was also examined. Students' report of peer pressure seemed gender and grade related.  In 10^th and 11^th grades, a significantly higher percentage of male than female students reported such pressure.  This percentage decreases with age for males, from 21.1 percent in 10^th grade to 9.3 percent in 12^th grade. In contrast, the percentage of female reporting such pressure remained constant, 4.3% throughout the grades. As a result, gender differences in students' report of peer pressure to perform unwanted sexual intercourse on a date lost significance (p>.05) in 12^th grade. The MANOVA performed yielded a main effect of gender (F (1,559) =22.84, p<.001).  In contrast, no main effect of grade (F (2,558) =2.17; p>.05) or interaction effect of gender X grade (F (1,559) =2.61; p>.05) were indicated

            Examination of the variable dating partner's pressure to engage in sexual intercourse showed mean scores remaining approximately constant throughout the grades.   In 10^th grade the mean scores were 3.76 for males and 3.90 for females; in 11^th grade 3.75 for males and 3.93 for females, and in 12^th grade 3.93 for males and 3.92 for females.  MANOVA performed with gender and grade as independent variables and partner pressure to have sex on a date as dependent variable yielded no significant main effects of gender (F(1,558) =5.30; p>.05), or grade (F(2,558) =2.08; p>.05) and no gender X grade  interaction effect (F (2,558)=1.86, p>.05).

Stepwise regression analysis showed that the variables entered in the analysis, dating partner pressure to have sex, peer pressure to have sex, gender, and grade, explained 39 percent of the variance of  the compound variable students' engagement in unwanted sexual activities on a date (Rsquare=.386 F(4, 545)= 85.48, p<.001).  Dating-partner pressure to have sex on a date was found to be the strongest predictor of such engagement, and contributed to 31.8 percent of the explained variance of the composite variable engagement in unwanted sexual activities on a date (Rsquare = .318, F (1,548) = 255.2, p<.001).   Peer pressure to have sex on a date was the second most significant predictor of unwanted sexual activities on a date, contributing a 6.8 percent increase of the explained variance of this composite variable. Taken together, dating-partner and peer pressure contributed to 38 percent of the variance of the variable engagement in unwanted sexual activities on a date (F (2,547) = 170.30, p<.01). Interestingly, no significant portion of the variance was explained by either age (Beta =.002, t = .06, p>05) or gender (Beta =-.043, t= 1.26, p>05).

Discussion

This exploratory study was based on a self-report survey of 566 Israeli high school students’ dating habits and engagement in unwanted sexual activities on a date.  Experience of peer and partner pressure to engage in such activities were also examined.   Analysis of the data shows:

1.      No gender differences in adolescents' dating patterns, with students of both genders as frequently reporting that "both genders"  "asked out" and/or “called" the other partner for a date. These findings support those obtained in the United States (Erickson & Rapkin, 1991; Feltey et al., 1991), the United Kingdom, (Hird, 2000), New Zealand (Jackson et al., 2000), Germany (Krahé, Waizenhöfer^, & Möller, 2003) and Israel (Shahar, 1988, 1977; Shahar & Avivi, 2001) and allow us to infer a global trend of more androgynous teen-dating scripts in Western countries.

2.      No gender differences in high school students' report of unwanted sexual activities on a heterosexual date were indicated in the current research.  Male as often as female students reported engaging in unwanted kissing, petting, fondling, and sexual intercourse on a date. These findings corroborate those obtained in other western countries Feltey et al., 1991; Erickson & Rapkin, 1991; Hird, 2000; Jackson et al, 2000; Krahé, et al., 2003) including Israel (Ronel et al., 2000).  They led us to conclude that male and female students are equally at risk of being sexually victimized on a heterosexual date.

1. Gender differences in Israeli high school students' report of peer pressure to engage in unwanted sexual intercourse on a date was supported by our data in lower grades, i.e., 10^th and 11^th grades. In 12^th grade, Israeli students of both genders were less likely to experience such pressure.  Our findings were corroborated by those obtained in other western countries (Feltey et al., 1991; Lavoie, Robitaille, & Hebert, 2000; Rice, 2002). 
2. Throughout the grades no gender differences were indicated in Israeli high-school students' report of the opposite-sex partner pressure to engage in unwanted sexual intercourse.  Our regression analysis reinforces this finding by showing that regardless of gender and age, dating-partner pressure was the most significant predictor of high school students' engagement in unwanted sexual intercourse on a date.  These findings clash with those obtained in the United States a decade ago concerning gender differences in partner pressure (Feltey et al., 1991; Knox & Wilson, 1983; Rice, 2002).  However, more up-to-date research data (Lysova, 2007) supports our findings, and lead to the conclusion that male are as likely as female high school students to experience dating-partner pressure to perform intercourse on a date.

The finding that male sexual victimization is as likely as female victimization on a heterosexual date seems incongruent with our traditional rape myths and sex-role stereotypes of the passive female victim and the sex-driven male aggressor.  This discrepancy has often led researchers to regard findings on gender-neutral sexual victimization with skepticism.  At best, they concluded that this phenomenon was an artifact of adolescence made to disappear in adulthood (Averay-leaf, Cascardy; O’leary & Cano, 1997, Wekerle & Wolfe, 1999). 

The finding of the lack of gender difference in high-school students' report of unwanted sexual activities on a date led us, at first, to suspect that the male high-school students in our sample were over-reporting. This assumption was, however, refuted based on research findings showing that the stereotypical equation of manliness with sexual prowess has often rendered male victims reluctant and embarrassed to report sexual victimization occurring on a heterosexual date.  Male victims, therefore, usually underreported rather than over-reported sexual victimization (Forbes & Adam-Curtis, 2001; Hannon et al., 2000; Smith, et al., 1998; Kurman, 2000).

Findings of the present study concerning the similarities between genders in high school students' dating patterns and unwanted sexual experiences allows us to critically examine the traditional construction of gender and reject as exaggerations the polarities in genders' roles and behaviors that saturate dating scripts and date-rape myths. Male adolescents are as likely as female adolescents to be pressured by their dating partner to engage in unwanted sex and as likely to be sexually victimized on a date (Fine, 1988; Shahar, 1977, 1988, 1997).

     Despite the large number of students surveyed, this study was exploratory.  Our sample was a convenience sample since only adolescents who were in high school and lived in the Northern part of Israel were surveyed.  A larger study could compare high-school students to high-school dropouts in various regions of the country.   Furthermore, the test battery used in this study was limited and several questions remain to be answered.  This study could be expanded to examine students’ feelings and reactions to unwanted sexual activities on a date.  Some questions could inquire about whether the level of emotional commitment and length of relationship affect the extent to which adolescents submit to unwanted sexual acts.  Additional questions could examine the tactics used by both genders (e.g., drugs, alcohol, threats, psychological pressure, verbal pleading and arguments, emotional blackmail, and deception) to pressure/coerce their opposite-sex partner into unwanted sex. Finally, the students surveyed could be asked to specify the age of the female/male they had performed with one or several unwanted sexual activities on a date.  This question seems to be of importance since according to one of the popular scripts, male adolescents lose their virginity to an older woman who pushes them to engage in sexual intercourse (Anderson, Turner, & Lydum, 2004).  

This exploratory study is expected to generate several other studies, possibly qualitative studies, that will enable adolescents' to recount in their own words their experience of unwanted sexual activities on a heterosexual date, their motivation as initiator, their feelings, attitudes and reactions as victims of such experiences. Such accounts are needed to sort out myths from reality concerning youth unwanted sexual dating experiences.

       The findings of this study have practical implications for educators and mental health professionals concerned with prevention of unwanted sexual experience and the building of healthy intimate relationships.  Students of both genders must be targeted, since both genders are equally at risk of engaging in unwanted sexual activities. Both genders must grasp the tremendous influence of dating partner and/or peer pressure when engaging in unwanted sexual activities on a date. Both genders must understand that their dating partner has the right to own his or her body and say "No!" to any sexual activity he or she does not wish to engage in.

           An androgynous sex education would introduce in its curriculum a discourse on gender-neutral sexual victimization and a new discourse on female sexual desire. Within the framework, adolescents of both genders could explore the dynamics of their relationships, develop sexual subjectivity, and learn to take responsibility for their sexual experiences, while respecting their partner’s wishes, including his or her refusal to become sexually intimate.

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