Journal article
Cognitive processes underlying the self–other perspective in women’s judgments of sexual victimization risk
Journal of social and personal relationships, Vol.35(10), pp.1381-1399
11/2018
DOI: 10.1177/0265407517713365
Abstract
This study examined the cognitive processes underlying self–other differences in women’s judgments of sexual victimization risk, as well as individual difference factors associated with those processes. Participants were 518 undergraduate women between the ages of 18 and 24. The majority of the women were either White (47.5%) or Hispanic (31.9%). Stimuli were 81 vignettes depicting social situations varying in degree of sexual victimization risk and potential impact on the woman’s popularity. Participants imagined either themselves (Self condition) or an anonymous undergraduate woman (Other condition) in the situations and classified each as high or low risk. Participants also completed the Sexual Experiences Survey, Sociosexuality Scale, and Rape Myth Acceptance Scale. Participants’ risk judgments were modeled using two-level, logistic regression, which provided participant-specific estimates of sensitivity and threshold parameters. Women in the Other condition, relative to the Self condition, showed lower thresholds for judging situations as risky and greater sensitivity to risk-relevant information when judging risk. Women higher in sociosexuality showed higher thresholds and reduced sensitivity to both risk and popularity impact information when judging risk, while women higher in rape myth acceptance were more sensitive to popularity impact information when judging risk. These findings suggest that self–other differences in sexual victimization risk judgments are due to differences in both sensitivity and threshold. Sexual assault prevention interventions for college women may be improved by addressing these cognitive processes.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Cognitive processes underlying the self–other perspective in women’s judgments of sexual victimization risk
- Creators
- Jenny K Rinehart - University of California, Irvine, USAElizabeth A Yeater - University of New Mexico, USATeresa A Treat - University of Iowa, USARichard J Viken - Indiana University, USA
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of social and personal relationships, Vol.35(10), pp.1381-1399
- DOI
- 10.1177/0265407517713365
- ISSN
- 0265-4075
- eISSN
- 1460-3608
- Grant note
- DOI: 10.13039/100000025, name: National Institute of Mental Health, award: T-32MH018834
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 11/2018
- Academic Unit
- Psychological and Brain Sciences
- Record Identifier
- 9984214748602771
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