Young heterosexual men’s use of the miscommunication model in explaining acquaintance rape

Hansen, S., O’Byrne, R. and Rapley, M. (2010) Young heterosexual men’s use of the miscommunication model in explaining acquaintance rape. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 7 (1). pp. 45-49.

Abstract

This article describes a program of research that systematically examined the ways in which young heterosexual men draw on widely culturally shared accounts of rape to account for sexual coercion and sexual assault. In particular, the authors discuss the reliance placed on a lay version of Tannen's (1992) miscommunication model of (acquaintance) rape-the claim that rape is a consequence of men's not knowing-and young men's use of this account as a device to accomplish exculpation. The authors discuss the implications of their methods for capturing young people's understanding of sexual coercion, rape, and consent, as well as for designing rape prevention programs.