Contributing Factors

• A perpetrator’s sense of power, control, and entitlement:
  • Use of violent behavior and power to control the victim
  • Sense of entitlement to treating the victim with no regard or respect.
• Gender-based stereotypes reinforce the inequality between genders:
  • For example, in a society where men are portrayed as being aggressive and women are seen as passive, a man who pressures a woman for sex is often perceived as behaving acceptably.
• Contributing factors such as alcohol and other drugs:
  • The person who commits a violent act is responsible, however, alcohol and other drugs reduce inhibitions and cloud judgment.
  • Some studies indicate some perpetrators are more likely to commit sexual assault when they are under the influence of alcohol or another substance.
• Victim-blaming ideas:
  • The belief that a victim somehow “asked for it” by the way s/he behaves, dresses or lives.
  • Such myths and misconceptions add to the prevalence of sexual violence.
  • These factors reinforce a belief that some people are not as equal as others.
  • By focusing on a person’s style of dress, choice of lifestyle, physical appearance, sexual orientation and more, the degradation of people becomes a strong factor in sexual violence.