Essay on Women's Sexual Assault: Consequences, Causes, and Solutions

This essay provides a sociological analysis of women's sexual assault, examining its prevalence, consequences, and underlying causes. It explores various theories, including social learning theory, feminist approaches, and Hirschi's social bond theory, to understand the factors contributing to this cr...Read More

Running head: SOCIOLOGY
SOCIOLOGY
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Introduction
Sexual vehemence is prevalent all through the world. Even though in most nations there
has been insignificant amount of investigation on the crime, existing evidences suggest that in
nations like Australia, United States and Canada majority of women have been experiencing
sexual assault by an intimate companion and equal to one third of adolescence girls have been
reporting their first sexual involvement as being enforced. Sexual assault or violence against
women significantly affects physical as well as mental health. Furthermore, its impact on mental
condition can be serious as its physical influence and may be in the same way long lasting
(Smith, 2015). Reports reveal that sexual violence to be consequential of suicide, HIV infection
or killing whereby the second takes its occurrence during the act of sexual attack or consequently
as a killing of 'honour'. Sexual violence against women can be intensely influential on the social
security of the victims whereby individuals tends to face stigma and maybe ostracized by their
families and others consequently (Pateman, 2016). The following paper will aim to analyse
women sexual assault as a critical crime by throwing light on its consequences and causes.
Additionally it will highlight the underlying factors related to the crime through sociological
lenses and suggest necessary recommendations for its mitigation.
Discussion
It is highly challenging to quantity the actual magnitude of violence counter to women as
majority of events of sexual attack tends to go unrecorded. As per reports, in 2005 the Australian
Bureau of Statistics (ABS) projected that about 36% of female sufferers of physical molestation
and around 19% of female targets of sexual violence in Australia have informed their
experiences to the law enforcement officers (Henry & Powell, 2015). In recent years, there have
been witnessed significant amount of studies on sexual violence against women in Australia. A

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significant part of understanding social problem as well as a precursor of its prevention is
realisation of the underlying factors related to its occurrence. Critical investigation on causes of
sexual violence against women as heinous crime comprise of two lines of enquiry related to the
assessment of the attributes which impact the behaviour of criminals and secondly the
deliberation of whether some women have an elevated susceptibility to discrimination. García-
Moreno, Hegarty, d'Oliveira and Koziol-McLain et al. (2015) have sought underlying factors at
level of sociological analysis. Studies of offending and victimization have remained conceptually
separate excluding socio-cultural analysis where universal concern is typically given to two vital
procedures. These processes focus on factors, which influence men to conduct such crime and
direct their expressions of violence towards women also situations which tend to position women
to receive ferocity as well as drive to silence them subsequently.
Sexual violence against women is successfully used to be stimulated by desire and needs
to subjugate women. Such a perception conjures portrayal of dominant man utilizes aggression
against women in order to uphold his dominance. However, critical studies have claimed that
such relationships are highly complex since power and regulation usually intensify intimate
partner violence (Bone, Goodfellow, Vahidi & Gelberg,et al., 2018). Nevertheless, intention of
aggression shown against women may also be in response to man's emotional factor related to
powerlessness and incompetence of accepting refutation. Comprehensive studies claimed that
efforts of resolving arguments regarding sex versus power included extensive laboratory research
of sexual arousal of men to stimuli of the pixels of pure violence or truly consensual sex and
assault. On the other hand, social learning theory mention that humans learn social behaviour by
studying the behaviour patterns of other individuals in addition to the outcomes of those
behavioural patterns, thus forming perceptions regarding which behaviours appropriate by trying

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those patterns and continuing them in order to receive positive outcomes. In the view of
McGlynn, Rackley and Houghton (2017), social learning theory does not considered women
sexual violence inevitable would rather views it as a social behaviour and heinous crime which is
shaped by its consequences and tend to continue if it is strengthened. One of the mechanisms
through which social learning has its occurrence relies on social information processing that is
decoding for understanding social interactions on making judgements regarding appropriate
responses based on the coding and performing a response in order to see whether the impact has
been intended. Studies have hypothesized that aggressive men tend to lack ability vital to
accurately interpret communications from women. At this juncture, Zavala (2017) have
illustrated that men's decisions of videotapes of male-female conversation are immensely
sexualized in comparison to judgements made by women.
Feminist approach to apprehend sexual violence incorporates Hirschi's social bond
theory. According to this theory, higher the emotional attachments men have with other male
associates in sphere of hyperactive masculine subculture, the higher propensity of women sexual
assault. However, another critical factor related to this crime is commitment, which posits that
men tend to conform to patriarchal social order on the basis of strong trust and reliance. This can
manifest itself by consistent associations with female inspector of the repercussions, which are
involved. Moreover, by means of this theoretical understanding, individual can attain masculinity
and further illustrate trust and commitment to the patriarchal social order. Furthermore, Hirschi's
theory notes that individuals possessing conviction of legitimacy of patriarchy as well as
masculinity have greater propensity to pursue such criminal acts, consequently leading to sexual
violence against women. As per Fox, Nobles and Fisher (2016), Hirschi's integrative theory
provides rationale for causes, which lead men to involve in sexual molestation against women.

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They are involved in attaining masculinity as well as explaining connection, obligation, reliance
and connection in patriarchal arrangement, which disregards as well as stimulates sexual
violence. Meanwhile, to advance sociological understanding of the effect of sexual violence and
identity on posttraumatic stress, McGlynn, Rackley and Houghton (2017) have framed
neurobiological, psychological explanations of disturbance within the notions of as well as
propositions of affect control theory. According to Werner, McCutcheon, Challa and Agrawal et
al. (2016) Affect Control Theory (ACT) has its base in classical symbolic interactionism that
explains social experiences as navigation and concession of collective ethnic connotations. The
theory states expects that when deflection tends to be elevated, interactants exhibit distress and
eventually will re-explain an aspect in order to explain the experiences. Consequently, ACT
explains how unexpected or traumatic events tend to confront cultural explanations of behaviour
as well as identities in addition to the perceptions of oneself thus giving rise only to
unconstructive emotions but cognitive uncertainties and reconceptualization of an experience
(Heath, 2016). Michau, Horn, Bank and Dutt, M et al. (2015) have found connection between
ACT processes with psychological distress. Comprehensive studies further reveal that infrequent
and distressing experiences especially related to sexual assault tend to generate apprehensively
increased levels of deflection. However, Zavala (2017) argued that deflection that is
inconsistency between ethnic considerations of individualities enacted along with the imitations
produced by distressing experiences, which incorporates with symptoms identified as
posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
As per the view of Ferguson, Bender and Thompson (2016), the troubled individual
fluctuates between prevention of the disturbing recollection in addition to insistent reflecting
views and beliefs along with the mind’s effort to reshape the experience in order to incorporate

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the memory into a comprehensible life event. On the other hand, Heath (2016) established that in
the milieu of sexual oppression, it is usual for women to recognize the criminals’ characteristics
and their personal characteristics in order to get rid of destructive emotions and re-establish to
their worldviews. Furthermore, when shocking and traumatic events occur related to sexual
violence and assault, they tend to hamper the typical cycle of life course pattern and might be
viewed as primary revolving point (Turchik, Hebenstreit & Judson, 2016).
Within Australia, acts of sexual assault against women are used to analyse disparity of
sexual offences. Heinous acts of assault and molestation against women related to struggled rape,
sexual penetration without permission, provoked sexual molestation are considered to be
statutory crime and offenders punishable under 61l of the Crime Act 1990 (García-Moreno et al.,
2015). While sexual assault like rape and molestation are outcomes of sexually deviant
behaviour, the act is considered as indictable criminal act as opposed to minor offences.
According to McGlynn, Rackley and Houghton (2017), as causes related to feminist movement
have sought to gain from the acceptance of the strain theory in an effort to resuscitate and edify
public regarding the criminal act of sexual assault. Moreover, Werner et al., (2016) in dynamic
approach of explaining the precursors to sexual assault and societal attributes in order to succeed
forceful behaviours and rape proclivity (Dario & O’Neal, 2018). Furthermore, strain theory
argues that women show greater tendency to encounter strains, which are advantageous to
intimate linkages as they are accentuated with the objectivity of the procedures through which
results have been arranged. Meanwhile, it has been claimed by strain theory that women have
higher propensity to sustain intimate relations as well as strains related to particular types of
marginalization related to sexual assault. Sexual victimization of women and deviance result
from lack of progression in contemporary culture.

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Tarzia, Maxwell, Valpied and Novy et al. (2017) have claimed that media has been
distorted with concepts of acceptable and offensive, thus intensifying sexually deviant behaviour.
Sexualizing women has been perceived as normal in media and objectifying women for
satisfying men. Consequently, media unconstructively affects culture of rape, molestation and
illustrates that women sexual assault cannot be perceived as deviant behaviour. Moreover,
attitudes related to sexual violence have been interpreted considering no one can escape the
ceaseless range of destructive influence. Consequently, it has been noted that deviant behaviour
did not emerge from nothing but sexual victimization emerge from the destructive judgements of
the media. According to Morley (2016), media has been promoting the objectification of women
by explaining that women’s primary identification relates to their bodies. Thus, acts of sexual
violence and assault against women are not perceptions, which should be perceived as
commonplace. Moreover, at certain point, the deviant act of sexual assault and violence must be
recognized and understood as crime and not as an accepted or standard behaviour of men
towards women.
Interventions, which confront cultural as well as social norms supportive of violence
against women, have typically been integrated with other approaches. Reports reveal that
countries like Australia and other developed nations have taken initiatives to lessen violence and
sexual abuse amongst women, which include change cultural norms and social values. According
to Szalacha, Hughes, McNair and Loxton (2017), these norms include gender stereotypes, norms
and values related to masculinity and aggression or abuse within intimate relationship.
Programmes like Mentors in Violence Prevention recognize robust influence that young adults
can have on each other’s behavioural patterns and social demands of masculinity. Furthermore,
in Western Australia, the Freedom from Fear campaign has focused on male perpetrators in

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addition to likely perpetrators of domestic violence. Michau, Horn, Bank and Dutt et al. (2015)
have noted that Initial investigation with male criminals have revealed that campaign messages
for example, “real men don’t hit women” in addition to “companions will reject you”, or the ones
emphasizing the significances of domestic violence on their companion would be unproductive.
On the other hand, social justice paradigm applies range of traditional as well as social media in
addition to educational approaches in order to expand and develop beyond statistics and further
to include narrations which focus on the salience of authority, dominance, subjugation and
discrimination against women. Furthermore, considering social justice approach towards sexual
violence preclusion practice, educators as well as practitioners recognize that assault has
emerged as result of a complex interaction of numerous dynamics, which are recognized and
unidentified and the way they repel adhering to one account (Fox, Nobles & Fisher, 2016).
Additionally, prevention edification against women sexual assault has been understood as a
critical tool in lieu of anti-oppression and bringing end to assault, molestation and violence
against women.
Conclusion
Hence to conclude, when society uses social justice framework, it has been noted that
prevention work has been entrenched across numerous entities functioning in collaboration and
concurrently to establish as well as sustain community competence. Furthermore, it is conclusive
that knowledge as well as capability regarding conclusion of sexual violence has been informed
by community-based initiatives of antiviolence in addition to additional civil rights activities and
organizers, whereby educators can obtain understanding related to the operative coalition as well
as consensus-building along with the way to successfully begin confrontation and endure it over
time. Sexual assault against women has been continuing to be critical issue for women and

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society. With growing research of realizing the underlying factors related to its occurrence, it is
vital to comprehend and distinguish ways to change individuals and communal attributes which
perpetuate it.

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