Gender differences in perceptions for women's participation in unwanted sexual intercourse

This article examines the reasons that women and men give in explaining why women willingly agree to sexual intimacy when they would rather not be intimate at that time. Data collected from a sample of students on a southern campus included a set of scales which measured the beliefs about why women consent to unwanted sexual intercourse held by men and women. The findings indicated that most sexual intercourse was consensual and mutually desired. Perceived reasons for consent to unwanted sex by women varied for men and women, as did the ranking of relative importance of the reasons. Some support was found for the contention that compliance might be a function of gender socialization.