COUNTERFACTUAL THINKING AND PERCEPTIONS OF RAPE

Four studies examined the effect of counterfactual thinking on reactio ns to rape victims and rape perpetrators. One determinant of counterfa ctual thinking is whether the event is preceded by an unusual or a usu al occurrence. In Study 1, the behavior of a rape victim was varied in this regard, whereas, in Study 2, the behavior of a rape perpetrator was varied. In Study 3, the usualness and/or unusualness of both victi m and perpetrator behaviors were varied within the same scenario. Resu lts indicated that varying these antecedent conditions produced differ ential reactions to a variety of outcome measures, such as perceived a voidability, responsibility, regret, blame, and recommended prison sen tence. In Study 4, these effects were found to generalize to a situati on involving another proposed counterfactual antecedent: action versus inaction. Implications for counterfactual thinking and reactions to r ape are discussed.