COLLEGE MENS AND WOMENS REACTIONS TO HYPOTHETICAL SEXUAL TOUCH VARIEDBY INITIATOR GENDER AND COERCION LEVEL

A sample of 152 men and 152 women (mostly Caucasian) rated their react ions to a vignette in which the subjects were to imagine receiving an uninvited genital touch from a college acquaintance. The vignette was varied so that the acquaintance was of the opposite or the same gender as the subject, and the touch was either gentle or forceful. Results indicated that women anticipated strong negative effects from receivin g opposite- or same-gender touch, whether gentle or forceful. Men anti cipated almost no negative effects from either a gentle or forceful to uch from a female acquaintance, but expected strong negative effects f rom a gentle or forceful touch from a male acquaintance. Regression an alyses revealed that women's reactions to opposite-gender touch were m ediated by beliefs in a male norm promoting casual sex, and feelings o f violation and fear of harm. Men's reactions to opposite-gender touch were influenced by feelings related to sexual arousal. Men and women' s reactions to same-gender touch were related to feelings of violation and harm.