PREDICTORS OF RAPE OCCURRENCE AND VICTIM BLAME IN THE SMITH,WILLIAM,KENNEDY CASE

In an attempt to understand the bases of rape attributions in the well -publicized accusation of rape against William Kennedy Smith in 1991, background and attitudinal variables were used to predict 277 college students' beliefs that a rape had occurred, and their extent of victim blame prior to his rape trial. Gender differences were found in the b elief that a rape had occurred and in victim blame, but were no longer significant when combined with other predictors in a regression equat ion. Among women, no significant predictors of rape occurrence emerged , whereas for men, political affiliation (Democrats more than Republic ans) and ethnicity (people of color more than whites) predicted the be lief that a rape had occurred. Belief in victim precipitation of rape strongly predicted victim blame in the Smith case. These findings rein force the significance of victim-precipitation beliefs in blaming date -rape victims and the probable role of these myths in keeping date rap e a hidden crime.