Rl. Hutchinson et al., STUDENTS PERCEPTIONS OF MALE SEXUALLY AGGRESSIVE-BEHAVIOR AS A FUNCTION OF EDUCATIONAL-LEVEL AND GENDER, Sex roles, 30(5-6), 1994, pp. 407-422
Two hundred and four students (108 college freshmen, sophomores, junio
rs, and seniors; 96 high school juniors and seniors) participated in t
his study. The socioeconomic status of the participants (high school =
93% Caucasian, 7% African-American; college = 96% Caucasian, 4% Afric
an-American) was primarily in the lower middle-class range. The purpos
es of this investigation were (1) to test whether or not differences e
xist between high school and college students' perceptions of one form
of male sexually aggressive behavior against women, (2) to determine
if differences exist between male and female students' perceptions of
such behavior against women, and (3) to explore the sex role socializa
tion theory by providing empirical observation of its basic tenets. Fi
ndings suggested that boys may experience slower maturation and develo
pment of sensitivity toward sexual aggression than girls, but that thi
s gap may lessen with advancing age for college males.