SEXUAL AGGRESSION AMONG ADOLESCENTS Prevalence and Predictors in

This study examines the prevalence of sexual aggression among adoles-cents from both former East and West Germany. Koss and Oros ’ (1 982) Sexual Experiences Survey (SES) was employed to measure sexual aggres-sion (male version) and sexual victimization (female version). Almost 17 % of female respondents reported forced sexual experiences that qualify as criminal offenses under German law. The total percentage including all forms of unwanted sexual contacts amounted to over 50%. Among male respondents, almost 15 % admitted sexual behaviors that qualify as criminal offenses, with an overall rate of coercive sexual behaviors of over 44%. Token resistance and number of sexual partners were associated with a higher risk of sexual victimization in the female sample. Among male respondents, peer pressure, self-reported rape pro-clivity, anger, and disinhibition predicted sexually aggressive behaviors. Since Kanin’s (1957) seminal work, the prevalence of coercive sexual practices in dating relationships has been increasingly recognized as a serious problem (see KrahC, 1991, for a review). It is now recognized that pressure, threats, and even physical force are frequently used by young men to overcome a woman’s resistance to their sexual advances (see Craig, 1990; Grauerholz & Koralewski, 1991; Parrot & Bechhofer, 1991 for reviews). Of the 3,187 female undergraduates surveyed by The research reported in this article was supported by a grant from the Free University of Berlin (FNK). I would like to thank Holger Hundeiker, Vera Kattermann, Eva Waizenhofer, and Barbara Zwikirsch for their support in conducting this study