Frihet, rädsla och skuld : om unga kvinnors bild av sexuella övergrepp

The purpose of this study was to examine young women’s perception and fear of sexual assault. An additional aim was to analyze the women’s view on guilt and responsibility in rape related questions. Two focus group interviews were executed with undergraduate women aged 22-32 years. The questions focused on the women’s understanding of rape and their fear of sexual assault. Questions about responsibility for rape and risky behaviour were also asked. The main results showed that the women are more likely to fear violent stranger rape outdoors than acquaintance rape indoors. They also use constrained behaviour at some level to avoid riskfull situations and to lower their fear of rape. The women were aware of the fact that most rapes occur indoors and are executed by someone known to the victim. Despite this knowledge they did not feel that acquaintance rape was a threat to them. A strong sense of ambivalence among the women was also found. They felt that the reality is different from the ideal world. In reality women have to consider risk factors and take responsibility for a sexual assault at some level. In the ideal world women would not have to constrain their behaviour and the responsibility for a rape would rest on the male perpetrator. The results were discussed from a feminist perspective and the main conclusion was that rape prevention should question the patriarchal ideology and attempt to affect men’s attitudes instead of encouraging women to constrain their behaviours and live their lives in fear