Sexual Violence

This viewpoint begins by exploring whether the global phenomenon of the 2011 ‘SlutWalks’ constitutes a feminist politics of re-signification. We then look at some qualitative, focus group data with teen girls who participated in a UK SlutWalk. We suggest girls are negotiating a schizoid double pull towards performing knowing sexy ‘slut’ in postfeminist media contexts, but also managing de-sexualising protectionist discourses in school, particularly in relation to the highly regulatory moral panic over child ‘sexualisation’. We consider whether the SlutWalks are adult-centric and if teen girls’ involvement in a SlutWalk offered any critical rupturings to sexual regulation in their everyday lives.

La mia relazione si propone di analizzare la violenza intra- familiare contro le donne in età moderna, nelle sue forme ritenute legittime (la  moderata correzione della moglie da parte del marito o delle figlie da parte dei genitori)  e trasgressive (violenza eccessiva o immotivata). Vuole inoltre evidenziare come il potere dell’uso della violenza delegato dal capo famiglia influisca sulle relazioni di genere e generazionali, e indagare quali figure e istituzioni sono individuate come possibile alleato da chi subisce violenza. Le fonti principali sono processi matrimoniali discussi davanti ai tribunali ecclesiastici italiani in età moderna: processi in cui si richiede la separazione per violenza o l’annullamento di un matrimonio stipulato per costrizione parentale; processi di annullamento dei voti per monacazione forzata; processi in cui a detrimento dei testimoni viene addotto un comportamento violento verso i familiari; infine, alcuni processi inquisitoriali intentati contro uomini accusati di violenza sessuale verso le figlie, i quali avevano giustificato con loro i propri crimini con l’argomento del legittimo esercizio dell’autorità paterna.

We examined the extent to which sexual offenders against children (SOC) differ from men who do not offend against children (non-SOC) on social anxiety. In Study 1, 30 SOC and 31 nonsex offenders (NSO) were compared on a self-report measure of social anxiety (Social Avoidance and Distress Scale; SADS; Watson & Friend, 1969). SOC and NSO had virtually identical levels of social anxiety. In Study 2, we conducted a meta-analysis of existing comparisons of SOC with various non-SOC groups on the SADS. SOC were generally more socially anxious than non- SOC. These findings suggest that the average SOC is more socially anxious than the average male who does not sexually offend against children. It remains unclear, however, whether social anxiety plays a causal role in the initiation of child sexual abuse.

"***Note to reader: please also see my recently published articles on this topic.  You can find them on my academia.edu page.

Emotional congruence with children (ECWC) is argued to play a role in the aetiology child sexual abuse and has a predictive relationship with sexual recidivism. The current study adapted a measure of implicit cognition, the Implicit Association Test (IAT), to assess ECWC in 13 extrafamilial sexual offenders against children, 8 intrafamilial offenders, 17 non-sexual offenders, 9 sexual offenders against adults, and 54 students. Explicit ECWC was assessed with the Children and Sex Questionnaire, the Child Identification Scale-Revised, and the Repertory Grid. Results show that, generally, extrafamilial sexual offenders against children reported significantly higher levels of implicit and explicit ECWC. A cumulative meta-analysis incorporated findings with previous research comparing sexual offenders against children and non-sex offenders on measures of ECWC. Presented results support quantitative trends found in past research and suggest that the IAT may be valuable in understanding how these offenders perceive themselves and children.""

In Australia, there is a growing expectation that sexuality education should reduce the risks associated with youth sex by providing young people with information on protecting their sexual health. However, this information may be insufficient to ensure that young people make choices that support their sexual safety and autonomy. This paper considers the adverse implications of the problematisation of youth sexuality for young people's sexual health and autonomy. it draws on interview and focus group data from 117 young people to explore the varying degrees of opportunity that youth have to actively negotiate and promote safe and consensual sex. Finally, implications for sexuality education and violence prevention are briefly considered.

In recent years, the work of French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu has sparked the interest of some feminist sociologists who, in response to a perceived cultural determinism of the postmodern turn, are seeking theoretical space to consider women's and men's agency within a changeable, albeit constrained, world of gender relations. This article draws upon the voices of young women and men (aged 14—24) talking about their perceptions and experiences of love/sex relationships. It explores the potential for an adaptation of Bourdieu's central concepts of habitus and symbolic violence, to understand the interplay of structure and agency in young people's negotiations of (hetero)sexual encounters. Finally, the implications of this analysis for young people's relationships and for the prevention of sexual coercion will be considered.

Contemporary teens and young adults, often collectively referred to as the .NET generation or the ‘digital generation’, represent the largest proportion of end-users in the information and communication technologies market (Australian Bureau of Statistics [ABS], 2007; Australian Communications and Media Authority [ACMA], 2007, 2008). While there is much written concerning the rise in pornographic and other sexual material via the internet and mobile phones there is comparatively little published work regarding the use of information and communication technologies for the distribution of unauthorised sexual images, more particularly, where a sexual assault has occurred. This article considers the issues raised by the use of information and communication technologies in sexual violence and the distribution of unauthorised sexual images. The implications of this emerging issue are considered in light of existing and potential legislative frameworks.