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Collective rape: a cross-national study of mass political sexual violence, 1980-2003

Green, Jennifer Lynn
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1153496251

Abstract Details

2006, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Sociology.
Collective rape has garnered considerable worldwide attention in recent years but systematic documentation and empirical research are still lacking. Basic questions about when and where collective rape has occurred and what factors contribute to this crime remain unanswered. This project addresses those questions through a cross-national cross-time study of collective rape episodes from 1980 to 2003. Collective rape is defined as a pattern of sexual violence perpetrated on civilians by agents of a state or political civil group and measured through two indicators of occurrence or non-occurrence in various countries and years. Data was collected from three news sources—World News Digest Facts on File, The New York Times, and Reuters Business Briefs—and information of the timing, location, perpetrators and victims was recorded. In total 37 episodes of collective rape were identified. Episodes were more prevalent in Africa and Asia, and the 1990s as compared to the 1980s. The perpetrators were most often agents of a government (such as the military), but political civil groups also participated. Collective rape has been perpetrated widely through all segments of the population (women are the overwhelming majority) but, in some episodes, victims were targeted based on their ethnicity or political affiliations. The literature on collective rape, interpersonal rape and political violence suggested seven theoretical models of collective rape occurrence. Analysis found full or partial support for the hypotheses that gender inequality, militarization, armed conflict, ethnic cleavages, economic development and state structure contribute to the presence of collective rape in a country. High levels of state terrorism, or government-sponsored murder, torture, and imprisonment—was the most consistent predictor of collective rape. These results show that collective rape, while pervasive across time and regions, may be more likely to occur in some societies than others. Suggestions for further research include improved data on collective rape occurrence and severity, additional tests of some hypotheses, and analysis of government versus non-government perpetration.
J Jenkins (Advisor)
201 p.
Rape; Violence; Politics; International Studies; Gender

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Green, J. L. (2006). Collective rape: a cross-national study of mass political sexual violence, 1980-2003 [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1153496251

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Green, Jennifer. Collective rape: a cross-national study of mass political sexual violence, 1980-2003. 2006. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1153496251.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Green, Jennifer. "Collective rape: a cross-national study of mass political sexual violence, 1980-2003." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2006. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1153496251

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1153496251
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© 2006, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.