Beyond sexual victimization and perpetration: Men, masculinities, and unwanted consensual sex.

Abstract

The field of men and masculinities has examined rigid adherence to traditional masculine gender roles as a risk factor for sexual perpetration and as a vulnerability factor for sexual victimization. Very little research, however, has examined the role of masculinities in unwanted consensual sex (UCS). UCS is sex that is not wanted or desired by an individual but to which the individual consents or agrees-even though there is no immediate pressure from their partner to do so. UCS is sometimes called "sexual compliance" or "sexual acquiescence." This conceptual article reviews the literature on UCS, including describing the theoretical distinction between unwanted and nonconsensual sex, discussing sexual script theory as the predominate theoretical approach to research on UCS, summarizing the potential consequences of UCS, and addressing the-fairly limitedresearch on the intersections between masculinities and UCS. This article argues that traditional masculine ideologies may put men at risk for consenting to sex that they do want and may make them less sensitive to their partners' lack of desire during consensual sex. The article offers several future directions for research on men, masculinities, and UCS, and it discusses how research on UCS might guide prevention and therapeutic interventions to reduce rates of problematic UCS for men and their sexual partners. Public Significance StatementResearch has demonstrated that wanting (i.e., desiring or wishing for) sex and consenting (i.e., agreeing or giving permission) to sex do not always correspond. Adherence to traditional masculine gender roles may make men more likely to consent to unwanted sex, and it may make them more likely to have a partner who consents to unwanted sex, but these proposals have rarely been researched. The intersection of masculinities and unwanted consensual sex represents an important future research direction that could expand the understanding of men's sexuality. For example, understanding the role of traditional masculine ideologies in unwanted consensual sex may help to guide prevention and therapeutic interventions (e.g., involving deconstructing stereotypes of men's sexuality) to reduce negative sexual experiences among men and their partners.