Does Alcohol Contribute to the Confluence Model of Sexual Assault Perpetration?

Abstract

The confluence model of sexual assault provides a useful theoretical integration of factors that influence men's likelihood of committing sexual assault (Malamuth, Sockloskie, Koss, & Tanaka, 1991). This study replicates and extends the confluence model by including alcohol at multiple levels. Participants' usual alcohol consumption and alcohol consumption in sexual situations were included as predictor variables. The number of sexually aggressive acts that participants committed after consuming alcohol and the number of sexually aggressive acts participants committed when sober were separately calculated so that the predictors of each could be distinguished. Participants were 356 men who completed a survey that included measures that assessed the key components of the confluence model. Results of path analyses indicated that the expanded model fit the data well, with both general and situational measures of alcohol use predicting frequency of sexual assault when drinking alcohol. These findings highlight the importance of developing universal and targeted prevention programs for young men.

Does Alcohol Contribute to College Men’s Sexual Assault Perpetration? Between-and Within-Person Effects Over Five Semesters

“…However, this between-person effect was completely explained by characteristics shared by heavier drinkers and perpetrators-impersonal sex orientation, antisocial behavior, and low self-control. The absence of an independent between-person effect of HED is consistent with the results of previous studies that have found weak or nonsignificant effects of men's alcohol use on perpetration relative to strong effects of personality variables (Parkhill & Abbey, 2008;Thompson et al, 2013;. In contrast, when we substituted frequency of party or bar attendance for HED, we found independent, between-person effects, indicating that men who frequent these settings more than average are at a higher risk for perpetrating sexual assault over time.…”

“…Within the influential Confluence Model (Malamuth et al, 1991;, sexual assault perpetrators are characterized by impersonal sexuality (promiscuity) and hostile masculinity, robust predictors of sexual assault both independently (Abbey & McAuslan, 2004;DeGue & DiLillo, 2004;Murnen et al, 2002) and synergistically (JacquesTiura et al, 2007). Men's alcohol use adds modest predictive power to the Confluence Model (Abbey et al, 2006;Parkhill & Abbey, 2008). For example, found an indirect effect of HED on sexual assault via increased impersonal sex and sexual misperception.…”

A Review of the Literature on Sexual Assault Perpetrator Characteristics and Behaviors

“…For example, other research has begun to examine the utility of including other factors in the model, such as empathy and alcohol consumption. These studies have found that inclusion of these factors also helps explain variation in sexual aggression, though the amount of sexual aggression explained by these expanded models stays generally around the levels found in the original model Abbey, 2008, andWheeler, George, andDahl, 2002).…”

“…A number of surveys with college students and with members of the community at large found a correlation between multiple sexual partners and/or early initiation of sex and self-reported perpetration of sexual violence (Abbey and McAuslan, 2004;Hall et al, 2005;Merrill et al, 2001;Parkhill and Abbey, 2008;Senn et al, 2000). Researchers have hypothesized that these factors may be related to sexual assault perpetration because these individuals have a high degree of interest in sex and because the frequency of sexual experiences provides more opportunities to engage in sexually coercive behaviors (Kanin, 1985, andMalamuth et al, 1991).…”

“…Hostility toward women is typically measured though the Hostility Toward Women scale, which assesses angry and distrustful attitudes toward women (e.g., "It is safer not to trust women") (Check, 1985). A number of studies have found an association between high Hostility Toward Women scores and sexual assault perpetration (Abbey et al, 2001;Abbey and McAuslan, 2004;Carr and VanDeusen, 2004;DeGue and DiLillo, 2005;DeGue, DiLillo, and Scalora, 2010;Forbes, Adams-Curtis, and White, 2004;Loh et al, 2005;Parkhill and Abbey, 2008;Smith and Stewart, 2003;Vega and Malamuth, 2007). Other research, however, has produced mixed or null results on the effects of hostility toward women (Abbey et al, 2007;Calhoun et al, 1997;Hall et al, 2005;Ménard et al, 2003).…”