Psicopatologia, regulação emocional e crenças sobre a violência sexual em mulheres sexualmente agressivas : um estudo com uma amostra de estudantes universitárias

Abstract

This study analyzed the prevalence of sexually aggressive behaviors in female college students and tested whether there were significant differences between sexually aggressive and nonaggressive students in psychopathological symptoms, rape myths, and difficulties in emotion regulation. The sample was composed of 331 female college students, who answered self-report measures. A MANOVA was performed in order to compare sexually aggressive students and non-aggressive students in psychopathological symptoms, rape myths and difficulties in emotion regulation. One hundred and eleven (33.5%) participants reported having resorted to sexually aggressive behaviors. Specifically, 67 (60.4%) participants reported using sexual abuse, 61 (55%) reported using sexual coercion and 12 (10.8%) reported using physical force. No significant differences were found between groups in psychopathological symptoms and difficulties in emotion regulation. Differences were found between groups for the Stereotyped Representation and Victim Consent beliefs, with sexually aggressive students endorsing these beliefs more than nonaggressive students. Psychopathological symptoms, rape myths and difficulties in emotion regulation do not seem to act as dynamic risk factors for sexual violence perpetrated by female college students.

Date of Award	2019
Original language	Portuguese
Supervisor	JOANA PATRÍCIA PEREIRA CARVALHO (Supervisor)