"I Don't Want to Be Known as a Weak Man": Insights and Rationalizations by Male Students on Men's Sexual Violence Perpetration against Female Students on Campus

Yandisa Sikweyiya; Mercilene Machisa; Pinky Mahlangu; Ncediswa Nunze; Elizabeth Dartnall; Managa Pillay; Rachel Jewkes

doi:10.3390/ijerph20054550

"I Don't Want to Be Known as a Weak Man": Insights and Rationalizations by Male Students on Men's Sexual Violence Perpetration against Female Students on Campus

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Mar 3;20(5):4550. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20054550.

Authors

Yandisa Sikweyiya^{1

2}, Mercilene Machisa^{1

2}, Pinky Mahlangu^{1

2}, Ncediswa Nunze¹, Elizabeth Dartnall³, Managa Pillay⁴, Rachel Jewkes^{1

2

5}

Affiliations

¹ Gender and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Pretoria 0001, South Africa.
² School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa.
³ Sexual Violence Research Initiative, 28 High Street, Pretoria 1045, South Africa.
⁴ Office of the Deputy Director General, Care and Support Services, Department of Basic Education, 222 Struben Street, Pretoria 0001, South Africa.
⁵ Office of the Executive Scientist, South African Medical Research Council, Pretoria 0001, South Africa.

Abstract

Understanding how men view rape is foundational for rape prevention, but it is not always possible to interview men who rape, especially in a college campus context. We explore male students' insights into and rationalizations for why men on campus perpetrate sexual violence (SV) against female students by analysing qualitative focus group discussion data with male students. Men contended that SV is a demonstration of men's power over women, yet they did not perceive sexual harassment of female students as serious enough to constitute SV and appeared to be tolerant of it. Men perceived "sex for grades" as exploitative and rooted in the power asymmetry between privileged male lecturers and vulnerable female students. They were disdainful of non-partner rape, describing it as acts exclusively perpetrated by men from outside campus. Most men felt entitled to have sex with their girlfriends, although an alternative discourse challenged both this entitlement and the dominant masculinity linked to it. Gender-transformative work with male students is needed to support them to think and do things differently while they are on campus.

Keywords: South Africa; college; masculinities; men; sexual harassment; sexual violence.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Female
Humans
Male
Masculinity
Men
Rationalization*
Sex Offenses*
Students

Grants and funding

This publication was made possible through the funds received from the South African Medical Research Council’s Social Impact Bond and the Sexual Violence Research Initiative.