Paper Summary:

The paper shows that there are a number of different views of the meaning of rape, its causes and other issues of importance. Different theorists and analysts have offered their view of the meaning of this act, the reason why this type of violence seems necessary to some people, the effect of rape on the victim, and the view taken of these matters by society. The paper explains that criminologists take different views of the causes of rape based on different theories of behavior. It examines two such theories - The 'Social Learning Theory' as set forth by a number of theorists, among them Ronald Akers and 'Radical Feminist Theory', which combines a feminist perspective on society with ideas about what causes human behavior. In terms of rape, this means male behavior. The paper shows that in some ways, both theories address rape from a perspective involving learned behavior and would try to solve the problem by substituting a different learning structure. It explains that where Akers and the Radical Feminists differ is in their definitions of rape and so in terms of the behavior they are explaining.

From the Paper:

"Akers (1998) states that his General Theory "is applicable to all types of criminal and deviant behavior, from minor violations of social norms to the most serious and organized criminal activities" (Akers, 1998, xx). He offers a chapter on rape and sexual aggression in which he calls such crimes "sexual access," and describes the crime in terms of non-consensual sexual intercourse. This brings him into conflict with some feminists on the subject, such as Rozee (1994), who states that "limiting definitions of rape to only non-consensual sexual intercourse ignores some of the most violent and obviously non-sex-related cases of rape that occur, such as penetration with objects" (Rozee, 1994, 500). It would also exclude male victims, victims who are underage, wives, and the non-forcible rape of an incapacitated victim, which Rozee would not exclude."

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