An alarming number of young Australian men blame women for being raped and having their nude images shared without their permission, a new research study has found.<\/p>\n
The National Community Attitudes towards Violence against Women Survey (NCAS) \u2013 which was released last Wednesday by Australia\u2019s National Research Organisation for Women\u2019s Safety (ANROWS) and VicHealth \u2013 revealed nearly a third of young men aged 16-24 believe many female rape victims led the perpetrator on and then changed her mind.<\/p>\n
The research also demonstrated over a quarter of young people think women should be held accountable for sending a nude image to their partner if it\u2019s then shared publicly without consent.<\/p>\n
Possessive and stalker-like behaviour was also identified as a problem area among young men, with one in five not understanding that using technology to trace their partner\u2019s movements, such as tapping into her social media accounts or installing spyware on her phone, is harassment.<\/p>\n
Doctor Heather Nancarrow, chief executive officer at ANROWS, said although young people\u2019s understanding of violence against women has drastically improved over the last decade, it is of grave concern that so many still held disturbing attitudes.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur NCAS research shows we have a long way to go in educating young people about the difference between a healthy relationship and abusive behaviour,\u201d Dr Nancarrow said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe good news is attitudes can change. We can educate young people to better understand all forms of violence against women and that controlling behaviour isn\u2019t part of a healthy relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n
RMIT researcher Dr Anastasia Powell suggested more needed to be done from an education standpoint to teach young people about sexual violence, respect towards women and the meaning of consent.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to do more to teach young men about what consent looks like. Swiping right is not consent, kissing is not consent and saying yes to one sexual act doesn\u2019t give blanket consent to everything,\u201d Dr Powell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s highly problematic that young men think it\u2019s sometimes OK to force sex on a woman or believe that women want men to persistently pursue them even after they\u2019ve said they\u2019re not interested.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s also disturbing that some young men still resort to victim blaming when it comes to sexual abuse, such as blaming women for being raped, or holding a woman responsible when a nude image is shared without her consent.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency call 000.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An alarming number of young Australian men blame women for being raped and having their nude images shared without their permission, a new research study has found. The National Community Attitudes towards Violence against Women Survey (NCAS) \u2013 which was released last Wednesday by Australia\u2019s National Research Organisation for Women\u2019s Safety (ANROWS) and VicHealth \u2013 […]<\/p>\n