Sexual Assault Research: Perpetrators
Kinsey Institute researchers are committed to examining the characteristics of sexual assault perpetrators. This research helps us to understand risk factors for engaging in sexual assault as well as the protective factors that might reduce risk of sexual assault.
These findings can inform sexual assault interventions to prevent high risk individuals from perpetrating in the first place and improve treatments for known perpetrators to reduce the risk of re-offending.
Selected Research Publications
Craig, A. N., Peterson, Z. D., Janssen, E., Goodrich, D., & Heiman, J. R. (2022). The impact of emotion regulation and sexual arousal on men’s sexual coercion likelihood. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(1-2), NP264-NP280. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260520915544
Fornicola, E. & Peterson, Z. D. (2022). An exploratory study of sexual coercion tactics as a function of perpetrator and victim gender. International Journal of Sexual Health, 34(3), 397-408. https://doi.org/10.1080/19317611.2022.2053027
Marcantonio, T. L., Jozkowski, K.N., Parrott, D. & Ham, L. S. (in press). Examining the moderating role of heavy drinking behaviors and precarious masculinity on sexual aggression among young adult men. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.
Peterson, Z. D., Beagley, M. C., McCallum, E., & Artime, T. M. (2019). Sexual attitudes and behaviors among men who are victims, perpetrators, or both victims and perpetrators of adult sexual assault. Psychology of Violence, 9(2), 221-234. https://doi.org/10.1037/vio0000187
Peterson, Z. D., Janssen, E., Goodrich, D., Fortenberry, J. D., Hensel, D., & Heiman, J. R. (2018). Child sexual abuse and negative affect as shared risk factors for sexual aggression and HIV risky sex in heterosexual men. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47(2), 465-480. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-017-1079-1
Peterson, Z. D., Janssen, E., Goodrich, D., & Heiman, J. R. (2014). Physiological reactivity in a community sample of sexually aggressive young men: A test of competing hypotheses. Aggressive Behavior, 40(2), 152-164. https://doi.org/ 10.1002/ab.21512
