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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science pp 1–13Cite as

Female Counter-Adaptations to Rape

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Synonyms

Coercion; Crime; Rape avoidance; Sexual assault

Definition

Rape is defined as “penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim” (The United States Department of Justice 2012). Rape counter-adaptations entail specialized mechanisms that reduce women’s risk of male sexual coercion.

Introduction

In the USA, an estimated one in six women will be raped in their lifetime, with 29% of victims being between the ages of 18–24 years (Tjaden and Thoennes 2006). However, it is likely these figures only represent a small number of rape victims, as rape is seldom reported to the police. Approximately 15% of victims are estimated to report sexual violence to the police (Office for National Statistics 2013). Low reporting may stem from societal misconceptions surrounding rape, including victim blaming. What is more, rape often has serious psychological consequences...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Leicester, Leicester, UK

    Hannah Ryder

  2. Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK

    Nicole Williams & Heather Flowe

  3. School of Psychology, University of Leicester, Lancaster Road, LE1 9HN, Leicester, UK

    John Maltby

Authors
  1. Hannah Ryder
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  2. Nicole Williams
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  3. John Maltby
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  4. Heather Flowe
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hannah Ryder .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  2. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Psychology, Western Illinois University, Macomb, IL, USA

    Curtis S. Dunkel

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© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

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Ryder, H., Williams, N., Maltby, J., Flowe, H. (2017). Female Counter-Adaptations to Rape. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2242-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2242-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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