Twelve reasons why rape is not sexually motivated: A skeptical examination

Abstract

The most popular current explanation of rape holds that rapists are seeking power, control, violence, and/or domination instead of sex. After reviewing the history of this explanation, this paper examines the evidence that has been used to demonstrate that rapists are not sexually motivated. Twelve specific arguments are examined in light of existing data on rape. All twelve of the arguments are found to be either logically unsound, based on inaccurate definitions, untestable, or inconsistent with the actual behavior of rapists. The implications of these findings are discussed.