Sexual coercion among university students: A comparison of the United States and Sweden

Abstract

Sociocultural theorists, including feminist theorists, propose that the prevalence of sexual coercion in a society is related to male dominance in the social structure and a culture that sustains it. Other theorists also propose that the prevalence of sexual coercion is directly related to the general level of violence in a society. Numerous studies support the views that women in Sweden have more institutional power and social benefits than do women in the United States, the double standard of sexuality is weaker in Sweden than in the United States, and levels of violent crime and types of interpersonal violence are lower in Sweden. In the research reported here, we examined factors associated with, and differences in, the prevalence of sexual coercion among a sample of students at a university in Sweden (N = 570) and one in the United States (N = 407). U.S. university students reported higher rates of both physical and nonphysical sexual coercion than did Swedish university students. These findings are discussed in the context of sociocultural variations in the two countries.