SEXUAL VIOLENCE

Sexual Violence

Sexual Violence: Causes, Consequences and Interventions

Introduction

Sexual violence are believed to be among the more prevalent psychological disorders in the general population (Spector and Carey, 1999). The sales data and media attention associated with recent biomedical treatments (e.g., Viagra[R]) corroborates the commonness of such violence. Despite their apparent prevalence, however, sexual disorders have typically not been included in large scale epidemiologic studies such as the Epidemiologic Catchment Area (ECA) Study (Regier et al., 1999).

Sexual Violence: Causes, Consequences and Interventions

In this paper we will focus on the Westermarck effect, understanding the incest taboo and its proposed origins, the issue on whether incest is actually inappropriate, and different societies around the world which practice or have practiced consanguineous sexual relationships. The three societies we will focus on the most are the Incan's, the Egyptians, and the Hawaiians. (Davis, 2003)

The American Psychological Association, named the marketing of increasingly provocative clothing to young girls as one of the cultural contributors to the sexualization of girls. (Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls, February, 2007)

“They're marketing padded bras and bikini underwear to girls as young as 4 or6. Little girls are learning how to be pretty and that pretty is important. They're learning how they can look like Bratz dolls,” says Diane Levin, PhD, professor of education at Wheelock College in Boston. Levin is currently working on a book about the sexualization of young girls, So Sexy, So Soon: The Sexualization of Childhood in Commercial Culture. (Davis, 2003)

The APA task force found evidence that sexualization of girls and young women is pervasive - sexy dolls marketed to 4-year-olds, cosmetics for younger girls, teen magazines that tell girls how to look “hot,” pornographic and degrading music lyrics and videos, and, of course, sexualized advertising. The task force concluded that the commercial sexualization is harmful to girls' self-image and healthy development.

“The consequences of the sexualization of girls in media today are very real and are likely to be a negative influence on girls' healthy development,” says Eileen L. Zurbriggen, PhD, chair of the APA Task Force and associate professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Cruz..”

The task force found that sexualization and objectification undermine a person's confidence in, and comfort with, her own body, leading to emotional and self-image problems, such as shame and anxiety. Research links sexualization with three of the most common mental health problems diagnosed in girls and women—eating disorders, low self-esteem, and depression or depressed mood. Research also suggests that the sexualization of girls has negative consequences on girls' ability to develop a healthy sexual self-image. (Davis, 2003)

Levin stresses that the problem is not that children are learning about sex; the problem is what they are learning about relationships. “Boys are taught to be violent. Girls are taught to be sexy.. . . They're not learning to treat others as people, they're learning to treat others as objects,” says Levin.

Today's culture bombards girls with large doses of sexual content that they cannot understand and ...