Gender, Law, and Sexual Aggression in Public Drinking Settings in Singapore and the United States

• In Event: 600 - Section on Crime, Law and Deviance Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 09. Gender, Violence, and Public Space

Abstract

We analyze women’s and men’s experiences with unwanted sexual behaviors (such as groping or kissing) in public drinking settings in Singapore and the United States. Based on data from over 200 interviews, we ask under what conditions, if at all, young people believe law should intervene in these situations. Singapore is an authoritarian state with quite different gender norms than the U.S.; for example, men are not encouraged to be physically aggressive or relentlessly demonstrative about their heterosexuality. What implications do law and gender norms have for women’s and men’s experiences with unwanted sexual contact and how they understand law and legality? In both countries, we find that most interviewees have experienced or witnessed unwanted sexual contact, but do not categorize it as aggression. Most men and women in the U.S. sample advocate for stronger enforcement of laws against sexual aggression despite their tendencies to normalize and minimize the behavior; however, women in Singapore are less likely to support enforcement than men, and both men and women are less likely to support enforcement than Americans. We conclude with a discussion of the (often unconscious) link between culture and action revealed in young people’s narratives about sexual aggression.

Authors

• Mary Nell Trautner, State University of New York-Buffalo

• Sarah Becker, Louisiana State University

• Justine Eatenson Tinkler, University of Georgia

• Swede White, Louisiana State University