Awkward and Weird: How College Men’s Experiences of Unwanted Sex with Women are Interactionally Produced

• In Event: 380 - Section on Sociology of Sexualities Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 08. Sexual Experiences

Abstract

In existing surveys, heterosexual men report unwanted sex at roughly one-third the rate of women. This article examines college men’s accounts of unwanted sex with women by describing the situational pressures that enable its production. These pressures include interactional and gendered expectations, both implicit and explicit. Using data from in-depth interviews with men at one university, I bring attention to the complicated and loaded interactional space that college men navigate during sexual encounters. Drawing upon data, from 23 men’s accounts of unwanted sex with women, my analysis shows how unwanted sex is interactionally produced. For men to say no to sex signified a disruption, abnormality, immaturity or possibly rejection of the female partner. Even in instances where men were certain they did not want to have sex, the signal that saying no gave, usually undermined all other meanings. Sex constitutes an important interactional context where actors navigate complex, contradictory meanings, which can result in unwanted sex. Amidst current attention to sexual assault on college campuses, I argue for a closer look at the importance of interaction.

Author

• Jessie Ford, New York University