The present study examined perceptions of sex offenders using a 2 (history of sexual abuse: present vs. absent) X 2 (type of sexual offense: statutory vs. forcible rape) X 2 (frequency of offense: once vs. multiple occasions) factorial design. Participants (N=228) were asked to read one of eight vignettes describing the sexual assault of a 14-year-old female perpetrated by a 19-year-old male. Results indicated that participants believed the defendant should be convicted, imprisoned, placed in a mental health facility, and have to register as a sex offender more so when the offense was described as forcible rape than when it was described as statutory rape. Results also indicated that participants believed the defendant to be more mentally unstable and saw a greater need for institutionalization when he had a history of sexual abuse than when he did not.
","abstract_html":"<p>The present study examined perceptions of sex offenders using a 2 (history of sexual abuse: present vs. absent) X 2 (type of sexual offense: statutory vs. forcible rape) X 2 (frequency of offense: once vs. multiple occasions) factorial design. Participants (N=228) were asked to read one of eight vignettes describing the sexual assault of a 14-year-old female perpetrated by a 19-year-old male. Results indicated that participants believed the defendant should be convicted, imprisoned, placed in a mental health facility, and have to register as a sex offender more so when the offense was described as forcible rape than when it was described as statutory rape. Results also indicated that participants believed the defendant to be more mentally unstable and saw a greater need for institutionalization when he had a history of sexual abuse than when he did not.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Sommer, Shannon Marie"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Karyn M. Plumm"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2013,"date_issued":"2013-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2013-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:26:30Z","subjects":["Rape, Sex Offenders, Sexual Abuse, Statutory Rape"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.und.edu/theses/1481","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Karyn M. Plumm"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Sommer, Shannon Marie"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Rape, Sex Offenders, Sexual Abuse, Statutory Rape"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.und.edu/theses/1481"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The present study examined perceptions of sex offenders using a 2 (history of sexual abuse: present vs. absent) X 2 (type of sexual offense: statutory vs. forcible rape) X 2 (frequency of offense: once vs. multiple occasions) factorial design. Participants (N=228) were asked to read one of eight vignettes describing the sexual assault of a 14-year-old female perpetrated by a 19-year-old male. Results indicated that participants believed the defendant should be convicted, imprisoned, placed in a mental health facility, and have to register as a sex offender more so when the offense was described as forcible rape than when it was described as statutory rape. Results also indicated that participants believed the defendant to be more mentally unstable and saw a greater need for institutionalization when he had a history of sexual abuse than when he did not.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Perceptions Of Sex Offenders: Impact Of Type Of Sex Offense, History Of Sexual Abuse, And Frequency Of Offense"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Karyn M. Plumm"],"dc:creator":["Sommer, Shannon Marie"],"dc:description.abstract":["The present study examined perceptions of sex offenders using a 2 (history of sexual abuse: present vs. absent) X 2 (type of sexual offense: statutory vs. forcible rape) X 2 (frequency of offense: once vs. multiple occasions) factorial design. Participants (N=228) were asked to read one of eight vignettes describing the sexual assault of a 14-year-old female perpetrated by a 19-year-old male. Results indicated that participants believed the defendant should be convicted, imprisoned, placed in a mental health facility, and have to register as a sex offender more so when the offense was described as forcible rape than when it was described as statutory rape. Results also indicated that participants believed the defendant to be more mentally unstable and saw a greater need for institutionalization when he had a history of sexual abuse than when he did not.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.und.edu/theses/1481"],"dc:subject":["Rape, Sex Offenders, Sexual Abuse, Statutory Rape"],"dc:title":["Perceptions Of Sex Offenders: Impact Of Type Of Sex Offense, History Of Sexual Abuse, And Frequency Of Offense"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:26:30Z"}