Investigating the role of psychopathic personality traits, gender and ethnicity in rape myth acceptance
Open accessAbstract
Research has found widespread endorsement of rape mythology, with several psychosocial variables underpinning beliefs in rape myths, including psychopathic personality traits. However, findings on the relationship between psychopathy and rape myths are often contradictory. The current study examined the role of four psychopathic personality traits (Affective Responsiveness, Cognitive Responsiveness, Interpersonal Manipulation and Egocentricity) on Rape Myth Acceptance (RMA) scores, controlling for the effects of gender and ethnicity while making use of subtle, contemporary measurement tools never previously employed. A cross-sectional community sample (N = 228) were recruited online to complete the psychosocial survey. Results revealed that deficits in Affective and Cognitive Responsiveness were associated with increased rape myth beliefs. Gender and ethnicity were also significant predictors of RMA. Cognitive Responsiveness, though not Affective Responsiveness, continued to be a significant predictor of RMA after controlling for gender and ethnicity. The role of empathy traits in the aetiology of sexually aggressive attitudes are discussed.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Traditional gender values are well-documented as shaping victim-blaming attitudes and rape myths for both female and male survivors.
“Traditional gender values are well-documented as shaping victim-blaming attitudes and rape myths for both female and male survivors [60, 61].”
From ‘We don’t talk about that around here’: an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) of South Asian male survivors’ experiences of childhood sexual abuse in the UK (2025) · cites this paper as [61]
The Discussion (page unavailable) reports that adherence to traditional gender-role stereotypes explains variance in rape myth acceptance. The Introduction (page unavailable) describes myths that blame female survivors and deny that ‘real men’ can be raped. The paper does not establish that traditional gender values shape victim-blaming attitudes and rape myths for both female and male survivors. (LLM, conf=0.84)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
García‐Moreno, C., Pallitto, C., Devries, K. M., Stöckl, H., Watts, C. G., & Abrahams, N. (2013) · Cited by 3,341 · see citing works
Cleckley, H. (1951) · Postgraduate Medicine · doi:10.1080/00325481.1951.11694097 · Cited by 2,274 · see citing works
A cognitive developmental approach to morality: investigating the psychopath
Blair, R. (1995) · Cognition · doi:10.1016/0010-0277(95)00676-p · Cited by 1,529 · see citing works
Hare, R. D. (1991) · PsycTESTS Dataset · doi:10.1037/t01167-000 · Cited by 798 · see citing works
Attitudinal antecedents of rape myth acceptance: A theoretical and empirical reexamination.
Lonsway, K. A., & Fitzgerald, L. F. (1995) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.68.4.704 · Cited by 533 · see citing works
Gerger, H., Kley, H., Bohner, G., & Siebler, F. (2007) · Aggressive Behavior · doi:10.1002/ab.20195 · Cited by 351 · see citing works
Attitudes toward Rape: Feminist and Social Psychological Perspectives
Ward, C. A. (1995) · Cited by 183 · see citing works
Skeem, J., & Cooke, D. (2010) · Psychological Assessment · doi:10.1037/a0014862 · Cited by 175 · see citing works
What Do We Know About Rape Myths and Juror Decision Making?’,
Leverick, F. (2020) · The International Journal of Evidence & Proof · doi:10.1177/1365712720923157 · Cited by 127 · see citing works
Yapp, E. J., & Quayle, E. (2018) · Aggression and Violent Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.avb.2018.05.002 · Cited by 119 · see citing works
Psychopathy: cognitive and neural dysfunction
Blair, J. (2013) · Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience · doi:10.31887/dcns.2013.15.2/rblair · Cited by 113 · see citing works
Asian and Non-Asian Attitudes Toward Rape, Sexual Harassment, and Sexuality
Kennedy, M. A., & Gorzalka, B. B. (2002) · Sex Roles · doi:10.1023/a:1020145815129 · Cited by 109 · see citing works
Attitudes toward rape: Gender and ethnic differences across Asian and Caucasian college students
Mori, L. T., Bernat, J. A., Glenn, P. A., Selle, L. L., & Zarate, M. G. (1995) · Sex Roles · doi:10.1007/bf01544182 · Cited by 97 · see citing works
The Cycle of Abuse: When Victims Become Offenders
Plummer, M., & Cossins, A. (2018) · Trauma, Violence, & Abuse · doi:10.1177/1524838016659487 · Cited by 85 · see citing works
The Role of Rape Myth Acceptance and Psychopathy in Sexual Assault Perpetration
Mouilso, E. R., & Calhoun, K. S. (2013) · Journal of Aggression Maltreatment & Trauma · doi:10.1080/10926771.2013.743937 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
Boduszek, D., & Debowska, A. (2016) · Journal of Criminal Justice · doi:10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2015.11.004 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Ellison, L., & Munro, V. E. (2013) · The International Journal of Evidence & Proof · doi:10.1350/ijep.2013.17.4.433 · Cited by 75 · see citing works
Willmott, D., Boduszek, D., Debowska, A., & Woodfield, R. (2018) · Journal of Criminal Justice · doi:10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2018.03.004 · Cited by 75 · see citing works
Self-citationLilley, C., Willmott, D., Mojtahedi, D., & Labhardt, D. (2023) · Social Sciences · doi:10.3390/socsci12010034 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
Self-citationHudspith, L. F., Wager, N., Willmott, D., & Gallagher, B. J., III (2021) · Trauma Violence & Abuse · doi:10.1177/15248380211050575 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
Self-citationWidanaralalage, B. K., Hine, B. A., Murphy, A. D., & Murji, K. (2022) · Victims & Offenders · doi:10.1080/15564886.2022.2069898 · Cited by 68 · cited 3× · see citing works
“…either want to be raped (Sowersby et al., 2022) or are to blame when it happens (Smith et al., 2022), and that only gay men experience rape (Willmott & Widanaralalage, 2024); ‘ real men ’ cannot, as they are able to fight off would-be attackers (Weare & Willmott, 2024; Widanaralalage et al., 2022).”
Self-citationThe role of psychopathy and exposure to violence in rape myth acceptance.
Debowska, A., Boduszek, D., Dhingra, K., Kola, S., & Meller-Prunska, A. (2015) · Journal of Interpersonal Violence · doi:10.1177/0886260514553635 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Psychopathy: cognitive and neural dysfunction.
Blair, J. (2013) · PubMed Central · Cited by 61 · see citing works
Lilley, C., Willmott, D., & Mojtahedi, D. (2023) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2022.1086026 · Cited by 50 · cited 2× · see citing works
“…violence (Escarguel et al., 2023; Johnson & Beech, 2017; Yapp & Quayle, 2018), pre-scribes the circumstances where rape is considered to be genuine (Lilley, Willmott, Mojtahedi, et al., 2023) and impacts upon rape trial justice due to the prejudicial influence of stereotypes among jurors (Parsons…”
Self-citationPsychopathic traits predict harsh attitudes toward rape victims among undergraduates.
Watts, A. L., Bowes, S. M., Latzman, R. D., & Lilienfeld, S. O. (2017) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2016.10.022 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
Stewart, S., Willmott, D., Murphy, A. D., & Phillips, C. (2023) · Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology · doi:10.1080/14789949.2023.2292103 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
Self-citationBoduszek, D., Debowska, A., Willmott, D., Jones, A., DeLisi, M., & Kirkman, G. (2019) · Journal of Child Sexual Abuse · doi:10.1080/10538712.2019.1592272 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
Self-citationRape Myth Acceptance Among College Students in the United States, Japan, and India
Stephens, T., Kamimura, A., Yamawaki, N., Bhattacharya, H., Mo, W., Birkholz, R., Makomenaw, A., & Olson, L. M. (2016) · SAGE Open · doi:10.1177/2158244016675015 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
Rape myth acceptance in convicted rapists: A systematic review of the literature
Johnson, L. G., & Beech, A. R. (2017) · Aggression and Violent Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.avb.2017.03.004 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
Debowska, A., Boduszek, D., & Willmott, D. (2017) · Sexual Abuse · doi:10.1177/1079063217691966 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
Self-citationWillmott, D., & Widanaralalage, B. K. (2024) · International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice · doi:10.1016/j.ijlcj.2023.100645 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
Self-citationMurphy, A., Hine, B., Yesberg, J. A., Wunsch, D., & Charleton, B. (2022) · Psychology, Crime & Law · doi:10.1080/1068316x.2021.1880584 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Jury Decision‐making in Rape Trials: An Attitude Problem?
Willmott, D., Boduszek, D., Debowska, A., & Hudspith, L. (2021) · Forensic Psychology · doi:10.1002/9781394260669.ch5 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Self-citationConroy, E., Willmott, D., Murphy, A. D., & Widanaralalage, B. K. (2023) · Mental Health and Social Inclusion · doi:10.1108/mhsi-05-2023-0057 · Cited by 33 · see citing works
Self-citationLess than human: psychopathy, dehumanization, and sexist and violent attitudes towards women
Methot-Jones, T., Book, A. S., & Gauthier, N. Y. (2019) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2019.06.002 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Boduszek, D., Debowska, A., McDermott, D., Willmott, D., & Sharratt, K. (2022) · Deviant Behavior · doi:10.1080/01639625.2021.1919496 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Self-citationSowersby, C.-J., Erskine-Shaw, M., & Willmott, D. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.867991 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Self-citationPsychopathic traits, gender, and motivations for sex: Putative paths to sexual coercion
Hoffmann, A. M., & Verona, E. (2019) · Aggressive Behavior · doi:10.1002/ab.21841 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Stevens, K. L., Mojtahedi, D., & Austin, A. (2023) · Journal of Criminal Psychology · doi:10.1108/jcp-09-2023-0059 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
DeLisle, A., Walsh, H. C., Holtz, P. M., Callahan, J. L., & Neumann, C. S. (2019) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2019.03.005 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Smith, O., Daly, E., Herriott, C., & Willmott, D. (2022) · Journal of Gender-Based Violence · doi:10.1332/239868020x16057277095797 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Self-citationBoduszek, D., Debowska, A., Sherretts, N., & Willmott, D. (2018) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01596 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Self-citationExamining the Relationship Between Victimization, Psychopathy, and the Acceptance of Rape Myths
Cooke, E. M., Lewis, R. H., Hayes, B. E., Bouffard, L. A., Boisvert, D. L., Wells, J., Kavish, N., Woeckener, M., & Armstrong, T. A. (2020) · Journal of Interpersonal Violence · doi:10.1177/0886260520966669 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Can jurors be biased in their evaluation of third-party evidence within cases of rape?
Parsons, A., & Mojtahedi, D. (2022) · International Journal of Law and Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.ijlp.2022.101837 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Richardson, E., Stokoe, E. H., & Antaki, C. (2018) · Applied Linguistics · doi:10.1093/applin/amy023 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Weare, S., & Willmott, D. (2024) · Behavioral Sciences & the Law · doi:10.1002/bsl.2706 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Self-citationEffects of gender, rape myth acceptance, and perpetrator occupation on perceptions of rape
Duff, S. C., & Tostevin, A. (2015) · Journal of Criminal Psychology · doi:10.1108/jcp-12-2014-0019 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Ioannides, A., & Willmott, D. (2024) · Polish Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.24425/ppb.2023.148054 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Self-citationEscarguel, M., Benbouriche, M., Tibbels, S., & Przygodzki‐Lionet, N. (2023) · Journal of Criminal Psychology · doi:10.1108/jcp-03-2023-0017 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Echelles d’évaluation de l’acceptation du Mythe du viol : Intérêts et limites
Schlegel, A., & Courtois, R. (2019) · International Journal of Risk and Recovery · doi:10.15173/ijrr.v2i1.3587 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Psychopathic Personality Traits Model (PPTM)
Boduszek, D., Debowska, A., & Willmott, D. (2018) · Routledge eBooks · doi:10.4324/9781315111476-14 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Self-citationIn the eye of the beholder: Decision-making of lawyers in cases of sexual harassment
Zvi, L., & Bitton, M. S. (2022) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0272606 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Exploring Rape Myth Acceptance and Psychopathy as Predictors of Sexual Coercion
Bouffard, J. A., & Miller, H. A. (2021) · Journal of Aggression Maltreatment & Trauma · doi:10.1080/10926771.2021.1994501 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 2
- Boduszek, D., Debowska, A., Dhingra, K., & DeLisi, M. (2016). Introduction and validation of Psychopathic Personality Trait Scale (PPTS) in a large prison sample. Journal of Criminal Justice, 46, 9– 17. 10.1016/j/jcrimjus.2016.02.004 · DOI
- Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (2014). Using multivariate statistics (International) (6th ed.). Pearson.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Willmott, D., & Widanaralalage, B. K. (2024) · International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice · doi:10.1016/j.ijlcj.2023.100645 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
Self-citationWidanaralalage, B. K., Jennings, S., Dando, C., & Mackenzie, J.-M. (2024) · Trauma, Violence, & Abuse · doi:10.1177/15248380241246217 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Self-citationIoannides, A., & Willmott, D. (2024) · Polish Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.24425/ppb.2023.148054 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Self-citationWidanaralalage, B. K., Murphy, A. D., & Loughlin, C. (2024) · International Journal of Mental Health Systems · doi:10.1186/s13033-024-00631-z · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Self-citationWhy we need juror education in rape and serious sexual offence cases
Leverick, F., Chalmers, J., Keane, E. P. H., & Kinghan, J. (2025) · Journal of Criminal Justice · doi:10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2025.102525 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Unmasking the dark triad: exploring its relationship with attitudes toward intimate partner violence
Waite, C., & Mooney, R. (2024) · Journal of Criminal Psychology · doi:10.1108/jcp-02-2024-0016 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
The influence of dark personality and pornography on sexual aggression beliefs
Galán, M., Pineda, D., Rico‐Bordera, P., Martínez-Martínez, A., & Piqueras, J. A. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1471438 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Widanaralalage, B. K., Jennings, S., Dando, C. J., & Mackenzie, J.-M. (2025) · BMC Psychology · doi:10.1186/s40359-025-02706-z · Cited by 6 · see citing works
“Traditional gender values are well-documented as shaping victim-blaming attitudes and rape myths for both female and male survivors [60, 61].”
Self-citationGrzyb, T., Doliński, D., Muniak, P., & Kulesza, W. M. (2024) · Journal of Criminal Psychology · doi:10.1108/jcp-08-2024-0076 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Updated Illinois rape myth acceptance scale: an item response theory analysis
Beckett, N., Longpré, N., & Stefanska, E. B. (2025) · Journal of Sexual Aggression · doi:10.1080/13552600.2025.2540632 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Metson, J., & Willmott, D. (2024) · Social Sciences · doi:10.3390/socsci13040198 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Self-citationProfiling psychopathic traits among organised crime group members: a prison study
Boduszek, D., Homer, L., & Willmott, D. (2025) · Journal of Criminal Psychology · doi:10.1108/jcp-09-2025-0104 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Self-citationWillmott, D., Johnston, M., Widanaralalage, B. K., Mojtahedi, D., Boduszek, D., McDermott, D., & Kirkman, G. (2026) · Behavioral Sciences & the Law · doi:10.1002/bsl.70095 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Self-citationLi, N., Augustyn, M. B., & Pinchevsky, G. M. (2025) · Victims & Offenders · doi:10.1080/15564886.2024.2439942 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Belton, J., Awrey, M. J., Sheinin, G. D. B., & Langton, C. M. (2024) · Journal of Family Violence · doi:10.1007/s10896-024-00752-6
Juror Characteristics and Decision Making in a Developed Coercive Control Case
Barnett, K. M., Woodfield, R., & Conlon, R. A. (2025) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs15060803
Stories of Markova: Delving into the Narratives on Sexual Abuse Experiences of Gay Men
Belen, J. C. P., & Cuizon, P. C. (2026) · Psychology and Education A Multidisciplinary Journal · doi:10.70838/pemj.530604
- Authors
- Willmott, D., Rafique, A., Widanaralalage, B. K., & Agneswaran, A.
- Affiliations
- Loughborough University (GB)
- University of Huddersfield (GB)
- King's College London (GB)
- Manchester Metropolitan University (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Willmott, Dominic
- Venue
- Psychiatry, Psychology and Law
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2024-04-07
- Volume
- 32
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 388-400
- ISSN
- 1321-8719 (ISSN-L)
- 1934-1687
- PMC
- PMC12123939
- OpenAlex
- W4395485159
- Cited by
- 17
- References
- 53
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 1
- FWCI
- 11.74
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Psychiatry Psychology and Law (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- e-space (Manchester Metropolitan University) (acceptedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Sexual Assault and Victimization Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
- Keywords
- rape myth acceptance, psychopathic traits, emotional responsiveness, interpersonal manipulation, self-centeredness, gender differences, ethnicity, sexual aggression, empathy, rape myths
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
