Abstract
There are nearly 100,000 reported cases of rape per year in the United States, but the actual number may be near several million. Perhaps half of these rapes are committed by someone who is known by the victim. In many cases, the rape occurs during a dating situation. A study of 170 students at a midwestern urban university was carried out to determine the differences in attitudes toward sexual violence committed by strangers and by acquaintances. There were significant differences in attitudes of college students about the seriousness of the two types of rape. There were also significant differences between men and women in attitudes about seriousness of rape and in attribution of blame for acquaintance rape.
