Poll examines sexual violence causes, definitions

PHOTO: A NIDA poll examine Thais' thoughts on sexual violence. (via Now Grenada)

A new NIDA Poll has shed some light on what modern Thai society believes is sexual violence and what causes it. The poll, conducted by the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA), asked about what people thought were the major root causes of sexual violence. They also asked whether a variety of scenarios would be considered to fall under that term.

The poll surveyed 1,311 people over the age of 15 between November 10 and 15. Interviews were conducted by phone and thought to speak with people of all different occupations and income levels as well as levels of education. The people were spread out throughout Thailand.

What do you think causes sexual violence?

  • 64.15% – Men lacking respect for women
  • 50.04% – Men lacking understanding of whether women have given consent
  • 47.52% – Women wearing revealing clothes and/or flirting
  • 3.51% – Media influence, such as soap operas showing inappropriate behaviours
  • 1.53% – Drugs or other intoxicants
  • 0.69% – Family upbringing
  • 0.53% – A sudden loss of conscience
  • 0.46% – Adultery
  • 0.08% – The belief that men are superior to women

"What

 

Considering the implications, the discussion over what constitutes an act of sexual violence saw a spread in beliefs and attitudes in the NIDA poll. People nearly unanimously believed that rape or being forced into sex work qualified. A strong majority considered extortion over nudes or jealously killing a lover to be sexually violent. Triple the amount of people considered shaming women online dressed scantily or an employer sharing dirty jokes or photos to be an act of sexual violence than those who did not.

Similar numbers were found for more serious offences like a male relative molesting a girl, or a husband having non-consensual sex with his wife. Finally, people were fairly evenly split over whether things like online romance scams and spousal adultery could fall under the term sexual violence.

What could be termed an act of sexual violence?
What could be termed an act of sexual violence?

 

IS IT CONSIDERED SEXUAL VIOLENCE? YES NO
A male student trying to rape a female student, believing she likes him 97.86% 2.14%
Forcing a wife to be a sex worker 91.30% 8.70%
Threatening to post nudes unless she pays 84.90% 15.10%
The jealous killing of a girlfriend 83.14% 16.86%
Posting secret sexy photos on social media 76.81% 23.19%
A boss making sexual jokes and sharing nude pictures 76.81% 23.19%
Forcing a wife to have sex without her consent 72.31% 27.69%
A girl being intimately touched by a close male relative 71.32% 28.68%
A husband or wife committing adultery 52.17% 47.83%
A man or woman being tricked in an online romance scam 50.88% 49.12%

Crime NewsThailand News

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Neill Fronde

Neill is a journalist from the United States with 10+ years broadcasting experience and national news and magazine publications. He graduated with a degree in journalism and communications from the University of California and has been living in Thailand since 2014.

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