The problem of date rape is one that has been much discussed along with the related issues of sexual harassment and spousal abuse. All three may be a function of male aggression and socialization. Colleges and universities have to face the issue of date rape in particular and have had to develop policies intended to counter such tendencies and to make it known that date rape is wrong and will not be tolerated. It is not clear that these policies are effective in changing attitudes and in reducing the incidence of the problem, nor is it clear that a written policy can ever be fully effective in altering this sort of behavior. Cognizant of this uncertainty, many institutions are trying a number of strategies to counter the incidence of date rape, including holding seminars, instituting codes, informing incoming students of the school policy and of all measures that will be taken to deal with offenders, and similar approaches. How effective these efforts will be will only become apparent when they have been tested over time.
Date rape is defined as coerced sex between people who are acquainted, while the more commonly understood crime of rape usually takes place between strangers. As might be expected by the name, date rape is seen as coerced sex in a dating situation, though it can be defined more broadly to include coerced sex between husband and wife or even some forms of molestation by a relative or family friend coercing a younger member of the family. The FBI estimates that at least 25 million wives are sexually abused by their husbands each year, and surveys show that 24 percent of male university students have been sexually aggressive despite their dates' protests. Data compiled by police, psychiatrists and, psychologists suggest that more than one in four females have been sexually abused when they were young. Yet, some 50 percent of all rapes are unreported, showing how vulnerable and violated the victims feel, feeli...