International Journal of Adult and Continuing Education ISSN 2241-4517 Vol. 2 (4), pp. 001-013, April, 2016. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Is rape in the eye or in the mind of the offender? A survey of rape perception among Nigerian university stakeholders
Elegbeleye, O. S.
Department of Psychology Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
Accepted 11 October, 2015
Abstract
The issue of the escalating incidents of rape in Nigerian higher institutions has, not unexpectedly, agitated the minds of both students and university workers on the one hand, and the general public, on the other. This development has forced the hands of the authorities in some of the Nigerian universities to give priority to finding a solution to the issue by out rightly legislating against it, while in others, series of codes of conduct expected to guide proper dressing, the abuse of which was considered chief among factors encouraging rape, were put in place. This study, therefore, focused on investigating what the people, particularly, those that populate the university environment, perceive of rape. The outcome of the study revealed among other things that rape is associated with a forceful attempt at having sexual intercourse with an unwilling female victim. For this reason, it was labeled a crime by participants. There was also a unanimous agreement by participants that rape incidents are rampant, in the last ten years on university campuses across Nigeria than was the case in previous years and that creating a dressing regime by introducing dressing code for, especially, female students would be an effective palliative measure for curbing rape incidents. Causative factors and what can be done to totally put a stop to rape incidents on university campuses were suggested by participants.
Key words: Rape, Rape perception, Nigerian university stakeholders.