Copyright 1991 by the American Psychological Association, Inc. 0022-006X/91/S3.00

Journal of Consulling and Clinical Psychology 1991, Vol. 59, No. 5,662-669

Toward a Theory of Sexual Aggression: A Quadripartite Model Gordon C. Nagayama Hall and Richard Hirschman

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Kent State University Sexually aggressive behavior against adult females is an increasingly serious societal problem. The need for a unified theoretical model is addressed by integrating the elements of existing models into a quadripartite model in which the heterogeneity of sexual aggressors is accounted for by the prominence of potential etiological factors. The components of the model—physiological sexual arousal, cognitions that justify sexual aggression, affective dyscontrol, and personality problems— function as motivational precursors that increase the probability of sexually aggressive behavior. The relative prominence of these precursors within different sexually aggressive populations is used to define major subtypes.

1984; Quinsey & Marshall, 1983). The complexity of sexual behavior is reflected in legal, cultural, and religious proscriptions to prevent its inappropriate expression; these proscriptions may be firm and specific or ambiguous. The proscriptions are compounded further by malleable societal opinions such that there is no universally accepted societal code of sexual behavior. Not surprisingly, although there are societal sanctions against sexually aggressive behavior, cultural, if not legal, acceptance of sexual aggression may be increasing, possibly because of the relatively high percentage of "normal" men who engage in it. Despite the complexity of societal attitudes toward aggressive sexual behavior against women, there is an increasing need for prevention and treatment of the perpetrators. Yet there is no evidence that currently available treatment programs are effective (Furby, Weinrott, & Blackshaw, 1989). This may be partially a function of the difficulty in developing a unified theoretical model that is comprehensive but sufficiently parsimonious for validation by independent researchers in multiple settings. Although we know much about the characteristics of various subtypes of sexual aggressors (e.g., Bard et al, 1987; Knight & Prentky, 1990), the next incremental leap in our understanding of etiology and treatment requires the development of a model that incorporates reliable elements of what already is known into a unified context for understanding the motivational factors unique to various subtypes of perpetrators. Such a model also would have to be sufficiently flexible to account for the various sexually aggressive modes of expression.

Recent incidence statistics suggest increasing and alarmingly high frequencies of sexual aggression against women, or at the very least increased reporting of such behavior (Muehlenhard & Linton, 1987; Rapaport & Burkhart, 1984). Most sexual aggression is male-initiated in that probably fewer than 5% of sexual aggressors are women (Groth & Birnbaum, 1979), and those women who are sexually aggressive usually victimize children (Finkelhor, 1984). Clearly, sexual aggression is a prominent societal problem and very likely will continue to require the attention of research and clinical psychologists. In addition to statistical data, there are ideological arguments about the prevalence and seriousness of sexual aggression against women. Some feminist theorists have proposed that all men have the potential to rape (Brownmiller, 1975). Although this view is extreme, it is not farfetched given that many nonrapist men are sexually aroused by rape stimuli (Malamuth, Check, & Briere, 1986; Quinsey & Chaplin, 1984) and report that they are more likely to commit rape if they can be assured of not being caught by legal authorities (Briere & Malamuth, 1983). At the very least, these findings signal the development of a pernicious psychological normalization of sexually aggressive behavior. Despite the seriousness of sexual aggression against women as a societal problem and the likelihood that the problem may be getting worse (or is being reported more frequently), the uniqueness and complexity of sexually aggressive behavior have made it difficult to develop a much needed unified theoretical model that would account for the multiple factors in its etiology and the heterogeneity of the perpetrators (Hall, 1990a; Quinsey,

Physiological Model Preparation of this article was supported in part by National Institute of Mental Health Grant MH45700 awarded to Gordon C. Nagayama Hall and Richard Hirschman. An earlier version of this article was presented at the 98th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Boston, August 1990. We gratefully acknowledge the helpful comments of Peter Ditto and Stuart Taylor on a draft of this article and the support of the Applied Psychology Center, Kent State University. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Gordon C. Nagayama Hall, Department of Psychology, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio 44242-0001.

The univariate physiological model is based, in part, on the finding that some sexua) offenders against women exhibit equal or greater genital arousal to rape stimuli than to consenting stimuli (Abel, Barlow, Blanchard, & Guild, 1977; Quinsey, Chaplin, & Upfold, 1984). However, it is not known if a high level of physiological sexual arousal is critical for motivating or eliciting sexually aggressive behavior (Baxter, Barbaree, & Marshall, 1986; Baxter, Marshall, Barbaree, Davidson, & Malcolm, 1984; Blader & Marshall, 1989). Many rapists' and nonrapists' overall pattern of physiological sexual arousal is similar, such 662

SPECIAL SECTION: TOWARD A THEORY OF SEXUAL AGGRESSION that both groups exhibit lower levels of physiological sexual

tive to outcomes predicted from the model. Moreover, the so-

arousal to coercive (rape, nonsexual assault of a female) than to noncoercive stimuli (consenting sexual intercourse; Baxter et

ciobiological model's extrapolation from animal to human be-

al., 1984,1986; Blader & Marshall, 1989; Hall, 1989a; Murphy, Coleman, & Haynes, 1986; Murphy Haynes, Coleman, & Flanagan, 1985). Unexpected findings such as these may be a function of the heterogeneity of sexual offenders (Hall, 1990b). Recent large studies (Baxter et al, 1984, 1986; Hall, 1989b) included sexual offenders who were less pathological and more typical of the general population of sexual aggressors than sexual offenders whose sexual arousal was more prominent (Abel et al., 1977; Quinsey et al, 1984).

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Cognitive-Behavioral Model

havior fails to account for the noninstinctive aspects of human sexual behavior (e.g, cognitive variables, relationship factors) that are not analogous to animal sexual behavior. Aggressive behavior is not selected in human evolution, and in all species cooperation and social skills result in group status (The Seville Statement on Violence, 1990). Another important issue when considering the sociobiological model is its emphasis on environmental contingencies. Although environmental contingencies could decrease the likelihood of sexual aggression to some degree, a person with adequate motivation for sexual aggression, distorted perceptions of the environment, and impulse dyscontrol may become sexually

Somewhat more complex than the physiological model is the cognitive-behavioral model in which the emphasis shifts to the importance of individual cognitions (Pithers, 1990). A unique

aggressive regardless of actual environmental contingencies. Also, from a psychosocial perspective, an emphasis on environmental contingencies may cater to the idea of blaming the victim (i.e, the victim is viewed as overly responsible for control-

aspect of the cognitive-behavioral model is that it contains the temporal sequence of affect -» fantasy -»• conscious plan -»

ling an act that may be beyond the victim's actual control). Although there have been many clinical interventions with vic-

behavior that presumably leads to sexually aggressive behavior

tims, an emphasis on environmental factors potentially may

toward children. It is unlikely that the same event or sequence of events precedes all sexually aggressive behavior against

divert attention from clinical interventions directed at sexually aggressive persons.

women. In a more general sense, it would be unusual if sexual aggression could be completely accounted for by any univariate model or single temporal sequence, given that most other behaviors are typically explained by multiple psychological factors

Multivariate Models

and varying temporal sequences. Sexually aggressive populations are heterogeneous (Quinsey, 1984), and singular causal variables or a singular sequence leading to sexual aggression may obscure such heterogeneity. For example, some sexually aggressive persons may engage in deviant fantasies or other cognitive distortions before experiencing negative affect, rather

Other complex, multivariate models are population-specific and multicausal (e.g., Bard et al., 1987; Knight & Prentky, 1990; Malamuth, 1986). An influential example is a statistically derived clinical classification system that included subtypes of institutionalized sexual offenders against adults on the basis of the levels of sexual and aggressive motivation (Knight & Prentky, 1990).

than as a result of negative affect. Similarly, a person may plan a

The generalizability of this system to other possibly less

sexually aggressive event prior to experiencing negative affect or deviant sexual fantasy and then may experience negative affect or deviant fantasies as the plan is implemented.

pathological sexually aggressive populations has yet to be examined in that the system is exclusively based on archival data of "sexually dangerous" individuals in a single inpatient setting. A potential difficulty in validating this system at other sites may

Sociobiological Model In the sociobiological model of sexual aggression, the emphasis is on biological variables that are assumed to have an evolutionary basis (Ellis, 1989). The biochemical aspects of the sociobiological model are equivocally related to sexually aggressive behavior. Although elevated testosterone levels appear in the

involve the subtle distinctions and inferences that appear to be attainable only for persons thoroughly familiar with them. Statistically derived typologies of behavior may yield certain subtypes that are not necessarily clinically meaningful. In the general population of sexual aggressors, some of the subtypes may occur infrequently or are purely hypothetical and of limited clinical utility (Knight & Prentky, 1990). Therefore, although

most extreme and violent sexual offenders, it is unclear whether

this system has significantly increased our understanding of the

testosterone is associated specifically with sexual aggression or

complexity of sexually dangerous individuals, the implications

even with aggressive behavior in general. Studies with noncriminal and non-sex-offender criminal populations have been similarly inconclusive in that both negative and positive findings have been reported regarding testosterone and nonsexual aggressive behavior (Berlin, 1983; Bradford & McLean, 1984). It is improbable that any single neurotransmitter is exclusively associated with sexually aggressive behavior (Prentky, 1985;

of its use for more general clinical practice may elude the typical clinician who is faced with the concrete tasks of diagnosing and treating a more heterogeneous population. More generally, our contention is that the unique descriptive qualities of a typology may or may not coincide with the most potent etiological factors that produce a given behavior. Both the univariate and complex models of sexual aggression

The Seville Statement on Violence, 1990), in that neural mecha-

constitute scientific landmarks in that they were seminal at-

nisms are integrated in a complex manner. An extreme biological position makes sexual aggression un-

tempts to describe, understand, and treat sexual aggressors. There are valuable components in each model, and we would

avoidable, and thus, excusable, but does not account for the low incidence of extreme forms of sexual aggression (e.g., rape) rela-

like to reorganize these components into a different and unified conceptual framework that may help efforts in identifying the

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GORDON C. NAGAYAMA HALL AND RICHARD HIRSCHMAN

most salient etiological factors of sexual aggression and in treating the perpetrators. One important theme that emerges from an analysis of these models is that various combinations of physiological, cognitive, affective, and personality factors may be more or less prominent as etiological factors depending on the typologies of the aggressor and the act.

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A Quadripartite Model of Sexual Aggression Assuming that sexually aggressive behavior is motivated primarily by physiological sexual arousal is intuitively compelling. Yet, although high levels of physiological sexual arousal are not unequivocally characteristic of sexual aggressors, the focus of most treatment interventions has been on how to reduce them (Alford, Morin, Atkins, & Schoen, 1987; Berlin, 1983; Marshall & Barbaree, 1984, 1988; Quinsey & Marshall, 1983). Despite the assumption that modifying high levels of physiological sexual arousal will generalize to sexual behavior, pre- or posttreatment levels of physiological sexual arousal have not been associated with recidivism for sexual aggression (Marshall & Barbaree, 1988). Unlike pedophilic sexual arousal associated with child sexual abuse, sexual arousal in adult sexual abuse is not necessarily deviant sexual arousal. Sexual arousal is a physiological impulse that results in sexual behavior that becomes inappropriate only when expressed inappropriately. Presumably, sexual arousal is so compelling for some men that they seek sexual gratification from women without regard for the normal, more gradual courtship process (Freund, 1990). Similar physiological processes may underlie sexual arousal that results in appropriate sexual behavior as well as sexual arousal that results in sexual aggression. We believe that an appreciation of the similarities underlying normal and aggressive sexual expression is necessary for understanding the relative contribution of a potential etiological factor. It follows that physiological sexual arousal alone is probably not sufficient to produce sexual aggression in all cases. Analogous to a cognitive-stress model of emotion (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984), physiological sexual arousal must be cognitively appraised before it is acted on (Hirschman & Clark, 1983). Cognitive appraisals need not be accurate to be believed. A sexual aggressor's cognitive distortions about women (e.g., "Women are hostile to men and deserve to be raped") may allow him to be sexually aggressive independent of contradictory evidence from the environment. Sexual aggressors may misperceive sanctions against sexual aggression (e.g., women's repulsion to rape, legal sanctions) or may simply ignore such sanctions if they are aware of them (cf. Lipton, McDonel, & McFall, 1987). If this occurs, sociological explanations of sexual aggression would be mitigated, in that a potential sexual aggressor's cognitions about environmental contingencies would be more critical than are the actual contingencies. A decision to respond in a sexually aggressive manner may be based on certain cognitive appraisals (e.g., rape myths) or justifications concerning the potential victim. These myths or justifications may be conditioned through cultural or social processes (Burt, 1980). If the sexual act is appraised as being enjoyable for the victim, regardless of the level of coercion, this may justify sexually aggressive behavior(cf. Murphy, 1990). Neg-

ative perceptions of women also may be a justification for sexually aggressive behavior. Sexually aggressive men tend to view their relationships with women as hostile and adversarial (Lisak & Roth, 1988; Malamuth, 1986). These tendencies may be compounded by alcohol use by aggressors or victims, which is often appraised as an excuse for sexually aggressive behavior (Lisak & Roth, 1988; Muehlenhard & Linton, 1987). If sexually aggressive behavior toward women is not appraised as being wrong, then there is no moral or ethical reason to control such behavior. Moreover, if rape is appraised as an act that has a low likelihood of being detected by legal authorities, some men may be more inclined to be sexually aggressive (Briere & Malamuth, 1983). Analogous to the health belief model (Janz & Becker, 1984), the likelihood of sexual aggression is a function of appraised threat and appraised benefit. If the appraised benefits of sexual aggression (e.g., sexual gratification, belief that victim will enjoy rape, opportunity to express anger) outweigh its appraised threats (e.g., wrongness of sexual aggression, risk of being punished), sexually aggressive behavior is more likely to occur (Feild, 1978; McFall, 1990). Thus, when physiological sexual arousal is fused (i.e., interacts) with a cognitive appraisal factor, the commission of sexually aggressive behavior may be facilitated. In addition to physiological sexual arousal and cognitive appraisal, a third factor that would facilitate sexual aggression is affective dyscontrol. Often, negative affective states precede cognitive sequences that lead to sexually aggressive behavior. Whereas these affective states may be primarily depressive states among men who have sexually offended against children, anger and hostility are more likely to be the negative affective states that facilitate sexual aggression against adults (Knight & Prentky, 1990; Pithers, 1990; Quinsey, 1984). This affective dyscontrol factor is consistent with feminist conceptualizations of sexual aggression as a pseudosexual act of anger and violence (Brownmiller, 1975; Groth & Birnbaum, 1979). It is the expression of these states that is indicative of affective dyscontrol (Hall, 1989a; Maiuro & Hall, 1986; Malamuth, 1986; Pithers, 1990). We believe that an antagonistic process between the motives to satisfy or to inhibit certain affective states (c.g., anger, hostility) is a mediator of sexually aggressive behavior. These affective states are usually sufficiently inhibited such that sexual behavior is expressed only under appropriate circumstances (e.g., privacy, consenting relationships). However, sexually aggressive behavior occurs when these affective states become so compelling and powerful that they overcome inhibitions (e.g., guilt, moral conviction, anxiety, empathy for the victim) that typically prevent the expression of the behavior (Finkelhor, 1984; Marshall & Barbaree, 1984). Physiological, cognitive, and affective factors that motivate sexual aggression are primarily state and situation dependent (cf. Spielberger, 1972) in that these factors tend to be circumscribed and contiguous to sexually aggressive acts. However, in some cases more enduring trait variables may interact with these three factors to facilitate sexual aggression. Early experiences, including parental divorce, large family of origin, presence of parental or sibling criminal history, parental neglect, and parental physical or sexual abuse may create lasting personality problems that increase the likelihood of later sexual aggression (Bard et al., 1987). Sexual aggression is inhibited by

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SPECIAL SECTION: TOWARD A THEORY OF SEXUAL AGGRESSION

positive early socialization experiences or facilitated by poor socialization experiences, including inappropriate forms of punishment, abuse, and neglect (Marshall & Barbaree, 1984). Other developmental factors, including low levels of education, impaired social skills, and low occupational status also may increase the likelihood of sexually aggressive behavior (Knight & Prentky, 1990). For example, sexually aggressive persons tend to be less socially skilled than are persons who are not sexually aggressive (Lipton et al, 1987; Overholser & Beck, 1986). Typically, sexual offenders against women have been antisocial persons who often have a history of nonsexual criminal activity (Baxter et al., 1984; Hall & Proctor, 1987; Knight & Prentky, 1990) and elevations on Scale 4 of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI; Hall, Graham, & Shepherd, 1991). Difficulties in incorporating the values and standards of society, antisocial behavior, authority problems, family conflicts, and underachievement are all correlates of MMPI Scale 4 (Graham, 1987). Thus, a personality trait factor could account for the chronicity and severity of sexually aggressive behavior that are not accounted for by state factors. State factors alone may not produce sexually aggressive behavior in a person with adequate personality functioning. When the state components are operational in a person with the aforementioned developmentally related personality problems or disorders, sexually aggressive behavior is more likely to occur. Although it may be argued that a personality component is simply a combination of the first three state components, it is necessary for us to propose a separate component to explain the psychological context in which sexually aggressive behavior occurs. Enduring personality problems are characteristic of some criminals, including sexually aggressive offenders, which may result in traits including a selfish, remorseless, and exploitative use of others, as well as a chronically unstable and antisocial life-style (Harpur, Hare, & Hakstian, 1989). Whereas there are many persons who have the previously mentioned developmentally related personality problems and are not sexually aggressive, it is probable that many persons who are sexually aggressive have at least some of the previously mentioned developmentally related personality problems (Baxter et al., 1984; Hall & Proctor, 1987; Knight & Prentky, 1990). Synergistic interactions among personality, physiological, cognitive, and affective components of sexual aggression also may occur. The relative intensity of the individual components could affect the intensity of other components and ultimately influence the likelihood of sexual aggression. For example, extremely high levels of physiological sexual arousal, sexually related cognitive distortions, and affective dyscontrol could increase the likelihood of sexually aggressive behavior in a person who is experiencing even mild forms of the aforementioned personality problems or disorders. We view physiological sexual arousal, cognitions that justify sexual aggression, affective dyscontrol, and specific developmentally related personality problems as the critical components that increase the probability of sexual aggression. This quadripartite model is decidedly psychological and intrapersonal in approach. Environmental contingencies also may be important in the expression of sexually aggressive impulses but in a more tangential manner. A person who has the requisite traits, arousal, appraisals, and affective dyscontrol still might be

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deterred from sexually aggressive behavior because of the unavailability of potential victims or by criminal sanctions (Briere & Malamuth, 1983; Finkelhor, 1984). In instances when a desired victim is unavailable, such as in prison settings, sexual aggression may occur against an available victim. When a desirable sexual partner is available and the person has an adequate level of affective control, sexually aggressive impulses may be expressed with impunity in the form of fantasies during normal sexual activity or when the partner consents to sexually aggressive activity, such as bondage. Environmental factors, such as provocation or alcohol (Crowe & George, 1989) and peer support (e.g., gang rape; Marshall & Barbaree, 1984), also may facilitate sexual aggression. Rather than composing a separate psychological component for explaining sexually aggressive behavior, environmental contingencies seem to place constraints on a person primed for sexual aggression by specific traits, sexual arousal, cognitive appraisals, and affective dyscontrol. It is the relative etiological contributions of each of these latter four components that may have implications for developing a typology of sexual aggressors. Relative Potency of Precursors Motivating Sexual Aggression We believe that sexual aggression is analogous to other complex psychological problems, such as depression or sexual impotence, that have multiple etiological factors but typically one primary precursor (e.g, functional or organic depression). With this in mind and given the heterogeneity of sexually aggressive populations, the relative prominence of the previously described motivational components could be used to define major subtypes of sexual aggressors such that the most potent of the four components within each subtype functions as a motivational precursor. A motivational precursor is defined as the most potent of the physiological, cognitive, affective, and personality components that causes a person to exceed the threshold that usually inhibits sexually aggressive behavior. Whereas the four components in combination increase the likelihood of sexual aggression, the motivational precursor is the primary driving force underlying the typology of the aggressor and the act. The motivational precursor need not be the initial (in a temporal sense) motivational component. For example, a sexually aggressive person with specific cognitive distortions about women as his motivational precursor could experience high levels of physiological sexual arousal, affective dyscontrol, and personality problems in advance of the cognitive distortions that finally motivate him to become sexually aggressive. The other motivational components of sexual aggression would not be activated to produce sexually aggressive behavior without the presence of the motivational precursor, in this case, cognitive distortions. With respect to the first subtype of sexual aggressor, physiological sexual arousal would be the most prominent motivational precursor. This subtype has been the most commonly described in physiological models of sexual aggression. Presumably, physiological sexual arousal is modulated by deviant and nondeviant sexual fantasies. One characteristic that may differentiate this subtype from normal men is that aggressive contextual cues may not inhibit sexual arousal (Marshall & Barbaree,

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GORDON C. NAGAYAMA HALL AND RICHARD HIRSCHMAN

1984; Quinsey et al, 1984). In the case of the sexual aggressor, sexual arousal may become associated with aggressive behavior against women, such that aggressive behavior itself is sexually arousing in a physiological sense and may even exceed physiological sexual arousal to mutually consenting sexual activity (Quinsey et al., 1984). The level of physical violence in the sexually aggressive act would be a function of whether physical violence is sexually arousing to the sexual aggressor. (Physical violence also may be a function of a man's need for dominance over women, which is considered below in describing the cognitive subtype.) The sexually arousing properties of physical violence may be conditioned by the repeated pairing of violent and erotic stimuli, as in violent forms of pornography (Marshall, 1989). A sexually aggressive person who is less sexually aroused by violence would be less violent than a sexually aggressive person who is more sexually aroused by violence. This subtype is likely to have committed more than one act of sexual aggression with different victims (Abel, Becker, Mittleman, Cunningham-Rathner, Rouleau, & Murphy, 1987). It is important to reiterate that many sexual aggressors against women may not necessarily exhibit high levels of physiological sexual arousal (Baxter et al., 1984,1986; Hall, 1989b). The second subtype is characterized by a cognitive motivational precursor for sexual aggression. General and sexual impulsivity are secondary to cognitive mechanisms; this subtype may choose situations for expressing sexual aggression in which there is some perceived justification for it (e.g., victim enjoyment, perceived victim provocation). Cognitive justifications would determine the amount of physical violence against the victim, which generally would be relatively low. The relative lack of sexual and general impulsivity may result in this subtype being perceived as less deviant than the other two subtypes. As compared with the other subtypes, this type of sexually aggressive person might be less likely to be apprehended because of the cognitive appraisal of the situation that precedes sexual aggression and the relatively low level of physical violence in the sexually aggressive act (Koss, 1985; Yegidis, 1986). Because of the low likelihood of apprehension, the cognitive subtype may be the most common of all the sexually aggressive groups (Koss, Gidycz, & Wisniewski, 1987). Acquaintance rape may be a common type of sexually aggressive act for this subtype (Koss, 1985; \fegidis, 1986). Many college men subscribe to beliefs that would justify sexual aggression, and many have actually engaged in sexual aggression (E. Hall, Howard, & Boezio, 1986; Lisak & Roth, 1988; Malamuth, 1986; Mosher & Anderson, 1986; Rapaport & Burkhart, 1984). Indeed, many college men may be more tolerant of rape (they recommend lighter sentences for perpetrators) than noncollege men or incarcerated rapists (E. Hall et al., 1986). A man who is sexually aggressive with an acquaintance may perceive himself as less responsible for sexual aggression as a function of his correct or incorrect perceptions of the woman's behaviors, including perceived communication about wanted and unwanted sexual activity, her allowing the man to provide transportation, her willingness to "park," her acceptance of violence toward women and adversarial sexual beliefs, or her use of alcohol or drugs (Crowe & George, 1989; Lipton et al, 1987; Lisak & Roth, 1988; Muehlenhard & Linton, 1987). Such a man may selectively attend to aspects of dating situations that encourage

him to make sexual advances and minimize those aspects, including the woman's direct refusals, that would inhibit sexual activity (Craig, 1990). Although the level of physical aggression in rapes committed by this subtype is typically low, it may be facilitated by the aggressor's needs for dominance in sexual acts (Ellis, 1989; Lisak & Roth, 1988; Malamuth, 1986). Sexually aggressive persons who engage in planning their sexually aggressive acts as described in the cognitive model of sexual aggression are consistent with this current cognitive subtype. For the third subtype, the motivational precursor is episodic affective dyscontrol (Knight & Prentky, 1990). Sexual aggression would be opportunistic, unplanned, and violent in this subtype, rather than deliberate and controlled as in the second subtype. The offense is primarily an impulsive, predatory act rather than a compulsive act committed by the cognitive subtype. The anticipation of sexual aggression created by sexual arousal and fantasy would not be a major motivational component. This type of person would be expected to have difficulty modulating affect, which would result in nonsexual, as well as sexual, aggression (Hall & Proctor, 1987). In laboratory studies, provocation of affect (i.e., anger) in men has been demonstrated to facilitate aggression (i.e, shock) toward women (Blader & Marshall, 1989). Environmental variables that would facilitate affective dyscontrol, such as affect-disinhibiting alcohol abuse (i.e, situation specific), would be more critical determinants of sexual aggression in this subtype than they would among other subtypes. The fourth subtype of sexual aggressor is characterized by a developmentally related personality problem or disorder as the most prominent motivational precursor (Baxter et al, 1984; Hall & Proctor, 1987). The importance of developmental factors in the etiology of sexual aggression has been emphasized in the multivariate descriptive models of sexual aggression (Bard et al., 1987; Knight & Prentky, 1990). Chronic problems would characterize this subtype, including intellectual impairment, family conflicts, childhood physical or sexual victimization, juvenile delinquency, emotional difficulties, poor social skills, and poor adult adjustment. Chronic substance abuse also would be more prevalent in this subtype than in the others. This subtype would also engage in more general criminal activity and be involved in nonsexual antisocial activity. The general antisocial characteristics of this subtype would result in a relatively high level of violence in the sexually aggressive act. The chronicity of impulse dyscontrol in this subtype distinguishes it from the third subtype. Whereas the third subtype is characterized by seizing an opportunity for a sexually aggressive act, the fourth subtype may be characterized by a general tendency to violate rules. The treatment prognosis for this subtype would probably be the poorest of the four subtypes because of chronic antisocial components and multiple problem areas in addition to sexual aggression. It may be possible to identify complex interactions among the four motivational precursors that would result in additional subtypes, but such complexity would compromise the usefulness of the model for developing much needed treatments, and the resulting subtypes would not necessarily be clinically relevant. As in other typologies such as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 3rd ed, rev, (DSM-1II-R; American Psychiatric Association, 1987), coverage of every pos-

SPECIAL SECTION: TOWARD A THEORY OF SEXUAL AGGRESSION

sible person and situation may not be practical or even possible. In that we are attempting to balance usefulness with the essential elements of subtypes in a unified model, we believe that the identification of four major subtypes is sufficiently comprehensive for providing an explanatory overview of a complicated behavior.

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lems are considered to have a relatively poor treatment prognosis, there are some emerging treatments from other areas that focus on stimulus-seeking behavior, biological arousal mechanisms, and learned helplessness experiences that may be relevant for use with sexual aggressors (Doren, 1987). Conclusion

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Assessment and Treatment Implications Many elements of the quadripartite model could be studied further with existing research tools. With respect to the assessment of sexual aggression, the most commonly used measure of physiological sexual arousal is a circumferential measure of penile tumescence (Abel et al, 1977; Quinsey et al., 1984). A variety of cognitive measures of men's attitudes toward women and sexually aggressive behavior (e.g., Rape Myth Acceptance Scale, Burt, 1980; Adversarial Beliefs About Women, in Malamuth, 1986) have been used in social psychological studies of sexual aggression (Burt, 1980; Lisak & Roth, 1988; Malamuth, 1986; Muehlenhard& Linton, 1987). Affective dyscontrol could be assessed by examining general levels of anger and hostility, as well as hostility that is directed specifically toward women (Hall, 1989a). The MMPI would be useful for assessing the personality factor and for refining, within the quadripartite model, existing MMPI-based, modal personality profiles of sexually aggressive persons as they reflect particular subtypes (Hall etal, 1991). With respect to research on treatment, we advocate an emphasis on the primary motivational precursors. A sexually aggressive person whose primary motivational precursor is a high level of physiological sexual arousal may fail to benefit from interventions to modify the cognitive or affective precursors of sexual aggression until his sexual arousal is under control. Analogously, interventions for sexual arousal or impulse control may be of limited value to a cognitively driven sexual aggressor who may first require modifications of his distorted beliefs before he can effectively participate in other treatments. A person who has exhibited generalized affective dyscontrol may need to gain a modicum of affective control before other interventions will become effective. Trait variables that may be relatively intransigent may require prolonged treatment before more abbreviated approaches (e.g., reduction in physiological sexual arousal) can become optimally effective. Existing treatments may be more or less effective depending on the targeted motivational precursor and population subtype. Behavioral methods (Alford et al., 1987) and anti-androgen hormones (Berlin, 1983) may be effective in modifying high levels of physiological sexual arousal. The relapse prevention model (Pithers, 1990) appears to be a promising approach for the cognitive distortions involved in sexual aggression and could be modified to address cognitive distortions about women (Burt, 1980) that function as a motivational precursor for a particular subtype. Cognitive—behavioral techniques (Novaco, 1976) and social skills training (Abel, Blanchard, & Becker, 1978) have been effective in modifying components of affective dyscontrol, such as anger and depression. The anger control approach (Novaco, 1976) is noteworthy, in that anger was conceptualized and treated on physiological, cognitive, and behavioral levels. Although persons with developmental^ related personality prob-

In the process of formulating the quadripartite model, we have attempted to reorganize the salient components of the most influential existing models into a new unified conceptual framework. We propose that certain physiological, cognitive, affective, and personality precursors increase the probability of sexually aggressive behavior. The absence of any one of the four precursors may decrease the likelihood of such behavior. However, the intensity of one or more of the four precursors may increase the intensity of the other precursors, concomitantly increasing the likelihood of sexually aggressive behavior. The heterogeneity of sexually aggressive persons is accounted for by proposing four subtypes that are identified as a function of the extent to which each precursor serves as a primary motivational factor. Although not a critical component of the model, environmental factors may alter the expression of sexual aggression in form but not in substance or with respect to basic psychological mechanisms. We believe that further progress in assessment and treatment research requires a comprehensive yet parsimonious theoretical framework. As a response to the need for a unified theoretical model (Hall, 1990a; Quinsey, 1984; Quinsey & Marshall, 1983), the present quadripartite model stands in the middle ground between the univariate and complex multivariate descriptive models. Presumably the quadripartite model will lend itself to attempts at experimental validation without assuming that sexual aggressors are either all alike or all different. References Abel, G. G, Barlow, D. H., Blanchard, E. B., & Guild, D. (1977). The components of rapists' sexual arousal. Archives of General Psychiatry, 34, 895-903. Abel, G. G., Becker, J, V, Mittleman, M., Cunningham-Rathner, I, Rouleau, J. L., & Murphy, W D. (1987). Self-reported sex crimes of nonincarcerated paraphiliacs. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2, 3-25. Abel, G. G, Blanchard, E. B., & Becker, J. Y (1978). An integrated treatment program for rapists. In R. T. Rada (Ed.), Clinical aspects of the rapist (pp. 161-214). New York: Grune & Stratton. Alford, G. S., Morin, C, Atkins, M., & Schoen, L. (1987). Masturbatory extinction of deviant sexual arousal: A case study. Behavior Therapy, 18, 265-271. American Psychiatric Association. (1987). Diagnostic and statistical manual of menial disorders (3rd ed., rev). Washington, DC: Author. Bard, L. A., Carter, D. L., Cerce, D. D, Knight, R. A., Rosenberg, R., & Schneider, B. (1987). A descriptive study of rapists and child molesters: Developmental, clinical, and criminal characteristics. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 5, 203-220. Baxter, D. I, Barbaree, H. E., & Marshall, W L. (1986). Sexual responses to consenting and forced sex in a large sample of rapists and nonrapists. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 24, 513-520. Baxter, D. J., Marshall, W L., Barbaree, H. E., Davidson, P. R, & Malcolm, P. B. (1984). Deviant sexual behavior: Differentiating sex of-

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Call for Nominations for Clinician's Research Digest The Publications and Communications (P&C) Board of the American Psychological Association is seeking nominations for a new editor for Clinician's Research Digest for a 6-year term beginning January 1994. George Strieker is the incumbent editor. Candidates must be members of APA and should be available early in 1993 to start developing material for issues published in 1994. The P&C Board encourages more participation by members of underrepresented groups in the publication process and would particularly welcome such nominees. To nominate candidates, prepare a statement of one page or less in support of each candidate. Submit nominations to Norman Abeles, Chair, Search Committee Clinician's Research Digest Department of Psychology 129 Psychology Research Building Michigan State University East Lansing, Michigan 48824-1117 Other members of the search committee are Karen S. Calhoun, Jerome H. Resnick, Richard M. Suinn, and Diane J. Willis. The deadline for submitting nominations is February 1,1992.