Overview

This annotated bibliography reviews scholarly work on acquaintance and date rape published in recent years. Acquaintance rape research has grown significantly since the mid-1980s, and it is often argued that acquaintance rape is a common occurrence, especially on college campuses. It is also argued that this type of sexual assault is very different from stranger rape, principally because of the socially defined and accepted nature of the relationship between the victim and the perpetrator. Works specifically on acquaintance or date rape are included, as well as earlier works that led to the emergence of the separate conceptual category of acquaintance rape. Each work is summarized, and the annotation includes a statement of the purpose, the method, and the major findings of the work. Separate chapters are devoted to the incidence of acquaintance rape; its social correlates; and its causes, effects, treatment, and prevention.