(Image Source: FHM)
 

BY LAUREN ZIMA

Does the average man relate to rapists? A new study suggests so -- but the media say -- read between the lines.

Researchers out of England showed excerpts from men’s magazines like FHM and quotes from convicted rapists to a group of men. Participants were told some of the quotes came from the book, ‘The Rapist File: Interviews With Convicted Rapists.’ Then, they were asked to guess which quotes came from where.
Researchers said the group had difficulty making decisions about where the quotes came from and guessed correctly only half the time.

But that’s not the most eye-catching statistic.
The same researchers showed the quotes from both sources to another group of men and asked them which quotes they identified with more.
The Huffington Post UK has the results.

“Shockingly, more of the men agreed with the rapists' statements, only changing their position when the source of the quote was revealed.”

So what does it all mean? The Daily Express says -- don’t be confused, the study does not mean that men think like rapists. The men chose quotes they saw as less derogatory to women -- it just turned out that those quotes were from the rapists.

The problem, this writer says, is the magazines.

“ … the views expressed in mainstream magazines are almost identical to the warped ‘she was asking for it’ notions of sex offenders. [The magazines] influence the way … young men think … As men lose the ability to relate to the opposite sex as human beings and form proper, mutually supportive, relationships with them, they will suffer, as will society as a whole.”

Researchers agree, saying the study shows men’s magazines are normalizing derogatory mindsets about women. A writer for The Guardian was shown some of the quotes used, and was left in disbelief.

“ … what shocked me was that the language used by the lads' mags seemed much more repulsive than that offered up by the sex offenders ... Here's one of the samples … : ‘A girl may like anal sex because … she likes feeling like a dirty slut. … you can try all sorts of humiliating acts to help live out her filthy fantasy.’ Here's a convicted rapist ... ‘There's a certain way you can tell that a girl wants to have sex . . . The way they dress, they flaunt themselves’ … ”

The Guardian contacted heads of the men’s magazines used in the study for comment.
So far, none have responded.