What kind of mental illness do rapists have?

Answer 1

This is a somewhat difficult and controversial question to try to answer as there are different definitions around the world as to what the term "rape" means; but all research indicates there is no single mental illness that is universally responsible for a human being being motivated to commit rape against another human being. But most commonly rapist are motivated by anger and very often the rapist has a severe personality disorder but there can be other motivations in some cases.

Also it is complicated because there are different types of rape termed "date rape", "gang rape", "war rape", "marital rape" "prison rape", "acquaintance rape", and "statutory rape" and each involve different issues and motivations. But it is generally recognized, however outraged we may all feel about a rapist doing what he or she does to someone else, statistics do reveal worldwide about 20% of all women have been the victim of a sexual offence or attempted offence once or more during their life!

But victims of rape are not always women! Looking at UK figures in 2011-12, of the estimated 78,000 victims of recorded rape 69,000 women were women and about 9,000 men. But in both genders around 90% of victims of the most serious sexual offences in the previous year knew the person who raped them before the rape was committed.

But in all cases those individuals who are raped are very often severely traumatized perhaps for the rest of their life. Many suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder; as well as severe psychological harm and a consequence of being raped is often also serious physical injury. There can be other horrible consequences on the victim, such as an unwanted pregnancy or him or her acquiring of a sexually transmitted infection. Furthermore in some cultures after a rape, the rape victim can face violence or threats thereof from the rapist, and/or from the victim's own family.

But dealing with the commonest reason motivating rape seeming to be anger. The motivation of the anger rapist, research finds, is in many cases mot to ejoy sexual penetration but intent to humiliate, debase, and hurt the person he rapes t the maximum degree possible as thereby he actually enjoys this method of expressing contempt for the victim by the enjoyment of the physical violence rather than the penetration.

In some cases this can conquering soldiers raping innocent civilians in the conqered enemy's country during war like happened in Berlin at the end of WW2 in Germany.

In domestic rape situations also sex may be considered by the rapist as the weapon relied on specifically to humiliate and degrade the victim, constituting the ultimate expression in the rapist's warped mind method of easing his anger. Victims of anger rape in various other situations can be male or female. It is known for example that some suspected or confirmed gay men get raped by heterosexual males who have very strong homophobic tendencies but these same males behave gentlemanly and lovingly to all ladies. But there are also cases of women being anger raped for revenge by a male who loves her but has been rejected by her, so paradoxically both hate and love can lead to rape.

Commonly anger rape is characterized by deplorable physical brutality, much more physical force being used during the assault than would be necessary if the intent were simply to overpower the victim and just achieve penetration. But other kinds of rape do not result from anger by the rapist against the victim but requited love of him or her.

But as stated above there is no universal scientific theory to conclusively explain the motivation for rape, Many cases of rape do seem to result from a serious mental health condition, such as sexual sadisismr or an anti-social personality disorder that usually being associated with the rapist gaining sexual gratification from causing the intense anguish and utter humiliation of the man or woman raped rather tan from the sexual penetration.

The World Health Organisation's published summary after worldwide studies is that the primary factors that lead to the perpetration of sexual violence including rape, are beliefs in family honour and sexual purity and sexual gratification in tandem with evolutionary proclivities ideologies of male sexual entitlement; a desire for power and sexual sadism.

In some cases this can be during war after conquering the enemy l,ike happened in Bosnia and in WW2 in Germany. In domestic situations also sex may be considered as the weapon relied on specifically by the rapist to humiliate and degrade the victim, constituting the ultimate expression in the rapist's warped mind of easing his anger. Victims of anger rape in various other situations can be male or female. It is known for example that some suspected or confirmed gay men get raped by heterosexual males who have very strong homophobic tendencies but these same males behave gentlemanly and lovingly to all ladies. But there are also cases of women being anger raped for revenge by a male who loves her but has been rejected by her, so paradoxically both hate and love can lead to rape.

Commonly anger rape is characterized by deplorable physical brutality, much more physical force being used during the assault than would be necessary if the intent were simply to overpower the victim and just achieve penetration. Reports show the rapist attacks their victim by grabbing, hitting and knocking the victim to the ground, beating him or her tearing their clothes, and only then raping them. But other kinds of rape do not result from anger by the rapist against the victim but requited love of him or her.

Overall I trust on Wikianswers we all agree rape is a horrible crime to discuss, because it usually causes such intense and lifelong anguish to the victim. But In fact there is no universal scientific theory to conclusively explain the motivation for rape, there are different definitions as to what is rape held by different individuals and different people have different explanations as to why people rape others. So the bottom line is, although many would contend a rapist does have a serious mental health condition, such as sexual sadisismr or an anti-social personality disorder that usually being associated with the rapist gaining sexual gratification from causing the intense anguish and utter humiliation of the man or woman raped.

The World Health Organisation's published summary after worldwide studies is that the primary factors that lead to the perpetration of sexual violence including rape, are beliefs in family honour and sexual purity and sexual gratification in tandem with evolutionary proclivities ideologies of male sexual entitlement; a desire for power and sexual sadism.