Publication Date

8-2019

Date of Final Oral Examination (Defense)

4-23-2019

Type of Culminating Activity

Thesis

Degree Title

Master of Arts in Communication

Department

Communication

Supervisory Committee Chair

John G. McClellan, Ph.D.

Supervisory Committee Member

Christina L. Ivey, Ph.D.

Supervisory Committee Member

Rulon Wood, Ph.D.

Abstract

While sexual violence on college campuses has always been present, recently, there has been heightened interest in ways that individuals can resist against this problematic and harmful culture. This study employs a communicative perspective grounded in social construction and relationships between power, language, and subjectivity to gain insights into the everyday talk that perpetuates rape culture. Specifically, four focus groups were conducted to understand how college students talk about dating, relationships, and sex. Qualitative analysis of the focus group transcripts revealed how women and men conceptualize the process of dating and critical analysis reveals how the talk about relationships and sex contributed to imbalances of power and marginalization of women-perpetuating rape culture on college campuses. I offer a discussion linking the findings of this study to social construction and research on power, language, and subjectivity, and conclude with recommendations for future research exploring everyday language use and issues associated with sexual violence on college campuses.

DOI

10.18122/td/1568/boisestate

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