Is marital rape less distressing than rape by a stranger?
There is no evidence that marital rape causes less distress than other rapes. Individual variation in response applies across all sexual violence, which is why general marital immunity does not apply for other offences. Different women react differently to sexual violence — some experience longer-term psychological difficulties, others recover sooner19. Some will be particularly distressed by marital rape because of the betrayal of trust involved (especially if they are financially dependent on their spouse and feel unable to prevent more violence). Since the specific psychological effects of rape vary between people, this is not a reliable basis for maintaining the marital rape exemption. There are also public health consequences that are detrimental for women. If women cannot legally withhold consent to sexual intercourse with their husbands, it is impossible for them to negotiate that any penetration be conditioned on condom use (to avoid pregnancy, the spread of STDs, etc). • “Asso
