Contextual effects of personal network on individuals' tendency to blame the victims of sexual harassment

Victim-blaming has been studied extensively, especially in the context of sexual violence. In the present study, the distribution of opinion with regard to female victims of sexual violence among people in the respondents' networks was used to explain their victim-blaming tendency. Data from respondents' personal networks were collected, and the results revealed that respondents' attitudes towards victim-blaming correlated positively with the proportion of network others who had positive attitudes towards victim-blaming. The correlation was stronger among respondents who had low concern for the issue. The results supported a model of information bias of personal network on attitudes.