MYTH: Rapists are mostly 'strangers in the bushes' who carry weapons.
REALITY: About 80% of rapists know the person they attack, and most do not use weapons.

MYTH: Women often lie about being raped out of guilt over having sex or to get revenge.
REALITY: False charges of rape are the exception, not the rule, and occur at about the same rate as false charges for other major crimes (about 2-5% of reports). Rape, in fact, is the most under-reported of all crimes: an estimated 90% of assaults are never reported to police.

MYTH: During a sexual assault, the victim never experiences orgasm or physical pleasure.
REALITY: Sexual arousal and even orgasm can occur during an attack, leaving the survivor feeling both ashamed and confused. Male victims, in fact, are often forced by the perpetrator to ejaculate to increase the survivor's feelings of shame and decrease the likelihood that he will report the assault. Child sexual abuse victims are also often touched in gentle and 'pleasurable' ways to increase their confusion and make it less likely that they will tell an adult what happened.

MYTH: A woman who wears revealing clothes or gets drunk at a party is asking to be raped.
REALITY: No one ever asks or deserves to be raped. That is as ridiculous as blaming a person for getting mugged because she or he wears an expensive watch.

MYTH: Black men are more likely to rape than white men and generally seek out white women as their targets.
REALITY: There is no evidence to support the claim that Black men are more sexually violent than White men. Studies do show, however, that about 90% of rapes are intra-racial: White men rape White women, Black men rape Black women, and so on.

MYTH: Rapists are sick and crazy.
REALITY: Most convicted rapists are not psychologically different from the 'normal' male. The rate of mental illness among convicted rapists is no different from the rate of mental illness among 'normal' males.

MYTH: Survivors of rape are always visibly upset immediately after the attack.
REALITY: Each survivor's reaction is unique. Many survivors have a 'controlled', rather than 'expressed' reaction, meaning that they feel numb, go into shock, or withdraw. This myth often causes others to disbelieve a survivor who appears calm and in control after being assaulted.

MYTH: To help a survivor recover, family and friends should express sympathy, try to protect and take care of her/him, and distract the survivor from dwelling on the attack.
REALITY: Recovery must happen at its own pace. The survivor needs support in making her/his own decisions and reclaiming control of her/his life. By trying to control the survivor's recovery, people intending to be supportive actually risk making it more difficult for a survivor to heal.

MYTH: Men rape because they need sex and are not getting it.
REALITY: Men rape in order to humiliate and dominate people. 75% of convicted rapists report being married or having other sexual partners at the time of the assault.

MYTH: As long as I don't rape and am careful not to put myself at risk of being raped, it's not my problem.
REALITY: Rape touches all our lives. It can happen to anyone, no matter how careful you are. And even if you are never assaulted, with more than one million rapes each year, it is virtually certain that someone you know and care about will be assaulted and will come to you for support. How you respond will play a crucial part in that person's recovery.

Adapted from “Men Can Stop Rape”.