Are Men Reluctant to Assault Women Even When Intoxicated?

Alcohol intoxication leads to anti-normative behavior. Because violence against women is more anti-normative than violence against men, we suggest that the effects of alcohol on violence against women should be stronger. We found support for this hypothesis in an analysis of more than 1,100 interpersonal disputes reported by male prison inmates and male community members. We find that the tendency for men to be more willing to threaten and attack male adversaries than female adversaries is weaker when men are intoxicated. When respondents were moderately or extremely intoxicated, they are just as likely to target women. Apparently, only sober and slightly intoxicated men are inhibited about attacking women during disputes. We suggest that the effects of the chivalry norm decrease as men become intoxicated.