Read the case described below and apply an ecological theory tothis case as you explain some possible mechanisms by which Maebecame a victim. There are 4 elements to the ecological theory, andyour ability to apply those elements is worth 2 points each (for atotal of 8 points). 18-year-old Mae is a quiet and gentle person bynature. She rarely complains or draws any attention to herself.This past fall, she went away to college in Detroit, Michigan,leaving her family and her small, safe hometown of Smallville,Idaho for the first time. Mae had grown up in a close knit familyand had had the same large circle of friends since childhood. Maehad never been on her own before, and was quite nervous to be sofar out of her comfort zone. During her college orientation, shewas warned about the prevalence of sexual assault on collegecampuses, so when Mae went to her first college party, she wentwith another girl from her dorm who she had recently met andguarded her drink all night. Despite her precautions, Mae lost herbuddy around 1am, and had no one to walk home with. Because it wasonly a few blocks to her dorm room, she decided to walk. Mae was arunner on her High School track team, so she figured she could runback to her room in just a few minutes. Tragically, Mae's planswere interrupted when she was met by 4 males on her way home. Theysurprised her, and surrounded her. Knowing that she wasoutnumbered, Mae hardly put up a fight when they carried her to asecluded area. She knew there was no point in trying to fight 4 menon her own. Mae was raped by all four men, and because she didn'tscream or try to run away, all four of them told her repeatedlythat she must be enjoying the sex. After hearing it a number oftimes, their message began to sink in. So when Mae eventually madeit back to her room that night, she decided not to call the policeand report the incident. She didn't know how she would explain tothem why she didn't yell or try to run away. She was certain thatthey would blame her for the incident, and even she wondered if shewas partially to blame.
