It is a painful realization that many women experience all too late: a charming partner who seemed genuinely interested turned out to have only one primary motive—sex. Recognizing these deceptive behaviors early can be difficult, but a new study is shedding light on the exact playbooks used by manipulative individuals.

Published in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, a recent study conducted in April across Canada and the United States surveyed 2,689 men—including sexual offenders—to understand how unwilling partners are pressured into sexual encounters. By analyzing these responses, researchers mapped out 36 distinct behavioral tactics, highlighting nine primary strategies commonly deployed by manipulators. Most individuals surveyed used more than one tactic.

The 9 Most Common Tactics Revealed

The study broke down the prevalence of these psychological and social strategies:

Saying What She Wants to Hear (78%): By far the most common tactic, nearly four out of five men surveyed admitted to using flattery, mirroring, or saying precisely what they knew the woman wanted to hear to lower her guard.

Persistent Requests (48%): Nearly half of the participants used direct or indirect repeated coaxing and pressure to wear down a woman’s resistance.

Leveraging Mutual Friendships (46%): Manipulators often infiltrate a woman’s social circle, establishing connections through mutual friends before eventually pushing for sexual favors.

The “Safe Friend” Illusion (43.8%): A deceptive maneuver where men claim to have a close female friend who trusts them, using this fabricated endorsement as a tool to project safety and seduce women.

Pretending to Check Consent (39.3%): Posing a seemingly considerate question like, “Are you sure you aren’t interested in this?” as a psychological nudge rather than a genuine inquiry into boundaries.

Targeting Strangers (37.9%): Approaching unfamiliar women in public or social settings using calculated charm.

The Group Introduction (37.6%): Introducing a close female friend and her companion to the target to create a false sense of a community or double-date environment.

Steering Toward Privacy (37.5%): Deliberately isolating women by moving them to private or secluded locations.

Other Coercive Pressures: The remaining tactics rounded out the 36 identified behaviors, including leveraging money, social status, age dynamics, isolation from friends, and constant unwanted touching.

Who Uses Brute Tactics?
Perhaps the most alarming takeaway from the research involves the psychological profile of the perpetrators. The study revealed that men who harbor a superiority complex—viewing themselves as inherently better than others—and those in high-status social positions are significantly more likely to employ brutal, aggressive, and ruthless manipulation tactics.

Why This Matters:
Experts emphasize that bringing these hidden tactics to light is vital for public health, safety, and awareness. By understanding the common red flags—such as excessive flattery combined with rapid boundary-pushing, manufactured social trust, and subtle isolation—women can better protect themselves against emotional exploitation and sexual coercion.