An Examination of the Gender Inclusiveness of Current Theories of Sexual Violence in Adulthood: Recognizing Male Victims, Female Perpetrators, and Same-Sex Violence

Risk factors of sexual violence perpetration and victimization among adolescents: A study of Norwegian high school students

Sexual violence among adolescents represents a significant problem in society. In this study, we aimed to examine risk factors for sexual violence perpetration in adolescent men and victimization in adolescent women among a community sample of Norwegian high school students. The participants (560 men and 751 women, aged between 16 and 21 years) responded to online questionnaires covering physical and non-physical forms of sexual harassment and possible risk factors identified in the literature. Last year's prevalence rate of physical sexual perpetration reported by adolescent men was 7%. Comparably, the prevalence of physical sexual victimization reported by adolescent women was 30%. Path analyses suggest that sociosexuality was associated with adolescent men's sexual perpetration indirectly through sexual risk taking, alcohol intoxication, porn exposure, and sexual underperception that in turn was positively associated with undesirable non-physical solicitation from and toward women. In addition, rape stereotypes were associated with perpetration behavior in adolescent men. For adolescent women, sociosexuality was associated with being sexually victimized primarily through sexual risk behavior, alcohol intoxication, and sexual overperception. These factors were again positively associated with sexual derogation from adolescent women and solicitation from adolescent men. Prior sexual abuse victimization was only indirectly associated with victimization. The factors associated with adolescent men's perpetration and adolescent women's victimization were highly similar. Future work aimed at reducing sexual violence in adolescence within the educational context might find it more effective to specifically target non-physical forms of sexual harassment.

Risky Sexual Behaviour and Sexual Victimization among Young People with Risky Substance Use in Europe-Perspectives from Belgium, Sweden, the Czech Republic, and Germany

BACKGROUND

Research indicates that among the risks associated with young people's alcohol and illicit drug use are sexual risks. However, insights into co-occurrence of substance use and sexual risks in adolescent samples and possible differences across countries are limited.

METHODS

A sample of 1449 adolescents from Belgium, Sweden, the Czech Republic, and Germany screened positive for risky alcohol/illicit drug use in a web-based intervention against alcohol and illicit drug use. They also reported incidents of sex while being drunk and/or high on drugs, condomless sex on these occasions, and sexualized touching and sexual victimization while being drunk or high on drugs.

RESULTS

In the sample, 21.5% of the participants reported sexualized touching, 9.9% being victim to sexual assault, and 49.8% having had sex while being drunk and/or high on drugs; of the latter, 48.3% had condomless sex. Reports on having had sex while being drunk and/or high on drugs were associated with higher levels of past 30-day binge drinking. Being a victim of sexual assault was associated with past 30-day binge drinking only in young men.

CONCLUSION

When devising preventive interventions against risky substance use in adolescents, an additional focus should be set on integrating steps against sexual risks.

Event Characteristics of Sexual Violence Perpetration Against Romantic Partners Versus Non-Romantic Partners

Tactics used to perpetrate sexual violence may be crucial to understanding when and why sexual violence occurs. Moreover, most sexual violence occurs between people who know each other-including in the context of dating or sexual relationships. Little is known about the context of sexual violence that occurs with non-romantic partners. To address these research gaps, we examined online survey data from 786 young adults (weighted n = 763) aged 19 to 27 years, living across the United States. Findings suggest that 60% of sexual assault, 40% of attempted rape, 42% of rape, and 67% of coercive sex were perpetrated against a romantic partner, defined as a current or ex-boyfriend, girlfriend, spouse, or domestic partner. Contextual differences were noted by relationship type: Those who perpetrated against romantic partners were more likely than those who targeted non-romantic partners to report that it occurred because they were feeling sad or angry. They were also more likely to say that the other person was completely responsible for what happened. Conversely, those who aggressed against non-romantic partners were more likely to say that someone else found out about what happened. Making the other person feel guilty was the most common tactic for both groups. The most frequently endorsed reason for perpetrating sexual violence was "feeling really horny," although feeling "good" or being drunk/high were also common reasons noted by aggressors. Afterward, many said they felt guilty or ashamed and were worried about the other person's feelings. Fear of getting caught was universally absent. Findings support the importance of building emotion regulation and emotional awareness skills in sexual violence prevention programming. Prevention programs should also discuss coercion as a violence tactic, since perpetrators may not always recognize this to be sexual violence. More generally, violence prevention programs should also address healthy relationships, consent, and taking responsibility.

Gender and role associations between domestic violence during childhood and dating violence: Victimization among male college students mediated through violence justification beliefs

BACKGROUND

Although the victimization experiences of male college students in dating relationships are gaining increasing scholarly attention, there is still limited empirical evidence and theoretical understanding of the mechanism through which male victims of domestic violence experience subsequent dating violence.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to gain a deeper understanding of the specific mechanisms through which male victimization of domestic violence during childhood transmits to dating violence experience in adulthood. Whether the intergenerational transmission of violence may be explained by gendered pathways or by male participants' identification with the victim's position will be tested.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

Participants included 526 South Korean male college students in Seoul.

METHODS

Child abuse, witnessing interparental violence, and beliefs justifying and accepting violence were divided based on the gender of the offender and victim to assess distinct effects. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to evaluate the relationships between dating violence victimization and child abuse/witnessing interparental violence and the mediation effect of beliefs justifying violence in the relationships between the variables.

RESULTS

Both paternal and maternal abuse have significant direct relationships with male dating violence victimization. Witnessing mother-to-father violence had a significant and direct relationship with male victimization while witnessing father-to-mother violence did not. The mediation effect of justification of female-to-male violence was confirmed between witnessing mother-initiated violence and male victimization, whereas justification of male-to-female violence did not show a mediating effect between witnessing father-initiated violence and male victimization.

CONCLUSION

Both role and gender associations were confirmed. The results imply that there are different ways through which children learn about violence. More specific targets should be addressed in education programs to break the vicious cycle of violence.

How a practice-based approach can contribute to research about help and support for male victims of rape

While there has been an upsurge of research about human services for male victims of rape, methodological advances are still limited, and significant knowledge gaps remain. Until now, empirical studies have focused almost entirely on human service professionals’ gendered attitudes to try to explain outcomes and victims’ experiences of support. In this article, I argue that research approaches that are based on professionals’ attitudes fail to account for important contextual conditions in policing, healthcare and other human services. My overall aim is thus to introduce greater concern about contextual conditions in human services and provide ways for scholars to approach support for raped men so that different practices, as well as their effects, become visible. To demonstrate the contributions of a practice-based approach to research about support for raped men, an empirical case from a study on police investigation into rape will be analysed and discussed. By using a practice-based approach, it is possible to explore relations between practices performed by organisations, professionals and victims, and highlight the outcomes of such relations. In this way, a practice-based approach can help research progress and contribute to improved services for male rape victims.

The Prevalence of Sexual Violence Perpetration in Sexual Minority Men: A Secondary Analysis of Systematic Review Data

Prior literature illustrates that sexual minority people (e.g., bisexual, gay, queer) are at increased vulnerability for sexual violence victimization compared to heterosexual peers, including while in college. However, the study of sexual violence perpetration in sexual minority populations, much less specifically sexual minority college men, has been neglected. This article reviews the literature and presents a secondary data analysis of a systematic review on college men's sexual perpetration rates and associated methodology. We also conducted analyses to summarize available literature regarding publishing dates, authors, and data inclusivity.

METHODS

We downloaded the dataset and associated materials from Mendeley.com's data archive.

RESULTS

To our surprise, we could not analyze sexual perpetration prevalence rates in sexual minority men using the systematic review data due to absence of reported data across all 77 independent samples including over 5,500 male participants. We found no significant relationship between inclusion of sexual minority men and the use of measurement strategies specialized to assess sexual minority needs. We did find a positive relationship between recency of publication and the inclusion of sexual minority men, r(76) = .24, p = .03, and that most authors/co-authors were women (72%).

CONCLUSIONS

Preventing perpetration is central to ending sexual violence; therefore, future research should include sexual minority people and use appropriate methodology in the investigation of sexual perpetration characteristics and patterns.

Additive interactions between sex and forced sexual intercourse victimization on depressive symptoms and suicidality: Youth risk behavior survey 2001-2017

BACKGROUND

Adolescents who have been forced to have sexual intercourse have higher rates of depressive symptoms and suicidality.

PURPOSE

This research investigated whether the association between adolescent forced sexual intercourse victimization and depressive symptoms or suicidality varies significantly by sex.

METHOD

This secondary analysis pooled cross-sectional data from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2001 through 2017 (N = 132,580) using R to estimate adjusted risk differences and additive interactions.

FINDINGS

Results show an extremely high prevalence of depressive symptoms and suicidality among adolescents who experience forced sexual victimization. This association is significantly higher among females for depressive symptoms, but significantly higher among males for suicide attempt or suicide attempt requiring treatment.

RESULTS

also showed that approximately 40% of both males and females who attempted suicide requiring treatment also had a history of forced sexual intercourse victimization.

DISCUSSION

These findings highlight the importance of screening for sexual victimization, depression and suicidality among adolescents.

Sexual assault of college students: victimization and perpetration prevalence involving cisgender men, cisgender women and gender minorities

Objective To study eight types of sexual assault among cisgender women, cisgender men and gender minority college students, estimating the prevalence of perpetration by persons of particular gender identities. Participants and Methods: 13,685 sexual assault survivors were surveyed. For each type of sexual assault victimization experienced by cisgender women, cisgender men and gender minorities, prevalence estimates assessed the extent of perpetration by persons of each gender identity. Results: Cisgender men were the most prevalent perpetrators of all types of sexual assault against cisgender women and gender minorities. Cisgender women were the most prevalent perpetrators of five types of sexual assault against cisgender men, with cisgender women and cisgender men being similarly likely to perpetrate three types of sexual assault against cisgender men. Conclusions: Cisgender men perpetrate most sexual assaults against cisgender women and gender minority students; cisgender women and cisgender men perpetrate most sexual assaults against cisgender men students.

An Inherently Masculine Practice: Understanding the Sexual Victimization of Queer Women

Sexual violence is a widespread social issue, and sexual victimization is especially prevalent among queer-identified women. Still, there is little research on queer women's experiences of sexual violence or explanations for the high rate of victimization. This study uses data from 40 open-ended interviews to investigate queer women's experiences with sexual violence and those who perpetrate it. Respondents answered questions about the characteristics of their sexual assaults and perpetrators, as well as connections the survivors perceive between their sexual assaults and sexual identities. Findings indicate that the perpetrators of such sexual assaults invoke an expression of masculinity, regardless of the perpetrator's gender identity at the time of violence. To understand the nuanced role of masculinity in queer assailant's assaults, we develop the concept of "righteous masculinity," which refers to a traditional (and, in this case, violent) masculinity invoked by marginalized people in an attempt to reclaim power. We find that sexual violence against queer women is an especially powerful way to enact masculinity through drawing upon misogyny and homophobia simultaneously, providing an explanation for the high rates of sexual victimization among queer women. We argue that centering masculinity can help scholars and activists better challenge the sexual victimization of queer women and deepen understanding of the links between gender-based violence and masculinity.

Sexual Abuse in the Orthodox Jewish Community: A Literature Review

Sexual abuse is a cross-cultural phenomenon related to multiple cultural contexts including religious affiliation. The Haredi, or Orthodox Jewish community (OJC), constitutes a significant minority group of the worldwide Jewish population, characterized by cultural conservatism, steadfast loyalty to the community, and strict religious behavioral codes. To date, only few empirical studies (as opposed to multiple media reports) have dealt with the issue of sexual abuse within the OJC. Using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, we conducted a systematic review of the literature on sexual abuse within the OJC and its subgroups that addresses experiences and reports of victims, perpetrators, the Jewish and general community, and professionals in the North America, Israel, and Australia. Articles were collected from peer-reviewed databases and bibliographies; 13 quantitative and qualitative articles were included in the final sample. Three themes emerged: disclosure of sexual abuse, perceptions and attitudes toward the abuse, and its implications. Results indicated that alongside several findings that were specifically grounded in the context of closed collective or religious societies and the OJC in particular, most essentially reflected universal aspects of sexual abuse. The results suggest promoting context-informed interventions based on community knowledge and resilience, together with appropriate training in order to better understand the needs of the OJC and of closed communities in general.

"Kept in Check": Representations and Feelings of Social and Health Professionals Facing Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)

Social and health professionals facing gender-based violence in Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) express feelings and thoughts closely connected to their place of work and the users of their services. However, research on professionals’ reflexivity and their implications has not been closely investigated. Therefore, this article will describe representations of IPV among social and health professionals facing gender-based violence as well as their personal feelings in accomplishing their job. Fifty interviews with health and social professionals were analyzed using grounded theory methodology supported by Atlas.ti 8.4. Five macrocategories will describe this phenomenon, leading to the final explicative core category that summarizes professionals’ attitudes toward it. Being “kept in check” among partners, partners and families, services, and institutional duties is the core category that best expressed their feelings. Therefore, implications for services and training will be further discussed.

Extending the ACEs Framework: Examining the Relations Between Childhood Abuse and Later Victimization and Perpetration With College Men

Research has revealed that forms of violence are interconnected, but less work focuses on the interconnection of victimization and perpetration, particularly with men. Subsequently, our understanding of the complexities of violence exposure in men's lives and related policies and treatments remains limited. The present study utilizes a sample of at-risk for violence involvement, college men, to examine the relationships between childhood victimization, adulthood victimization, and adulthood perpetration. Participants are 423 college men receiving course credit who completed a battery of standardized questionnaires via an anonymous web survey. Logistic regression is used. Results indicate that 27% of the men report polyperpetration (two or more types of perpetration), 43.5% report polyvictimization (two or more types of victimization), and 60% report experiencing both forms of victimization and perpetration in the past year. Childhood physical abuse has predictive power for perpetration (psychological aggression and polyperpetration) and victimization (sexual violence, psychological aggression, and polyvictimization) for the men in the past year. Childhood sexual abuse has strong predictive power for perpetration (physical violence, sexual violence, and polyperpetration) and victimization (physical violence and sexual violence) with the men in the past year. Finally, emotional abuse has predictive power for victimization (physical violence and psychological aggression), but not perpetration, for the men in the past year. Developmental psychopathology and the adverse childhood experiences frameworks are used to posit potential pathways explaining the relation between childhood abuse and the overlap between victimization and perpetration in adulthood for men. Implications of this study include the use of trauma-informed models of care with men and expanding the scope of study to examine experiences of both victimization and perpetration, and various types of violence, among men.

Assault and care characteristics of victims of sexual violence in eleven Médecins Sans Frontières programs in Africa. What about men and boys?

BACKGROUND

Often neglected, male-directed sexual violence (SV) has recently gained recognition as a significant issue. However, documentation of male SV patients, assaults and characteristics of presentation for care remains poor. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) systematically documented these in all victims admitted to eleven SV clinics in seven African countries between 2011 and 2017, providing a unique opportunity to describe SV patterns in male cases compared to females, according to age categories and contexts, thereby improving their access to SV care.

METHODS AND FINDINGS

This was a multi-centric, cross-sectional study using routine program data. The study included 13550 SV cases, including 1009 males (7.5%). Proportions of males varied between programs and contexts, with the highest being recorded in migratory contexts (12.7%). Children (<13yrs) represented 34.3% of males. Different SV patterns appeared between younger and older males; while male children and adolescents were more often assaulted by known civilians, without physical violence, adult males more often endured violent assault, perpetrated by authority figures. Male patients presented more frequently to clinics providing integrated care (medical and psychological) for victims of violence (odds ratio 3.3, 95%CI 2.4-4.6), as compared to other types of clinics where SV disclosure upon admission was necessary. Males, particularly adults, were disproportionately more likely to suffer being compelled to rape (odds ratio 12.9, 95%CI 7.6-21.8).Retention in SV care was similar for males and females.

CONCLUSIONS

Patterns of male-directed SV varied considerably according to contexts and age categories. A key finding was the importance of the clinic setup; integrated medical and SV clinics, where initial disclosure was not necessary to access care, appeared more likely to meet males' needs, while accommodating females' ones. All victims' needs should be considered when planning SV services, with an emphasis on appropriately trained and trauma-informed medical staff, health promotion activities and increased psychosocial support.

Predicting Sexual Victimization Among College Students in Chile and Turkey: A Cross-Cultural Analysis

To address the shortage of cross-cultural research on vulnerability factors of sexual victimization, this two-wave longitudinal study examined predictors of sexual victimization among female and male college students in Chile (N = 1098) and Turkey (N = 885). These two countries were selected based on theoretical considerations regarding religiosity and gender inequality. A path model was tested that conceptualized participants' risky scripts for consensual sex, risky sexual behavior, sexual self-esteem, refusal assertiveness, and religiosity at T1 as predictors of sexual victimization in the following 12 months, as assessed at T2, mediated through past experiences of sexual victimization. As predicted, more risky sexual scripts were linked to more risky sexual behavior and lower refusal assertiveness, indirectly increasing the odds of sexual victimization in both countries. Lower sexual self-esteem predicted a higher probability of sexual victimization through lower refusal assertiveness as well as through more risky sexual behavior in both the Chilean and Turkish samples. Higher religiosity in Chile, a Christian country, and Turkey, a Muslim country, indirectly predicted a lower vulnerability to sexual victimization through less risky sexual scripts and less risky sexual behavior. In the Turkish sample only, higher religiosity predicted a higher vulnerability to sexual victimization through lower sexual self-esteem. The findings show that risky sexual scripts played a central role in the prediction of sexual victimization in both cultures, which has implications for prevention efforts.

Risk Factors for Concordance Between Partners in Assault Among University Student Couples

Based on information 11,408 university students provided on perpetration of physical assault in a romantic relationship, they were classified into three Dyadic Concordance Types (DCTs). We then examined six risk factors drawn from previous literature of partner violence: physical abuse as a child, antisocial personality characteristics, alcohol abuse, coercive control, chronic denigration in a relationship, and patriarchy at the societal level. We hypothesized that some risk factors for assault are different dependent on the DCT. Using multinomial logistic regression, we found that some risk factors were associated with an increase in the risk of a couple being in the Male Only assaulted DCT more than the other two DCTs (e.g., men who were high in antisocial personality characteristics). Other risk factors were found to be associated with a greater increase in the risk a couple being in the Both assaulted DCTs (e.g., chronic denigration). These results suggest that theories about the etiology of partner violence should take into account whether the couple is Male Only, Female Only, and Both assaulted. Identification of the DCTs of cases can be helpful in focusing research, treatment, and prevention of partner violence in a way that better reflects the actual situation.

Ending Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and Locating Men at Stake: An Ecological Approach

Interventions for ending intimate partner violence (IPV) have not usually provided integrated approaches. Legal and social policies have the duty to protect, assist and empower women and to bring offenders to justice. Men have mainly been considered in their role as perpetrators to be subjected to judicial measures, while child witnesses of violence have not been viewed as a direct target for services. Currently, there is a need for an integrated and holistic theoretical and operational model to understand IPV as gender-based violence and to intervene with the goal of ending the fragmentation of existing measures. The EU project ViDaCS-Violent Dads in Child Shoes-which worked towards the deconstruction and reconstruction of violence's effects on child witnesses, has given us the opportunity to collect the opinions of social workers and child witnesses regarding violence. Therefore, the article describes measures to deal with IPV, proposing functional connections among different services and specific preventative initiatives. Subsequently, this study will examine intimate partner violence and provide special consideration to interventions at the individual, relational, organizational and community levels. The final goal will be to present a short set of guidelines that take into account the four levels considered by operationalizing the aforementioned ecological principles.

Predictors of Sexual Aggression Perpetration Among Male and Female College Students: Cross-Cultural Evidence From Chile and Turkey

This two-wave longitudinal study examined risky sexual scripts and sexual behavior regarding consensual sexual interactions, sexual self-esteem, initiation assertiveness, and religiosity as predictors of sexual aggression perpetration in a cross-cultural comparison of college students in Chile and Turkey. As predicted, risky sexual scripts were linked to higher odds of perpetration through more risky sexual behavior cross-sectionally in both the Chilean and the Turkish sample and indirectly predicted perpetration 12 months later. High sexual self-esteem increased the likelihood of perpetration via higher initiation assertiveness in the Turkish sample only. High religiosity reduced the odds of perpetration through less risky sexual scripts and less risky sexual behavior in both samples. In addition, high religiosity increased the probability of perpetration through lower sexual self-esteem in the Turkish sample. Implications of these findings and the role of cultural factors contributing to the differential functioning of religiosity and sexual self-esteem are discussed.

Prevalence of Sexual Aggression Victimization and Perpetration in Chile: A Systematic Review

Sexual aggression is a major public health issue worldwide, but most knowledge is derived from studies conducted in North America and Western Europe. Little research has been conducted on the prevalence of sexual aggression in developing countries, including Chile. This article presents the first systematic review of the evidence on the prevalence of sexual aggression victimization and perpetration among women and men in Chile. Furthermore, it reports differences in prevalence rates in relation to victim and perpetrator characteristics and victim-perpetrator relationships. A total of N = 28 studies were identified by a three-stage literature search, including the screening of academic databases, publications of Chilean institutions, and reference lists. A great heterogeneity was found for prevalence rates of sexual victimization, ranging between 1.0% and 51.9% for women and 0.4% and 48.0% for men. Only four studies provided perpetration rates, which varied between 0.8% and 26.8% for men and 0.0% and 16.5% for women. No consistent evidence emerged for differences in victimization rates in relation to victims' gender, age, and education. Perpetrators were more likely to be persons known to the victim. Conceptual and methodological differences between the studies are discussed as reasons for the great variability in prevalence rates, and recommendations are provided for a more harmonized and gender-inclusive approach for future research on sexual aggression in Chile.

Male Help-Seeking After Sexual Assault: A Series of Case Studies Informing Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Practice

BACKGROUND

A series of three composite case studies of cisgender men who presented to an emergency department for care after experiencing a sexual assault are presented. These cases show common assault characteristics including substance use, force, and multiple perpetrators.

METHODS

We describe the sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) findings and treatment and provide legal details of specific cases when available.

RESULTS

These case reports highlight common challenges to help-seeking and the primary reasons these male victims overcame the barriers to seek care.

DISCUSSION

SANEs are encouraged to provide consistent care to all sexual assault patients, regardless of gender. SANEs have an obligation to educate peers and broader society about sexual assault prevention and to advocate for policies that encourage help-seeking when a sexual assault has occurred.

Deconstructing Incidents of Female Perpetrated Sex Crimes

Very little is known about co-offending by female sexual offenders (FSOs), especially in terms of diverse forms of offender groupings. To address this gap in the literature, this study uses 21 years (1992-2012) of National Incident-Based Reporting System data to analyze incidents of sexual offending committed by four female groupings: solo FSOs ( n = 29,238), coed pairs consisting of one male and one FSO ( n = 11,112), all-female groups ( n = 2,669), and multiple perpetrator groups that consist of a combination of three or more FSOs and male sexual offenders (MSOs; n = 4,268). Using a multinomial logistic regression model, the data show significant differences in offender, victim, and crime context incident characteristics. The data also indicate that incidents with solo FSOs and all-female groups have similar characteristics, coed pairs and multiple perpetrator incidents have similar characteristics, and these two categorizations are fairly distinct from one another. Implications of this research are discussed in addition to directions for future research on female sexual offending.

Sexual Violence Among College Students: An Examination of Individual and Institutional Level Factors Associated With Perpetration

BACKGROUND

Sexual violence incidents involving college students have received media attention and increased awareness of this public health problem in the United States; prevention efforts are needed that target potential perpetrators. We examined characteristics of self-reported perpetrators of sexual violence on campuses.

METHODS

This study used a secondary data analysis of the 2015 College Student Health Survey, an annual survey, which was completed by students attending 17 colleges/universities in Minnesota. The analytic sample included 6,548 18-to 24-year-old college students who answered at least one of two questions assessing perpetration in the past 12 months (i.e., sex/sexual touch without consent). Chi-square tests were used to detect associations between perpetration and individual (e.g., age, race, substance use, victimization) and institutional (e.g., school type, location) level characteristics. Multiple logistic regression analyses identified predictive models for being a perpetrator of sexual violence.

RESULTS

Fifty-two students reported perpetration of sexual violence in the past year, including 29 rapes. Overall, self-reported perpetrators of sexual violence are more likely to be men, to have been a victim in his or her lifetime, to have smoked marijuana in the past 12 months (but not the past month), and to be younger (18 or 19 years old). Institutional level characteristics, including school type and location, did not yield significant associations with perpetration.

DISCUSSION

Sexual violence prevention and response efforts toward college students need to be inclusive, especially targeting individual level factors, and considerate of the victimization-perpetration comorbidity experienced by many students.

Sexual Aggression Victimization and Perpetration among Male and Female College Students in Chile

Evidence on the prevalence of sexual aggression among college students is primarily based on studies from Western countries. In Chile, a South American country strongly influenced by the Catholic Church, little research on sexual aggression among college students is available. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to examine the prevalence of sexual aggression victimization and perpetration since the age of 14 (the legal age of consent) in a sample of male and female students aged between 18 and 29 years from five Chilean universities (N = 1135), to consider possible gender differences, and to study the extent to which alcohol was involved in the reported incidents of perpetration and victimization. Sexual aggression victimization and perpetration was measured with a Chilean Spanish version of the Sexual Aggression and Victimization Scale (SAV-S), which includes three coercive strategies (use or threat of physical force, exploitation of an incapacitated state, and verbal pressure), three victim-perpetrator constellations (current or former partners, friends/acquaintances, and strangers), and four sexual acts (sexual touch, attempted sexual intercourse, completed sexual intercourse, and other sexual acts, such as oral sex). Overall, 51.9% of women and 48.0% of men reported at least one incident of sexual victimization, and 26.8% of men and 16.5% of women reported at least one incident of sexual aggression perpetration since the age of 14. For victimization, only few gender differences were found, but significantly more men than women reported sexual aggression perpetration. A large proportion of perpetrators also reported victimization experiences. Regarding victim-perpetrator relationship, sexual aggression victimization and perpetration were more common between persons who knew each other than between strangers. Alcohol use by the perpetrator, victim, or both was involved in many incidents of sexual aggression victimization and perpetration, particularly among strangers. The present data are the first to provide a systematic and detailed picture of sexual aggression among college students in Chile, including victimization and perpetration reports by both men and women and confirming the critical role of alcohol established in past research from Western countries.