Male Sexual Victimization by Women: Incidence Rates, Mental Health, and Conformity to Gender Norms in a Sample of British Men.

Male sexual victimization by women is often neglected within psychological research (Fisher & Pina, 2013). Not only is the topic understudied, incidence rates and associated psychological impacts are inconsistent across the literature (Depraetere et al., 2020; Peterson et al., 2011). The present study provides an additional estimate of male sexual victimization by women, explores its association with victim mental disorders, and examines the potential moderating role of conformity to gender norms. A sample of 1124 heterosexual British men completed an online survey consisting of a modified CDC National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, and measures of anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and conformity to masculine norms. In the present sample, 71% of men experienced some form of sexual victimization by a woman at least once during their lifetime. Sexual victimization was significantly associated with anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. However, conformity to masculine gender norms was not a significant moderator between victimization and mental disorders. These findings further illuminate the occurrence of male sexual victimization by women, as well as the importance of continued research on the topic.

School Connectedness and Risk for Sexual Intercourse and Nonconsensual Sex in Adolescence.

The CDC reports that 30% of high school students have engaged in sexual intercourse. Evidence suggests biological, personal, peer, societal, and family variables affect when a child will initiate sex. The school environment plays an important role in a child's development. Evidence suggests that greater attachment to the school community can modify sexual risk-taking activity in adolescents. Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) comprises a cohort of approximately 4,700 families of children born in the U.S. between 1998-2000, over-sampled for non-marital births in large U.S. cities. Adolescents (N = 3,444 of 4,663 eligible) completed the wave six teen survey at approximately age 15. School connectedness was self-reported with four items measuring inclusiveness, closeness, happiness, and safety felt by the adolescent in their school environment. Sexual intercourse and nonconsensual sex were self-reported by the adolescent. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted examining sexual intercourse, nonconsensual sex, risk factors, and school connectedness. In this sample of adolescents (48% female, 49% Black, 25% Hispanic, ages 14-19), school connectedness appears to reduce boys' risk of nonconsensual sex (OR = 0.29, p < 0.01), and reduce girls' risk of engaging in sexual intercourse (OR = 0.55, p < 0.01). Findings suggest gender differences in the association between school connectedness and sexual practices in adolescents. School connectedness may confer protection for boys' risk of nonconsensual sex, and for girls' risk of engaging in sexual intercourse. Further exploration of the relationship between school connectedness may allow for recommendations into preventative measures for teenage sexual behaviors.

Working With Youth Who Have Experienced Commercial Sexual Exploitation: Voices From the Field.

Little is known about the experiences of service providers working with youth who have experienced commercial sexual exploitation (CSE). In this qualitative study, 12 service providers shared their experiences working with youth who have experienced CSE. Thematic analysis was used to develop key themes that included the challenges posed by working with this population, including the breadth of necessary services and the type of support that is needed for this work. Participants shared the importance of being prepared to work with this population and learn from those with lived experience. The complexity of cases and the difficulty engaging youth who had experienced CSE were also themes. These results can inform service providers who work with youth about the common challenges in working with this population and prepare the next generation of service providers for this difficult work. Training service providers, managing their expectations, and getting them ready for their role will be critical for successful intervention with youth who have experienced CSE.

Associations Among Online Social Reactions to Disclosure of Sexual Victimization, Coping and Social Isolation.

Social reactions to the disclosure of sexual victimization are critical to post-assault recovery. The popular social media hashtag "#MeToo" resulted in numerous survivors of sexual victimization disclosing their experience online. Whereas previous research has examined the association between social reactions to in-person disclosure of sexual victimization and factors commonly associated with adjustment among survivors - such as coping and social support - research is needed to examine correlates of social reactions to online disclosure of sexual victimization. Accordingly, the current study investigated the relationship between online social reactions to the disclosure of sexual victimization via #MeToo and engagement in various coping strategies (problem-focused coping, emotion-focused coping) and social isolation among a sample of 195 adults with a history of sexual victimization. Results indicated that the provision of online resources was associated with lower use of problem-focused and emotion-focused coping strategies. Receipt of online emotional and informational support was associated with increased use of emotion-focused coping strategies. Further, receipt of online social reactions that turned against the survivor and receipt of online social reactions that "made fun of you, insulted you, or said something to hurt you" were associated with higher levels of social isolation. Lastly, online unsupportive acknowledgment and "sharing your tweet with other people" were associated with lower levels of social isolation. Results highlight how online social reactions to disclosure of sexual victimization via #MeToo intersect with coping and social support among survivors of sexual victimization and help to give context to the experience of online disclosure of sexual victimization.

Sexual Victimization Among Sexual and Gender Minoritized Groups: Recent Research and Future Directions.

PURPOSE OF THE REVIEW: Sexual victimization is a significant public health concern. Compared to heterosexual and cisgender peers, sexual and gender minoritized (SGM) individuals are at elevated risk for sexual victimization. Prominent theories suggest that this risk is due in part to the stigma SGM individuals face when navigating heteronormative cultures. The goal of this article is to review the prevalence, risk factors, and consequences of sexual victimization in SGM individuals. RECENT FINDINGS: Studies continue to show that SGM individuals-bisexual and/or gender minoritized in particular-are at higher risk for sexual victimization. Little work has focused on risk factors, though recent research continues to highlight post-victimization disparities among SGM individuals. Emerging studies also point to theoretically informed factors that may influence victimization risk and recovery, including sexual and gender-related stigma. To inform prevention and intervention efforts, future research would benefit from streamlining assessment, methodology, and dissemination practices.

Sexual and Physical Victimization and Health Correlates Among Norwegian Adolescents.

Large-scale epidemiological studies have documented that many children and adolescents are exposed to different forms of victimization experiences. However, such population-based studies have rarely examined how specific types of victimization are correlated with health indicators. Thus, we investigated sexual victimization, physical victimization by parents, and physical victimization by peers and their associations with sexual health, mental health, and substance use. We gathered data from a nationally representative sample of Norwegian 18-19-year-old students in their final year of senior high school (N = 2075; 59.1% girls). The analyses showed that 12.1% of the adolescents reported sexual victimization experiences. Physical victimization was more prevalent: 19.5% of the respondents had been exposed to victimization from parents and 18.9% from peers. Multivariate analyses revealed specific associations between sexual victimization and a range of sexual health indicators, such as early sexual intercourse debut, many sexual partners, engaging in sex without contraception while intoxicated, and participating in sexual acts for payment. Neither physical victimization from parents nor from peers were correlated with these variables. However, all three forms of victimization were associated with impaired mental health and potential substance use problems. We conclude that a variety of victimization experiences should be addressed in policies for prevention of adolescent mental health and substance use problems. In addition, a special emphasis is warranted regarding sexual victimization: Sexual health policies should address such potential experiences in addition to more traditional themes such as reproductive health and should also include low-threshold services for young victims of sexual victimization.

Sexual Victimization in Adolescence: Pathways of Risk from Sexual Harassment via Risky Alcohol Use and Delinquency Among U.S. Adolescents.

Sexual harassment is a common, yet understudied form of peer victimization experienced by adolescents during a critical period in the development of sexual identity. Adverse sexual experiences early in life (e.g., child sexual abuse) can increase risk of future sexual assault victimization; however, it is unclear as to whether sexual harassment victimization is also a risk factor for sexual assault. We examined the prospective association between peer sexual harassment and experiencing sexual victimization in the following year among a community sample of 13-15-year-old adolescents (N = 800, 57% female) from the northeastern USA. We also examined whether risky alcohol use and delinquency mediated the association between sexual harassment and sexual assault victimization, as well as whether the paths differed by gender. Results indicated that sexual harassment victimization prospectively predicted later sexual victimization for both girls and boys. Using a parallel mediation path model, we determined that for girls, sexual harassment victimization predicted both risky alcohol use and delinquency, but only risky alcohol use was predictive of sexual victimization. For boys, sexual harassment victimization predicted delinquency but not risky alcohol use. Risky alcohol use was not associated with sexual victimization for boys. Findings indicate that sexual harassment victimization increases risk of later sexual victimization in adolescence, but the pathways differ by gender.

The Role of Mental Health and Delinquent Behaviors in the Cycle of Sexual Violence Among Croatian Adolescents: A Longitudinal Exploration with Replication.

The "cycle of violence" perspective links the experience of being a victim of violence with later aggressive or violent behavior. While the association between victimization and aggression is relatively established, the mechanisms involved in the cycle of violence are less understood. The current study considered the role of mental health and delinquency on the pathway between sexual victimization and sexual aggression in two independent longitudinal samples of Croatian adolescents (Mage at baseline = 16 years). Using data from the first panel (six data waves, 2015-2018; n = 1289), structural equation modeling analysis pointed to a psychosocial mechanism, a combination of symptoms of depression/anxiety and delinquency, that mediated the link between the experience of sexual victimization and self-reported sexual aggression. We also observed a significant role of family environment in this psychosocial mechanism. The pattern of findings was partially replicated in the second panel with five waves of data (2015-2017; n = 750). The study's results can help inform conversations around designing policies to prevent and address peer sexual violence among Croatian adolescents.

Sexual Victimization in the Digital Age: A Population-Based Study of Physical and Image-Based Sexual Abuse Among Adolescents.

Adolescents increasingly use social media platforms, and these practices open up new forms of sexual victimization, in particular image-based sexual abuse (IBSA). Few studies have examined prevalence rates and correlates of both physical sexual victimization (PSV) and these new forms of victimization in representative samples. We used data from 5,245 adolescent girls (53%) and 4,580 adolescent boys (47%) from the population-based Young in Oslo Study (mean age 17.1 years, SD = 0.9). Of all respondents, 2.9% had experienced IBSA, 4.3% PSV, and 1.7% both IBSA and PSV in the course of the previous 12 months. Multivariate analyses revealed that PSV victims, after control for other variables, had many characteristics described in previous studies of sexual victimization. Girls had higher prevalence rates than boys, many had been victims of other types of violence, and were part of peer groups with much use of alcohol and drugs. PSV victims also reported early intercourse onset and a higher proportion had been commercially sexually exploited. Lesbian, gay, and bisexual adolescents had higher victimization rates. Victims of both PSV and IBSA had a similar but even more pronounced profile. The IBSA victims were different: They lacked many of the traditional risk factors for sexual victimization, there were no significant gender differences in this group, and IBSA victims more often came from high socioeconomic backgrounds. In conclusion, we observe a reconfigured landscape of sexual victimization patterns among Norway adolescents due to their increasing participation on social media and digital platforms.

The Role of Coping Behaviors and Intoxication in Trauma Symptomology Subsequent to Sexual Victimization.

College women are at an elevated risk for sexual victimization (SV) and secondary physical and psychological consequences. While some women experience negative outcomes such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), others experience reduced or complete absence of distress following SV. The variation in outcomes may be associated with the victim's level of intoxication, which may in turn affect their processing of and coping with the event. We examined the effects of SV severity on PTSD via coping and intoxication using a moderated mediation analysis among female college students (N = 375). Results demonstrate that coping mediates the association between SV severity and PTSD symptomology; however, intoxication did not moderate these associations. Results suggest that regardless of intoxication, SV severity influences various coping styles and plays an important role in a victim's adjustment post-victimization.

Parental-Led Sexual Abuse Education Amongst At-Risk Parents: Associations with Parenting Practices, and Parent and Child Symptomology.

Considering the emphasis on parent-led sexual abuse education (PLSAE) in child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention, and the imperative of prevention in families living with demonstrated risk factors, it is important to understand the extent to which this group delivers PLSAE to their children, whether this is associated with any barriers or facilitators, whether parents are engaging in other protective behaviors (such as monitoring and involvement) and the relationship between these variables and other risk factors such as parent and child symptomology. We surveyed 117 parents, with children ranging in age from 25-89 months (67% boys), attending a parenting program for assistance with a range of parenting difficulties and child behavior problems from 2020-22. A large majority of parents reported not giving their children comprehensive prevention messages, discussing body integrity and abduction dangers to a greater extent. PLSAE was significantly positively associated with child internalizing and externalizing symptoms; parent and child age; and discussion of body integrity and abduction. However, PLSAE was not associated with any other measured variables (protective parenting; CSA knowledge; parenting self-efficacy; general and own-child risk appraisal; parent burnout, stress, depression or anxiety; child diagnosis; parental education level; employment or marital status; or income). The current findings suggest that investing resources into increasing parental knowledge, risk perception and confidence may be misguided. Future endeavors should consider helping parents be protective in other ways, for example, through the creation of safe environments and reducing the risks of CSA.

Sexual Victimization in Adulthood and Associated Factors Among Men and Women: Cross-Sectional Evidence from Mainland China.

Limited empirical research addresses sexual victimization and related factors among the general adult population in China. To address this gap, we explored the association between sexual victimization in adulthood and associated factors (unwanted sexual experiences [USE] before age 18, binge drinking prior to sex, hooking up, violent pornography use, awareness and perceived behavioral control of consent, and sexual refusal assertiveness) among a convenience Chinese sample. A cross-sectional study was performed in September 2020 among 898 screened men and women from 29 provinces in mainland China. Overall, 52.5% of men and 57.9% of women experienced sexual victimization at least once in adulthood. Men and women differed in the severity of sexual victimization in adulthood, with the mean severity scores of women being significantly higher than those of men. Hierarchical ordinal logistic regression revealed that, after considering control variables, correlates of severity of sexual victimization in adulthood included gender (OR 3.17, 95% CI 2.30-4.40), severity of USE before age 18 (OR 2.28, 95% CI 1.92-2.73), binge drinking prior to sex (OR 2.52, 95% CI 1.83-3.49), hook-up history (OR 2.24, 95% CI 1.49-3.39), violent pornography use (OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.04-1.09), lack of perceived behavioral control of communicating consent (OR 1.04, 95% CI 1.01-1.07), and sexual refusal assertiveness (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.89-0.95). These findings indicate that early adverse sexual experiences, potential risky sexual behaviors, violent pornography use, and beliefs about consent and refusal may play an important role in predicting sexual victimization among Chinese adults.

Assessing image-based sexual abuse: Measurement, prevalence, and temporal stability of sextortion and nonconsensual sexting ("revenge porn") among adolescents.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study is to develop a new measure of victimization and perpetration of two frequent forms of image-based sexual abuse, namely sextortion (i.e., the threat of distributing sexual images to pressure the victim into doing something) and nonconsensual sexting (i.e., distributing sexual images of someone without the consent of the victim). Additional aims were to analyze the prevalence of these forms of victimization and perpetration and to examine their temporal stability over a 1-year period. METHODS: The sample was made up of 1820 Spanish adolescents (mean age = 13.38, SD = 1.42; 929 girls, 878 boys, 3 nonbinary, and 10 did not indicate gender) who completed self-report instruments on image-based sexual abuse and related variables (e.g., cyberbullying victimization). RESULTS: Confirmatory factor analysis supported a structure composed of the four hypothesized factors: sextortion victimization and perpetration, and nonconsensual sexting victimization and perpetration. Higher sexting, cyberbullying victimization, and symptoms of depression and anxiety had stronger associations with image-based sexual victimization than with perpetration, which showed evidence of concurrent validity. Prevalence was 2.6% and 0.7% for sextortion victimization and perpetration, respectively, and 3.4% and 4.9% for nonconsensual sexting victimization and perpetration, respectively. Temporal stability over 1 year was .26 for sextortion victimization, .19 for nonconsensual sexting victimization, .33 for nonconsensual sexting perpetration (all ps < .001), and nonsignificant for sextortion perpetration. The stability of nonconsensual sexting victimization was significantly higher for girls compared to boys, whereas nonconsensual sexting perpetration was more stable over 1 year for boys. CONCLUSIONS: Future studies must advance the analysis of the predictors and consequences of image-based sexual abuse among adolescents to better prevent this problem. Prevalence of sextortion and nonconsensual sexting is not negligible, and these problems should be particularly addressed in prevention programs.

Unacknowledged and missed cases of sexual victimization: A comparison of responses to broad versus behaviorally specific questions.

From the beginning of systematic research on sexual victimization, it has been recognized that a substantial proportion of women report nonconsensual sexual experiences meeting the defining criteria of rape in response to behaviorally specific items, but do not acknowledge their experience as rape in response to broad questions about whether they have ever been raped. Recent studies suggest that rates of unacknowledged rape may be as high or even higher among men than among women. This study examined rates of unacknowledged female and male victims of rape and sexual assault by comparing responses to behaviorally specific items of the Sexual Aggression and Victimization Scale (SAV-S) with responses to broad questions using the labels of sexual assault and rape (SARA) in 593 participants (303 women) in Germany. As predicted, more women and men were classified as rape victims based on behaviorally specific items than on the basis of the broad rape item. The rates of unacknowledged rape were about 60% for women and 75% for men. The gender difference was not significant. Against our prediction, no significant differences in acknowledgement of sexual assault were found in relation to coercive strategy and victim-perpetrator relationship. Few cases of rape and sexual assault identified by the SARA items were missed by the behaviorally specific questions. The implications for establishing prevalence rates of rape and sexual assault and for comparing victims and nonvictims in terms of vulnerability factors and outcomes of sexual victimization are discussed.

Predictors of Multidisciplinary Team Sustainability in Work With Child Sex Trafficking Cases.

A coordinated response by a trained multidisciplinary team (MDT) can help support child sex trafficking (CST) victims, but little is known about factors that influence the development and sustainability of MDTs in this work. An online survey was conducted with 171 professionals who attended a Multidisciplinary Team Child Sex Trafficking (MDT-CST) training to identify factors related to team growth. Increased MDT success was related to: (1) the presence of a CST-specific advocacy organization in the community; (2) other community agencies active in supporting CST victims (e.g., SANE nurses, faith-based organizations, and runaway shelters); (3) a greater breadth of professional representation on the MDT; and (4) agency leadership support for the CST action plan. Most of the MDTs sustained and increased their coordination with other community agencies over time, but the study identified that growth is improved when administrators support team efforts and there are resources and supports for CST victims elsewhere in the community.

What Are the Chances? Perceived Risk of Sexual Victimization for Self and Others Among College Women.

Awareness of vulnerability to a negative outcome is considered a necessary first step to risk reduction and prevention behaviors. Accordingly, sexual assault awareness programs have sought to inform college students of the prevalence of college sexual victimization and the risk factors that contribute. The goal of the current study was to consider the degree to which incoming college freshman women recognize their risk of experiencing sexual victimization and to examine whether risk factors such as alcohol use contribute to those perceived chances. Freshman women (N = 252) were recruited via email early in the Fall semester to participate in an online survey. As expected, women perceived their own chances of sexual victimization (21.4%) to be lower than those of the average freshman at the same university (43.7%). Prior sexual victimization, typical drinking, and expected hookups predicted higher perceived risk of being victimized. Only prior victimization predicted higher perceived risk of sexual victimization for others. On average, freshman women acknowledge their substantial risk of experiencing sexual victimization during their first year of college and overestimate the chances that others will be victimized. Findings show high awareness of sexual assault and its risk factors among college students but point toward a need for prevention that goes beyond education and awareness campaigns.

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.

Reliability and Validity of Arabic Translation of Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire for Use in Children and Adolescents.

Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire was developed to assess Child Sexual Victimization experiences, and the associated characteristics and circumstances. The aim of the study is to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Arabic Child Sexual Abuse Questionnaire (CSAQ) in a sample of Egyptian children. The original CSAQ-English was translated into Arabic based on the established guidelines. Then, a cross-sectional study was carried out on a group of 150 male and female Egyptian children aging 8-14 years to test the translated questionnaire for validity and reliability. The Statistical analysis was performed to internal consistency, Item-Total correlation, as well as Inter-Item correlation. Cronbach's Alpha coefficient to assess internal consistency was found to be satisfactory, 0.88 and 0.89 for CSA without physical contact items and CSA with physical contact items, respectively. The item-total correlations were found to be within r = .234; P = .004 to r = .927; P = <0.001, while Inter-item correlations ranged from 0.125 to 0.928. The CSAQ-Arabic version is a reliable and valid tool that can be used by researchers in clinical practice to measure sexual victimization experiences in Arabic-speaking children based on the content and face validation together with a good internal reliability.

Prevalence of Sexual Aggression Victimization and Perpetration in a German University Student Sample.

This study examined the prevalence of sexual aggression perpetration and victimization in a sample of 1,172 students (755 female, 417 male) from four universities in Germany. All participants were asked about both victimization by, and perpetration of, sexual aggression since the age of 14 years, using the Sexual Aggression and Victimization Scale (SAV-S). Prevalence rates were established for different coercive strategies, sexual acts, and victim-perpetrator relationships. Both same-sex and opposite-sex victim-perpetrator constellations were examined. The overall victimization rate was 62.1% for women and 37.5% for men. The overall perpetration rate was 17.7% for men and 9.4% for women. Prevalence rates of both victimization and perpetration were higher for participants who had sexual contacts with both opposite-sex and same-sex partners than for participants with exclusively opposite-sex partners. Significant overlap was found between victim and perpetrator status for men and women as well as for participants with only opposite-sex and both opposite-sex and same-sex partners. A disparity between (higher) victimization and (lower) perpetration reports was found for both men and women, suggesting a general underreporting of perpetration rather than a gendered explanation in terms of social desirability or the perception of consent cues. The findings are placed in the international research literature on the prevalence of sexual aggression before and after the #metoo campaign, and their implications for prevention efforts are discussed.

The Victim-Offender Overlap in Sexual Offending: Exploring a Community-Based Sample of Young Adults in Hong Kong.

This study examines the overlap between sexual offending perpetration and victimization among 1,171 participants (18-40 years) in Hong Kong. Testing the theoretical propositions of several criminological theories (i.e., self-control, general strain, routine activity, and social learning), the participants' prevalence of general, penetrative, and nonpenetrative sexual offending perpetration and victimization are explored. The findings indicated that sexual offending perpetration and victimization are generally positively correlated, and further tests using multivariate analyses confirmed the relationship between these two experiences. Less than 5% of the sample had both sexual offending perpetration and victimization experience. The results of logistic regression indicated that participants who engaged in sexual offending were 1.67 times more likely to fall prey to sexual victimization. Similar odds ratio (1.67 times) was true for sexual victimization in predicting sexual offending perpetration. A bivariate probit model confirmed the sexual victim-offender overlap, with the Spearman's rho correlation from the unadjusted model suggesting significant overlap with general sexual offending (79%). Having a high level of risky sexual behavior was found to be a general risk factor for engaging in sexual offending behavior and for falling prey to sexual victimization.