Sexual Assault Characteristics and Perceptions of Event-Related Distress

Romanticizing the Stolen Kiss: Men's and Women's Reports of Nonconsensual Kisses and Perceptions of Impact on the Targets of Those Kisses

Stolen kisses are often portrayed as resulting from uncontrollable passion and a need to connect intimately with another. This study examined stolen kisses, defined as kissing someone for the first time when the kisser perceived the kiss recipient was not expecting it, and had not provided consent for the kiss. These kisses were examined from the perspective of the individual initiating the kiss. Participants (N = 130; Mage = 32.27; 67% identified as male) completed an anonymous online survey assessing kissing experiences of having stolen a kiss and their open-ended responses were analyzed here. Men were more likely than women to report having stolen a kiss in line with traditional heterosexual scripts. Three scenarios emerged through content analysis: mutual attraction leading to a new relationship; no known mutual attraction but a positive outcome; and no known mutual attraction and a negative outcome. Stealing a kiss from someone for whom there was mutual attraction often led to the onset of an intimate relationship; thus, the kiss constituted a relationship catalyst. When there was no known shared attraction, some interactions ended positively, but others resulted in an end to cordial relations and often strong negative reactions. Findings are discussed in terms of the limited literature on kissing generally and the nonconsensual nature of these events.

Reacting to Non-Prototypical Victims: Blame, Empathy, and Willingness to Label Sexual Assaults of Men and Sexual Minority Victims

Sexual assault is prevalent in the U.S. society, with an estimated 16% of women and 8% of men experiencing some form of sexual violence during their lifetime (Breiding, 2014). Sexual violence crosses all identity lines; however, legislation, cultural representation, and academic scholarship on sexual violence has historically been limited to assaults against women perpetrated by men. This dominant analysis of sexual assault focuses on the impact of sexism on sexual violence, neglecting the impact off other forms of oppression and attitudes related to sexuality and gender. This dominant representation leaves non-prototypical victims, such as men, people of other genders, and sexual minorities of all genders, less visible and less understood. This underrepresentation may lead to negative reactions toward these victims including blame, exoneration of the perpetrator, and reluctance to acknowledge assaults. In the current study, I explored the impact of both victim gender and sexual orientation on reactions to a hypothetical intimate partner sexual assault victim. Results indicated that perpetrators who assaulted a man were blamed less than those who assaulted a woman. Furthermore, study participants had more empathy for women who were assaulted than they did for men. There were no differences in participants' negative reactions to victims by sexual orientation. Results suggest that, while some advances have been made in public support for sexual assault victims, these advances may not extend yet to men as victims.

Effectiveness of Sexual Assault Protective Behaviors on the Daily Level: The Roles of Intoxication and Executive Control

Young adult women engage in a variety of behaviors aimed at reducing their risk of sexual assault (SA), termed sexual assault protective behavioral strategies (SA-PBS), yet the evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of SA-PBS in reducing SA risk has been relatively sparse and inconclusive. The current study examined the use of SA-PBS, the factor structure of a diverse array of SA-PBS, and their association with the occurrence of SA. The influence of state- and trait-level moderators on the association between SA-PBS and SA events was also examined. In a sample of community young adult women (N = 174), use of SA-PBS and the occurrence of same night SA were examined with a longitudinal burst design over 1 year that spanned 27 weekend nights when women were out in social contexts. We also examined the influence of state intoxication of alcohol use and trait effortful control (EC) on the relationship between SA-PBS factors and SA events. We found that SA-PBS cluster into two factors representing Proactive and Reactive SA-PBS. While Proactive PBS was not associated with SA, Reactive PBS were positively associated with a SA event occurring. There was no evidence in the current sample to support a moderating role of intoxication on the relationship between Proactive or Reactive PBS and SA. However, there was a marginal interaction effect found for the moderating role of EC on the relationship between Proactive PBS and SA. Our findings identify important differences in SA-PBS, and perhaps most importantly, suggest that not all strategies are created equal with respect to reducing risk.

Friends-Based Protective Strategies and Unwanted Sexual Experiences: A Daily Diary Examination of First Year College Women

Risk for unwanted sexual experiences can emerge in social contexts-the same contexts that early college women navigate with their friends. Though friends naturally engage in prevention strategies, less is known about how capable guardianship influences risk. Using multilevel structural equation modeling, the present study examined guardianship at the person- and situation-level. First year college women (N = 132) completed eight weekends of daily surveys. We examined whether guardianship (e.g., more friends present, greater proportion of female friends, no intoxicated friends) would reduce unwanted sexual experience risk and if this relation was mediated by friends-based strategy use. An alternative model was also tested with the same predictors, but unwanted sexual experiences as the mediator and friends-based strategy use as the outcome. Over half (58%) of extended weekend nights with friends involved drinking or using drugs. Friends-based strategies were used on 29% of nights. Across models, being with one or more intoxicated friends was associated with friends-based strategy use and an unwanted sexual experience, but only at the situation-level. Parents, educators, and policy makers can encourage college women to draw on their social networks to enhance safety. Interventions could incorporate more universal strategies for responding to risk in social contexts.

Sexual Assault, Campus Resource Use, and Psychological Distress in Undergraduate Women

Undergraduate women are at high risk of experiencing sexual assault during their college years. Research has established a strong link between sexual victimization and psychological distress. Although the relationship between sexual victimization and distress has been established, little is known about how the use of university-affiliated sexual assault resources influences mental health outcomes for survivors. The aims of this cross-sectional study were to describe the characteristics of women who used campus survivor resources following a sexual assault during college, examine correlates of campus resource use, and examine correlates and predictors of mental health of women who have been sexually assaulted during college. An online anonymous survey was sent to undergraduate women at two public universities in a mid-Atlantic state. Participants were female, undergraduate students (N = 362) who had been sexually assaulted during their time at college. Few women (n = 98, 27.1%) used campus resources following a sexual assault. We found significant relationships between participants' use of campus survivor resources and experiencing a sexual assault prior to entering college, experiencing more severe sexual assaults, acknowledging the assault as a rape, feeling more self-blame, and experiencing more psychological distress. Campus resource use was significantly associated with poorer mental health outcomes. The cross-sectional nature of this study limited our ability to explore the reason for this. Further research is needed to explore the role campus resources play in supporting survivors during the recovery process. Given the high rate of sexual assaults on college campuses and the known negative psychological impact of sexual assault, it is imperative that campuses offer resources that are effective in meeting the needs of survivors.

Male Sexual Victimization: Examining Variation in the Probability of Weapon Use and Victim Injury

The sexual victimization of adult males remains an understudied subject within criminology. Prior research has generally been restricted to descriptive analysis of small clinical samples and inmate populations. Using general strain theory (GST), this study examines the simultaneous influence of community- and incident-level factors on the likelihood of weapon use and victim injury in cases of adult male sexual victimization. This study applies hierarchical generalized linear modeling (HGLM) to 2,155 cases of sexual victimization of adult males nested within 113 U.S. cities. Community-level data are procured from the 2011-2015 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year summary file and incident-level data are taken from cases of sexual violence contained in the 2011-2015 National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). Findings demonstrate moderate support for GST as a framework through which to examine male sexual victimization, as community levels of disadvantage/violence and ethnic heterogeneity, as well as offender gender, race, intoxication, and weapon use each exhibit statistically significant relations with crime severity. This study finds that community and situational context are each important in predicting weapon use and victim injury, demonstrating the need to further explore male sexual victimization from a multilevel perspective.

Rape Acknowledgment and Sexual Minority Women's Mental Health and Drinking Behaviors

Adult sexual assault (ASA) has been linked to numerous negative psychological and behavioral outcomes. Recent research suggests that postassault adaptation may differ based on how the victim conceptualizes their ASA. For instance, women who label their rape experiences as such (i.e., acknowledged rape victims) report worse mental health symptoms than women who do not (i.e., unacknowledged rape victims). To date, this literature has focused exclusively on heterosexual women. Relative to heterosexuals, sexual minority women (SMW) are at greater risk for sexual assault and report worse postassault outcomes, yet little is known about rape acknowledgment in this at-risk population. Moreover, it is unclear how distal factors, such as childhood sexual abuse (CSA), may influence SMW's rape acknowledgment following ASA. A total of 205 self-identified lesbian and bisexual women were categorized into four groups (no ASA, ASA that did not involve rape, rape acknowledged, rape unacknowledged) and compared across mental health and drinking outcomes. Roughly, 42% of the sample experienced rape, and of those, 60% were acknowledged rape victims. Results revealed no statistical differences between acknowledged and unacknowledged rape victims in terms of mental health or alcohol use. However, relative to comparison groups, SMW who were acknowledged rape victims reported greater mental health symptoms, and both acknowledged and unacknowledged rape victims reported greater hazardous drinking. Among SMW with rape histories, greater CSA severity increased the probability of acknowledging rape. These findings provide valuable information regarding SMW's postassault adaptation and can contribute to interventions to assist SMW who experience sexual assault.

Victim Alcohol Intoxication During a Sexual Assault: Relations With Subsequent PTSD Symptoms

This study examines associations between women's alcohol intoxication at the time of sexual assault and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Drawing on the dual representation theory (Brewin, Gregory, Lipton, & Burgess, 2010), we hypothesized that intoxication at the time of assault would be positively associated with both overall symptoms of PTSD and PTSD reexperiencing symptoms in particular. A total of 143 community women (ages 18-26 years; 71.3% European American) reporting sexual victimization completed questionnaires assessing severity of coercion involved in the assault, perceived level of intoxication at the time of assault, and current PTSD symptoms. Overall, results suggested that greater alcohol intoxication (but not alcohol use alone) was associated with more severe PTSD symptoms when controlling for severity of coercion. Furthermore, higher levels of victim intoxication at the time of the assault were most predictive of reexperiencing symptoms relative to the other symptom clusters.