Women's Self-Report of Sexual Victimization: An Experimental Examination of the Influence of Race, Mode of Inquiry, Setting, and Researcher Contact

An Experimental Test of the Impact of Varying Questionnaire Response Format on Prevalence Rates for Sexual Violence Victimization and Perpetration

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the impact of a dichotomous versus scaled response format on prevalence rates of sexual violence perpetration and victimization, thus conceptually replicating Hamby et al., 2006 and extending those findings to the context of sexual violence.

METHODS

Two samples were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk and were randomly assigned to either a dichotomous or scaled response format of the same questionnaire. Sample 1 was used to examine perpetration and received a perpetration specific version of the Post-Refusal Sexual Persistence Scale (PRSPS). Sample 2 was used to examine victimization and received a victimization specific version of the PRSPS.

RESULTS

Men and women who received the scaled response format reported significantly more incidents of sexual perpetration, and for each type of tactic studied, on the order of 1.7-9x more frequently. The association between response format condition and prevalence rates of sexual violence victimization was significant only for men (23.0 vs 39.4%) and for the tactic of verbal coercion (30.1 vs 41.5%), with the scaled response format producing greater responding.

CONCLUSIONS

The response format of sexual violence items can significantly alter prevalence rates of sexual violence perpetration, with scaled response formats producing greater endorsements than dichotomous formats. Response format also appears to impact prevalence rates of sexual violence victimization, particularly for men.

Examining Women's Sexual Assault Victimization Experiences since Entering College via Two Behavioral Assessments

Measuring sexual assault experiences is considered a methodological challenge in survey research. Researchers can test the validity of sexual assault measures by comparing responses to different, albeit related, measures of sexual assault to determine if they identify similar groups of women. The goal of this study was to compare two measures of sexual assault victimization to determine if women report experiencing sexual assault in both assessments. Cisgender college women (n = 902) completed two separate measures of sexual victimization: the Sexual Coercion Inventory (SCI) and Sexual Experience Survey-Short Form Victimization (SES-SFV). Responses to both measures were coded to identify different sexual assault experiences (i.e., unwanted touching, attempted, and completed oral, vaginal, or anal rape) resulting from verbal coercion, threats of force, and use of force since enrolling in the university. Results suggested the SES-SFV produced higher overall rates of sexual assault experiences than the SCI. Specifically, the SES-SFV elicited more non-consensual sexual experiences resulting from threats and use of force, whereas the SCI elicited more non-consensual sexual experiences resulting from verbal coercion. Findings suggested discrepant responding across the two measures. Development of comprehensive sexual assault measures that fully capture women's victimization experiences is warranted.

Does Question Format Matter in Assessing the Prevalence of Sexual Aggression? A Methodological Study

As research on sexual aggression has been growing, methodological issues in assessing prevalence rates have received increased attention. Building on work by Abbey and colleagues about effects of question format, participants in this study (1,253; 621 female; 632 male) were randomly assigned to one of two versions of the Sexual Aggression and Victimization Scale (SAV-S). In Version 1, the coercive tactic (use/threat of physical force, exploitation of the inability to resist, verbal pressure) was presented first, and sexual acts (sexual touch, attempted and completed sexual intercourse, other sexual acts) were presented as subsequent questions. In Version 2, sexual acts were presented first, and coercive tactics as subsequent questions. No version effects emerged for overall perpetration rates reported by men and women. The overall victimization rate across all items was significantly higher in the tactic-first than in the sexual-act-first conditions for women, but not for men. Classifying participants by their most severe experience of sexual victimization showed that fewer women were in the nonvictim category and more men were in the nonconsensual sexual contact category when the coercive tactic was presented first. Sexual experience background did not moderate the findings. The implications for the measurement of self-reported sexual aggression victimization and perpetration are discussed.