Incidence Studies,
Research, & Statistics About Sexual Assault
Links at the bottom of this page provide a wealth of up-to-date information
and a starting point for research about sexual assault.
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Partner
Rape- Abuse in Our
Relationships
1 in 7 women will be raped by her husband. (National
Women's Study, "Rape in America: A Report to the Nation," 1992)
Approximately 1.5 million women and 834,700 men are raped and/or physically
assaulted by an intimate partner annually in the United States.
(National Violence Against Women Survey, "Prevalence,
Incidence, and Consequences of Violence Against Women," November 1998)
Violence against women is predominantly intimate partner violence. Of the
women who reported being raped and/or physically assaulted since the age of
18, 76% were victimized by a current or former husband, cohabitating
partner, date, or boyfriend. (National Violence Against
Women Survey, 1998)
If you only count women who have been married, one study indicated that 14%,
or 1 in 7 married women, reported either a completed or attempted sexual
assault by a husband or ex-husband. (Finkelhor & Yllo,
1985). Another study indicated that 25% of married women
are raped at least once by their husbands over the course of their
marriages.
Prevalence
At least
1 of 6 U.S. women and 1 of 33 U.S. men has experienced an
attempted or completed rape as a child and/or an adult. Specifically, in a
major national study, 18 percent of surveyed women and 3 percent of surveyed
men said they experienced a completed or attempted rape at some time in
their life. (National Violence Against Women Survey,
"Prevalence, Incidence, and Consequences of Violence Against Women,"
November 1998) Similarly, some studies indicate that
in the United States approximately one in 3 women and one in 7 men will be
sexually assaulted over their lifetimes (crimes including attempted rape,
rape, sexual battery, sexual imposition, etc.). One respected study
indicates that 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually assaulted before
age 18. (Finkelhor, 1992)
84% of all sexual assaults are committed by an acquaintance of the victim.
(National Women's Study, "Rape in America: A Report to
the Nation," 1992)
One rape/attempted rape occurs every 1.6 minutes.
(National Crime Victims Survey, "Criminal Victimization," 1994)
The United States has the world's highest rape rate of the countries that
publish such statistics - 4 times higher than Germany, 13 times higher than
England, and 20 times higher than Japan. (NWS, "Rape in
America: A Report to the Nation," 1992)
Our Children
A major U.S. study indicates that 29.3% of rape victims are under 11 years
old, 32.3% of rape victims are between 11-17 years old, and 22.2% of rape
victims are between 18-24 years old. (Rape in America: A
Report to the Nation, National Victim Center, April 23, 1992)
1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually assaulted before age 18.
(Finkelhor, 1992)
In a survey of high school students, 56% of the girls and 76% of the boys
believed forced sex was acceptable under some circumstances.
(White & Humphrey. "Acquaintance Rape: The Hidden Crime," 1991)
Cost of Rape
In the United States,
the annual cost of sexual violence is a staggering $127 billion.
(Miller, Ted, Cohen, Mark and Wiersema, Brian. 1996.
Victim Costs & Consequences: A New Look. Washington, D.C.: National
Institute of Justice Report, U.S. Department of Justice)
Researchers estimate that the 1.1 million rape victims suffer 1.45 million
rape victimizations annually. That means annual rape victimizations average
1.27 per victim. Multiplying 1.27 by the $81,400 quality of life loss per
rape victimization yields estimated quality of life losses of $103,400 per
rape victim. (Victim Costs and Consequences: A New Look,
Series: NIJ Research Report, January 1996)
Victim-related revenue by mental health care providers in 1991 was estimated
to be between $5.8 billion and $6.8 billion, with about one-half of that
amount caused by crimes committed that year and the remainder by child abuse
years earlier. (Ibid)
Links to Sources of Statistics and
Research
A note about interpreting statistics:
be sure to check the source carefully, and understand the limitations of the
data set you are using.
For example: The FBI's Uniform Crime
Report can only be used to estimate the number of "forcible rapes"
which are reported to the law enforcement. This data may not include
rapes where other crimes were also reported (for example, a rape/kidnapping
may have been coded as kidnapping by the local police department which
reported the data). Further, the FBI estimates that only 1 in 10 rape
victims reports the crime to law enforcement. And those victims who
report to law enforcement do not accurately reflect the experiences of the
general population of rape survivors (for example, the Uniform Crime Report
tends have a high percentage of stranger rapes--up to 50%--, whereas
incidence studies have demonstrated that 80-90% of rapes are actually
committed by acquaintances).
Criminal
Victimization 2001: with Trends 1993-2001
The US Department of Justice/Bureau of Justice Statistics report, available
9/2002. Based on the National Victimization Survey and criminal
justice reports.
Perspectives on Acquaintance Rape
URL:
http://www.aaets.org/arts/art13.htm
American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress Acquaintance Rape Pages.
What is acquaintance rape? Legal perspectives, social perspectives,
research, prevalence, myths & realities, effects, offenders, prevention,
treatment.
The Sexual
Victimization of College Women- National Institute of Justice
VAWNET: The National Electronic
Network on Violence Against Women
VAWnet Library is an online resource that supports the
work of organizations and individuals working to end domestic and sexual
violence, as well as other forms of violence against women. VAWnet
Library is searchable, and you can download and print the materials.
Child Abuse: Statistics,
Research, and Resources
Jim Hopper's website currently has statistics on
rates of child abuse in the US, Canada, Great Britain and Australia, as well
as sections on how to think critically about such statistics and the
potential effects of child abuse.
Sexual Abuse of Males:
Prevalence, Lasting Effects, and Resources
This page provides information and resources on an
issue largely ignored in cultures around the world - the sexual abuse of
boys and its potential lasting effects in the lives of men.
Statistics Overview:
Santa Monica Rape Treatment Center
A great quick reference page- scroll down the right hand
column for the information you need.
Uniform Crime Reports, 1976-present
Federal database of crimes reported to law enforcement. Note that it is estimated that only 1 in 10 rape victims report to law enforcement.
Ending
Violence Against Women and Girls
United Nations
Population Fund "State of the World Population 2000" Chapter 3, covering the
broad scope of the problem.
Recovered
Memories of Sexual Abuse: Scientific Research & Scholarly Resources
Jim Hopper's site
addresses the controversial issue of forgetting and remembering experiences
of child abuse, an issue that has been misunderstood by most reporters and
terribly misrepresented in the popular media.
Arizona Rape Prevention
Education Project
This site is designed to share current research on sexual
assault (over 200 abstracts on 30 topics!), bibliography, statistics on
incidence/prevalence, and evaluation measures. An outstanding resource.
Where's the Outrage?
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