Bachman, R. (2000). A comparison of annual incidence rates and contextual characteristics of intimate-perpetrated violence against women from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) and the National Violence Against Women Survey (NVAWS). Violence Against Women, 6, 839-867.

The author asserts that research efforts employing diverse methodologies have yielded very different estimates of intimate-perpetrated violence against women. The article provides a comparison of annual incident rates of rape and physical assault against women as estimated by the National Violence Against Women Survey; co-sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Institute of Justice and the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) sponsored by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The author indicates that the datasets were made as comparable as possible via several data restrictions. These restrictions included restricting the NCVS data to include only incidents of rape (to the exclusion of other sexual assaults) and physical assault against women 18 years of age and older. The methodological differences of each survey, that made comparisons tenuous, are described and recommendations for policy are provided.

Topics: Prevalence; statistics

Campbell, J. C. (2000). Promise and perils of surveillance in addressing violence against women. Violence Against Women, 6, 705-727.

The author asserts that surveillance in the field of violence against women is an important tool to establish and track prevalence over time, identify risk groups and factors, and evaluate interventions. They can also decrease research costs and can be established in legal, health, and social service systems – the fields that interact with victims. However, a surveillance system for sexual assault would not be a perfect system. The author examines issues specific to surveillance in this field, including its definitions, prevalence variations, sensitivity and specificity issues, and safety concerns. The author concludes by offering some creative approaches for addressing these problems.

Topics: Statistics

 Heise, L., Ellsberg, M., & Gottemoeller, M. (1999). Ending violence against women. Population Reports, Series L, Number 11, 1-43.

This report provides an admirably thorough review of the various dimensions concerning violence against women across the globe. The authors begin by addressing the concept of gender-based violence, how health care providers can help, and what societal responses should entail in curbing the problem. The report discusses in detail the prevalence and ramifications of intimate partner abuse, sexual coercion, impact of violence on women’s reproductive health, threats to health and development, the role of health providers in recognizing and treating the effects of violence, and finally, an agenda for change. The report includes numerous charts presenting, for example, cross-cultural data on issues related to rates of approval of wife-beating and prevalence of forced first intercourse in various countries. The report also includes examples of posters used to educate women and increase awareness of the issues in different countries as well as several useful charts with instructions and guidelines for health care providers. This is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in understanding violence against women on a global level.

Topics: Community attitudes/responses; disclosure; effects; injury; male-female relations; marital rape; medical response; myths/stereotypes; perpetration; prevalence; prevention; racial/ethnic differences; risk; statistics; underserved populations; vulnerability

Koss, M. P. (1996). The measurement of rape victimization in crime surveys. Criminal Justice & Behavior, 23, 55-69.

This article discusses the limitations of present crime surveys to detect intimate violence. It focuses on problems with, and redesign of, the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). Methodological problems with the NCVS include the choice of language used in surveys, failed detection of sexual assaults, ambiguity in definitions of sexual assault, and the omission of certain populations – including victims under the age of 18 years – from the survey. Victimization estimates for the United States are compared to Canada, that revised its survey to approximate procedures followed in the Violence Against Women Survey. Canadian rates for sexual assault are six times greater than those for the United States, suggesting that sexual assault is grossly under-detected in the United States.

Topics: Prevalence; statistics

Koss, M. P., Gidycz, C. A., & Wisniewski, N. (1987). The scope of rape: Incidence and prevalence of sexual aggression and victimization in a national sample of higher education students. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology, 55, 162-170.

Inadequacies in the methods used to measure sexual assault impact national crime statistics, criminal victimization studies, convictions, or incarceration rates by causing them to fail in reflecting the true scope of rape. Studies that have avoided the limitations of these methods have revealed very high rates of overt rape and lesser degrees of sexual aggression. The goal of the present study was to extend previous work to a national basis. The Sexual Experiences Survey was administered to a national sample of 6,159 women and men enrolled in 32 institutions representative of the diversity of higher education settings across the United States. Women's reports of experiencing and men's reports of perpetrating, attempted rape, sexual coercion, and sexual contact were obtained, including both the rates of prevalence since age 14 and of incidence during the previous year. The findings support published assertions of high rates of rape and other forms of sexual aggression among large normal populations. Although the results are limited in generalizability to postsecondary students, this group represents 26% of all persons aged 18–24 years within the United States.

Topics: College; perpetration; prevalence; statistics

Koss, M. P., & Harvey, M. R. (1991). The crime of rape. In The rape victim: Clinical and community interventions (2nd ed., pp. 1-41). Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Chapter 1: This chapter focuses on the crime of rape. Legal definitions, frequency, and causes of rape are highlighted. The authors discuss how incidence and prevalence numbers are generated.

Rape is no longer viewed exclusively from a criminal justice framework. Implications for women's health are also considered. The health burden of rape is investigated cross-culturally, focusing on its prevalence and psychological, sociocultural, somatic, and reproductive health consequences. Cross-cultural differences between normative and non-normative rape are explored. Problems such as the difficulties associated with collecting valid and reliable data, women's reluctance to report rape, and failure to accurately assess the aftereffects of rape are discussed. Conclusions focus on how research can improve the physical and mental health of women worldwide.

Topics: Effects; prevalence; statistics

Koss, M. P., Heise, L., & Russo, N. F. (1994). The global health burden of rape. Psychology of Women, [Special issue: Transformations: Reconceptualizing theory and research with women], 18, 509-537.

Rape is no longer viewed exclusively from a criminal justice framework. Implications for women's health are also considered. The health burden of rape is investigated cross-culturally, focusing on its prevalence and psychological, sociocultural, somatic, and reproductive health consequences. Cross-cultural differences between normative and non-normative rape are explored. Problems such as the difficulties associated with collecting valid and reliable data, women's reluctance to report rape, and failure to accurately assess the aftereffects of rape are discussed. Conclusions focus on how research can improve the physical and mental health of women worldwide.

Topics: Effects; prevalence; statistics

Magid, D. J., Houry, D., Koepsell, T. D., Ziller, A., Soules, M. R., & Jenny, C. (2004). The epidemiology of female rape victims who seek immediate medical care: Temporal trends in the incidence of sexual assault and acquaintance rape. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 19, 3-12.

The emergency department is an important source of information about sexual assault occurrence since victims of sexual assault usually go to the emergency department for medical assistance after being assaulted. This is a study comparing the number of female sexual assault victims treated in a Colorado county’s emergency department between July and November of 1974 and 1991. It was hypothesized that there would be a significant increase in the incidence of sexual assault between 1974 and 1991. As predicted, there was a 60% increase in sexual assault incidence with this increase primarily caused by an increase in sexual assaults involving known assailants. Moreover, victims in the emergency department reported more physical force and physical injury in 1991 when compared to 1974. Additional differences between study years (e.g., incidence of oral/anal intercourse during assaults as well as administration of pregnancy prophylaxis and antibiotics) are also presented. Implications of these findings concerning rates of acquaintance rape, reporting rates, and changes in treatment practices are discussed.

Topics: Injury; medical response; statistics

Malamuth, N. M., Addison, T., & Koss, M. (2000). Pornography and sexual aggression: Are there reliable effects and can we understand them? Annual Review of Sex Research, 11, 26-91.

The authors are responding to recent critiques of their work. Their responses delineate the arguments and data presented in those commentaries; integrate the findings of several meta-analytic summaries of experimental and naturalistic research; and statistically analyze a large representative sample. The responses support the existence of reliable associations between frequent pornography use and sexually aggressive behaviors, particularly for violent pornography and/or for men at high risk for sexual aggression. The authors suggest that relatively aggressive men interpret and react to the same pornography differently than do nonaggressive men. This perspective can help to integrate the current analyses with studies comparing rapists and nonrapists as well as with cross-cultural research.

Topics: Perpetration; risk; statistics

Updated 08/01/07