These summaries were written by SVPEP staff and are based on original papers published within the last 3 years. The information available on this web site is provided as a public service and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, the Arizona Department of Health Services, or the University of Arizona. To conduct an individual search or locate older articles use the Search Summary Database which includes over 600 articles related to sexual violence.

Collier, B., Ghie-Richmond, D., Odette, F., & Pyne, J. (2006). Reducing the risk of sexual abuse for people who use augmentative and alternative communication. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 22, 62-75. [Posted October 2007]

Key Points: People with disabilities who use augmentative and alternative communication expressed needs for information on healthy sexuality and sexual abuse.

Summary: Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) is used by people who have difficulty speaking, and includes signing systems as well as communication devices and tablets. This article describes “Speak Up – Safeguarding People who use Augmentative Communication from Sexual Abuse/Victimization,” a 3-year program to identify and address issues related to intimate relationships, sexuality, and abuse. Most of the 26 participants (14 males, 12 females) requested information on healthy sexuality and disability as well as dealing with sexual abuse. Most reported that they had not received this information from parents, schools, or helping professionals. Other types of abuse were also discussed. Initially, some participants did not recognize abusive experiences in their lives because the behavior was so common that it was not considered unusual. Over the study period, half of participants requested counseling services to address issues of past or on-going abuse. Barriers to education and services were considerable for this population, as most legal and health system professionals have limited understanding of AAC, and many AAC systems did not include vocabulary that would allow people to discuss sex or abuse. To meet the identified needs of the participants, the researchers prepared educational materials for their use (available online) and developed resources and recommendations for families and service providers (available online and appended to the article).

Limitations: This was not a representative study; participants were both self-selected and selected by researchers for their ability to communicate in group settings. The researchers deliberately chose not to ask participants about their experiences of sexual abuse. For these reasons, the information shared by participants should be considered anecdotal.

Topics: disabled, prevention, vulnerability

Eckert, L. O., & Sugar, N. F.  (2008). Older victims of sexual assault:  An underrecognized population.  American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 198, 688.e1-688.e7. [Posted August 2008]
 
Key Points: Characteristics of assault in the elderly population differ from those of middle aged and younger women.

Summary:  Over a 9 year period, 2,399 women were evaluated after presenting to emergency department after a sexual assault to determine if characteristics of assault differ as women age.  Three different age groups were examined; 20-39 years, 40-55 years, and 55 years of age and older.  Some of the characteristics that varied by age included; location of assault, relationship to perpetrator, number of perpetrators, likelihood of impairment at time of assault, body trauma, and genital trauma.  

Limitations:  The sample only contains women seeking medical treatment from assault.  Underreporting of assault in older age group can be expected due the special needs of the population. 

Topics: elderly, underserved populations, vulnerability

Finch, E., & Munro, V. E. (2005). Juror stereotypes and blame attribution in rape cases involving intoxicants: The findings of a pilot study. British Jounal of Criminology, 45, 25-38.

This study addresses the issue of drug-assisted rapes by presenting the results of a pilot study involving juror stereotypes and blame attributions. Foremost, the authors outline some of the difficulties in defining drug-assisted rape; particularly, the impact drugs such as Rohypnol and GHB have by inducing amnesiac effects and reducing the possibility of consent. Noteworthy is the very fact that the inability to provide consent lies at the core of what defines rape. However, the authors note also that the issue of consent is without legal specification – whether in its definition or in determining the absence or presence thereof. The pilot study involved two focus groups and a trial simulation whereby four themes influenced the participants’ decision-making process: victim’s responsibility, defendant’s intentions, the parity of the parties’ intoxication, and the victim’s response to intoxication. Participants’ attribution of blame and responsibility were impacted by misperceptions concerning the actual impact of such drugs, belief in rape myths, and consideration of the defendant’s motivation in administering intoxicants.

Topics: legal responses, myths/stereotypes, vulnerability

Livingston, J. A., Hequembourg, M. T., & VanZile-Tamsen, C. (2007). Unique aspects of adolescent sexual victimization experiences.  Psychology of Women Quarterly, 31, 331-343.  [Posted September 2008]
 
Key Points: Adolescent females may experience an increased risk of sexual victimization due to a combination of developmental, vulnerability, lifestyle, and environmental factors.

Summary:  Between 2000 and 2002 in Erie County, New York in-person interviews were conducted with 1,014 women between the ages of 18 and 30 to investigate factors that may lead to an increased vulnerability to sexual aggression during adolescence. Of the 1,014 women interviewed, women who indicated sexual victimization since age 14, 319 completed a brief event-based interview.  The study used quantitative and qualitative methods to pursue two goals:  identify contexts in which adolescent girls experience sexual aggression and to identify factors within those contexts that may contribute to vulnerability. The findings indicated that the following were the most common developmental influences:  inexperience with sex and dating, social and relationship status concerns, and powerlessness.  Sexual victimization was most often experienced in the context of intimate relationships (40%). The second most common was in the context of social gatherings (36%), in which most incidents involved substance use by the perpetrator (82%), the victim (76%), or both.

Limitations:  Sample included retrospective reports from women in one community that had telephones in their homes.

Topics: adolescent/high school, alcohol, risk, vulnerability

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Updated 09/30/08