Female Sexual Assault Victims Research Articles

Comparative Analysis of Metaphor Usage and Lexical Structure: A Case Study of Shiori Ito and Kris Wu Events

In light of the growing influence of the #MeToo movement, the portrayal of female victims of sexual assault has gained significant attention in the media. This research paper undertakes a comparative analysis of language structures and metaphors employed in news coverage, specifically examining the cases of Shiori Ito and Kris Wu. The objective of this study is to investigate the linguistic components used in news reports from various Chinese and Western media outlets, such as The New York Times, China Daily, The Global Times, and the BBC. Through the examination of six carefully selected news stories, the aim of this paper is to gain insight into the overall framework of these articles and discern the media's stance towards incidents of sexual assault. On top of that, from the research, most of victims dare to narrate the details and processes of the cases. Meanwhile, the Chinese and Western mainstream medias have distinctive approaches to report news about sexual assault case, as well as to anti-sexual assault reports especially for #MeToo movement that received increasing attentions from global world.

Labeling Victimization Experiences and Self as Predictors of Service Need Perceptions and Talking to Police.

Theoretical frameworks suggest that how victims of violence against women (VAW) label their experiences and selves shapes their help-seeking intentions and behaviors. Quantitative studies assessing this relationship have focused on sexual assault and have neglected self-labels, thus this study adds to the research by including multiple forms of VAW and both experience-labels (e.g., "abuse") and self-labels (e.g., "victim"). Data came from a community-based sample of 1,284 adult, female victims of physical intimate partner violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking. These women participated in a state-wide phone survey in 2020 to determine victimization prevalence and were selected for the present analyses based on their victimization experiences. Bivariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression models were used to determine whether experience- and self-labels predicted the likelihood of perceiving the need for legal services, victim services, shelter or safe housing, and/or medical care, as well as talking to police. Both applying a label to one's experiences with VAW and applying a label to oneself in relation to those experiences approximately doubled the odds of perceiving a need for formal services. The significance of self-labels seemed to be driven by the "survivor" label, as using a "victim" label was not related to need perceptions, but a "survivor" label doubled or tripled the odds of perceiving a need for formal services. Applying a label to one's experiences with VAW almost doubled the odds of talking to the police, and, again, use of the "survivor" self-label significantly increased the odds of talking to the police. These findings confirm the importance of labeling one's victimization experiences and self, and indicate that greater attention be paid to the labels that victims use and how the use of labels might be improved so that they are more likely to seek and attain meaningful help and services.

The Dominance of Subconscious Thinking in Shireihou's Novel Obsessive Loves

Women are the most potential victims of sexual harassment. What is often overlooked in the issue of sexual harassment is the psychological condition of women. Women victims of sexual harassment should get special attention from the surrounding environment because victims will experience trauma. One of the traumas that can be experienced by female victims of sexual abuse is traumatic pistanthrophobia. Pistanthrophobia is an excessive fear of trusting others. This study aims to determine the personality characteristics of female characters who experience traumatic pistanthrophobia psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud in the novel Obsessive Loves by Shireishou. The research method used is descriptive qualitative. The data collection techniques used are tapping techniques and recording techniques. Researchers will tap into the meaning of Shireishou's novel Obsessive Loves by reading it carefully and repeatedly. The results of this study show that the personality characteristics of Syaira characters are seen in two aspects, namely, the dominance of subconscious thinking and the meaning of dreams. The dominance of subconscious thinking makes Syaira often hallucinate, daydream excessively, and ignore others. The sexual incident committed by his uncle to Syaira had a big impact on Syaira'smindset.

Sexual Assault Victimization in Premature Female Mortalities: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health

ABSTRACT Previous research has documented many behavioral problems associated with being a female victim of sexual assault, but little attention has been devoted to whether this experience might be related to premature mortalities. We investigated this utilizing the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health survey, collected from over 10,000 adolescent females in 1995, whose premature deaths (n = 65) were noted in 2007 in National Death Index records. Significant associations were found between females with a substance misuse history and their premature deaths, but not with being a sexual assault victim. The subset of respondents (n = 208) evincing both these characteristics showed significantly higher risks of dying prematurely, as did those females with early histories of drug misuse alone. Yet, adolescent females with histories of drug misuse who also attempted suicide (n = 214) did not show similar elevated risks of dying prematurely compared to others without these experiences. This exploratory evidence points to an affinity between both being a female sexual assault victim and having an early history of misusing drugs, putting such people at heightened risks for dying prematurely, suggesting the potential benefits of counseling and supportive services for those so affected.

Evaluation of Physical, Genital and Psychiatric Examination Findings in Female Sexual Assault and Sexual Abuse Victims

Evaluation of Physical, Genital and Psychiatric Examination Findings in Female Sexual Assault and Sexual Abuse Victims

MEDICO-LEGAL CARE FOR RAPE VICTIM-A REVIEW

The rape victim faces legal, psychological, and medical issues. In order to respond to all her needs, the physician must be aware of the legal questions to be answered in the record, the patient's psychological needs in this high stress situation, and the medical problems that are likely to arise. Government guidelines are essentially aimed at doctors who might one day be called upon to handle female victims of sexual assault / rape in the course of their duty whether in a government hospital or even a private one. As is known rape law has been made more stringent with zero tolerance for offenders and govt. guideline is to ensure a sensitive and humane approach to such victims, their proper treatment apart from attending or treating doctors responsibility and duty in recording and documenting the medical aspects in order that such cases when they come up before the criminal justice system are not found wanting in the quality of evidence produced by the prosecution during trial.

"My life isn't my life, it's the systems": A qualitative exploration of women's experiences of day-to-day restrictive practices as inpatients.

WHAT IS KNOWN ON THE SUBJECT?: Sometimes someone needs to be in hospital because they are struggling with their mental health and need some extra support but being in hospital can also be a difficult experience. There are a lot of restrictions in place in hospital, like locked doors, rules to follow and not much choice about what happens to you. Other research has found that these restrictions can feel difficult and stressful for people and so more research is needed about this. We wanted to know what being in hospital felt like for women in particular. WHAT THE PAPER ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: We interviewed women who were in hospital because of their mental health about what it was like for them in hospital. The women told us that they felt powerless while they were in hospital. They sometimes felt like they were being punished and this could affect their mood and could lead to them hurting themselves. They also said that they were not always listened to by staff, and they found it difficult being away from their family and friends while they were in hospital. The women also told us that being in hospital could sometimes help them to feel safe. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE?: Women should be looked after in hospital in a way that helps them to feel in control of what happens to them. They should be supported to be able to go outside the hospital on leave, to keep in touch with their family and friends, and they should be listened to by staff. A project called "safewards" has suggested some ways for helping to make hospital wards safer. They have suggested that everyone should be clear about what the rules are when they go into hospital and ways that staff could communicate more clearly with the people they are working with. Our research supports using these techniques. ABSTRACT: Introduction Inpatient care often involves restrictive interventions such as seclusion and restraint and restrictive practices that limit the person's freedom, rights and daily activities. Restrictive practice has not been the explicit focus in previous research; however, it often appears as an important theme, with participants identifying it can have a detrimental effect on their well-being. More research specifically on this topic in an inpatient setting is, therefore, needed. Women might be particularly vulnerable to adverse effects of restrictive practices compared to men as women generally occupy less powerful positions in society and more often experience abuse. Aims The study aimed to explore women's experiences of routine restrictive practices in mental health inpatient settings. Methods Twenty-two women who were currently inpatients on mental health wards were interviewed about their experiences of restrictive practices in hospital. Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. Results An overarching theme emerged of powerlessness. Four key sub-themes were also identified: restrictions perceived as punitive, having no voice, impact of restrictions on relationships and restrictions providing safety and support. Discussion Although restrictive practices were found to provide the women with a sense of safety, they were also found to impact upon the women's well-being, leading to increases in self-harm and over-reliance on restrictions. Implications for practice This research highlights the importance of gender-informed inpatient services for women that foster independence, empowerment and allow women to have their voices heard. Safewards interventions such as clear mutual expectations and soft words could contribute to mitigating the impact of restrictive practices.

Unacknowledged and missed cases of sexual victimization: A comparison of responses to broad versusbehaviorally specific questions.

From the beginning of systematic research on sexual victimization, it has been recognized that a substantial proportion of women report nonconsensual sexual experiences meeting the defining criteria of rape in response to behaviorally specific items, but do not acknowledge their experience as rape in response to broad questions about whether they have ever been raped. Recent studies suggest that rates of unacknowledged rape may be as high or even higher among men than among women. This study examined rates of unacknowledged female and male victims of rape and sexual assault by comparing responses to behaviorally specific items of the Sexual Aggression and Victimization Scale (SAV-S) with responses to broad questions using the labels of sexual assault and rape (SARA) in 593 participants (303 women) in Germany. As predicted, more women and men were classified as rape victims based on behaviorally specific items than on the basis of the broad rape item. The rates of unacknowledged rape were about 60% for women and 75% for men. The gender difference was not significant. Against our prediction, no significant differences in acknowledgement of sexual assault were found in relation to coercive strategy and victim-perpetrator relationship. Few cases of rape and sexual assault identified by the SARA items were missed by the behaviorally specific questions. The implications for establishing prevalence rates of rape and sexual assault and for comparing victims and nonvictims in terms of vulnerability factors and outcomes of sexual victimization are discussed.

Sexual Assault of Women in the region of Kairouan, Tunisia: an 8-year retrospective study on epidemiological and medicolegal characteristics

BackgroundDespite the abundance of studies reporting the prevalence of women's sexual abuse all over the world, there is a real lack of such reports in developing countries in general and Arab-Muslim societies in particular. However, due to the little number of published studies in Tunisia, and the absence of a national database, data on female sexual assaults are still underestimated, which is a gap that needs to be filled in order to make specific preventive actions. We aim to identify the pattern of female victims of sexual abuse in the governorate of Kairouan (Tunisia) in order to provide recommendations for prevention.MethodsRetrospective data were collected on all-female sexual assault victims, particularly rape, presented to the Department of Forensic Medicine of the University Hospital Ibn El Jazzar of Kairouan (Tunisia), during an 8-year period, from 2009 to 2016.ResultsTwo hundred and sixteen victims were included. Age ranged from 3 to 82 years with a mean age of 20.4 years. Victims were single in 84.3%, unmarried in 90.7% and they lived in rural areas in the majority of cases. Rape was committed by a single individual in 94.9% of cases, and the assailant was a stranger in only 26.8%. The assault occurred most frequently in the assailant's home (73.6%) or the public places (11.6%). Evidence of recent acute general body trauma was found in 41.2% of the victims, and the most common injuries were located on the thigh, upper arm, and chest. In 28.1% of the cases, injuries were seen in the face and the neck. Genital examination showed that 188 victims (87%) had a tear in the hymenal membrane and only 13% of victims had intact hymenal membrane. A complacent hymen was noted in 2.3%. A recent anal lesion was seen in 8.3% of the cases. Cytology was performed on 78 victims. In 22 cases (28.2%), sperm could be detected in vaginal swabs up to 3 days post-assault, and pregnancy was seen in 7.4% of assault victims.ConclusionSexual abuse represents a human rights and public health problem that is thriving in a culture of silence, particularly in the Arab region. There is a particular need to create a Tunisian national database on female sexual assaults, in order to centralize data and provide holistic follow-up for specific preventive measures. Finally, efficient management of such cases will need, in addition to legislation, a partnership between the various actors involved in taking care of the victims (health care professionals, the police, social specialists, and psychologists). In addition, civil societies are key partners to break the silence, support this issue, and raise awareness.

Epidemiological Clinical Aspects and Medical Management of Sexual Assault in the Region of Ségou in Mali

Introduction: Sexual assault is an act of a sexual nature perpetrated on another person without their consent. Goal: To describe the epidemio-clinical aspects and the medical management of sexual assault in the Segou region. Methodology: This was a retro-prospective descriptive study from September 2010 to September 2018 on the alleged female victims of sexual assault registered in the Gynecology and Obstetrics departments of the hospital and the sanitary quarters of Ségou. Results: We recorded 107 cases of sexual assault out of 47,729 gynecological consultations, representing a hospital prevalence of 0.22%. The victims were between 10 and 15 years old in 48.59% of the cases. Students were the most represented with 53.27% (57/107) of cases. Genito-genital contact was recorded in 90.65% (97/107) of cases. Vulvo-perineal lesions were present in 44.86% (48/107) of survivors. Hymenial deflowering was the most frequent traumatic genital lesion accounting for 43.70% (21/48) of old cases and 27.00% (13/48) of recent cases. Sexual assault was committed by a single individual in 60.75% (65/107) of cases and by a friend of the victim in 21.5% (23/107) of cases. The survivors had consulted within 24 hours of the sexual assault in 53.27% (57/107) of the cases, the treatment was medical in 68.22% (73/107) and medical-surgical in 4.7% (5/107), post-exposure prophylaxis to the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) was performed in only 26.16% (28/107) of survivors. Conclusion: Sexual assault remains a concern although its frequency is low. This scourge mainly affects children and adolescents, and the lesions are mainly genitals.

Spiritual trauma as a manifestation of religious and spiritual struggles in female victims of sexual abuse in adolescence or young adulthood in the Catholic Church in Poland

Specialists on issues of sexual abuse in religious institutions unanimously stress that this kind of experience significantly affects the victims’ spirituality. Particularly devastating and distorting for their spirituality is sexual abuse committed by clergy. In order to explore this issue for the first time in Poland, the authors conducted a qualitative study in the form of semi-structured interviews with five women who had experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy and/or religious in adolescence and young adulthood. The interviews were analyzed using the interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) and narrative methodology. The results showed that four respondents experienced or had experienced religious struggles in three areas: interpersonal, intrapsychic, and relationship with God. These struggles are complex and intense enough to be referred to as “spiritual trauma” (Doyle, 2009, 2011; Kusner & Pargament, 2015), “religious trauma” (Panchuk, 2018), or “spiritual violence” (Tobin, 2019). The results of the study may be of importance for people helping or having any other kind of contact with victims of clergy sexual abuse.

“Teach Your Daughters to Wail and One Another to Lament”: Jewish Prayers and Liturgical Texts for Female Victims of Sexual Assault

AbstractThroughout generations, various prayers have been composed to express religious and cultural experiences of the Jewish community, such as holidays life-cycle and national tragedies. However, some social issues, such as sexual assault, have been excluded from this canon. This article uncovers Jewish prayers and liturgical texts dedicated to female victims of sexual assault. Drawing on a qualitative inquiry based on content analysis and interviews with the prayers’ authors, I demonstrate how these texts (re)position sexual assault victims in Jewish liturgy by including new phrasings and references to God; by removing masculine violence related to God; by mentioning biblical female characters who experienced sexual harassment; by denouncing of patriarchal abuse; or by sanctifying the woman’s painful body, which is incorporated as an important agent in the ritual’s structure. Therefore, I suggest considering these texts a political mean to voice women’s traumas and to incorporate them into the religious sphere, thereby rectifying a long-silenced discourse.

Prevalence and risk factors for acute stress disorder in female victims of sexual assault

Sexual assault is one of the most traumatic events a person can experience. Despite this, information regarding the risk factors associated with the development of Acute Stress Disorder (ASD) in sexual assault victims is scarce. A follow-up prospective cohort study was designed to examine the prevalence and risk factors of ASD in women exposed to a recent sexual assault. A total of 156 women were treated at the Emergency Department of a university general hospital shortly after sexual assault. Sociodemographic, clinical and sexual assault-related variables were collected. The Acute Stress Disorder Interview was used to estimate the prevalence of ASD at three weeks post-SA. From the 156 victims, 66.6% (N = 104) met ASD diagnosis using DSM-5 criteria, whereas 59.6% (N = 93) met ASD diagnosis using DSM-IV criteria. The risk factors associated with the development of ASD were nationality, psychiatric history, peritraumatic dissociation and type of assault. In conclusion, the prevalence of ASD in female victims of recent sexual assault was high, affecting approximately two thirds of them. The recognition of the risk factors associated with ASD development, like peritraumatic dissociation or type of assault, may aid in the prompt detection of vulnerable women that require early and specific interventions shortly after trauma.

Sexism in Facebook discourse about clergy misconduct

Sexism and sexist ideology have significant negative consequences for female victims of sexual assault and other crimes. Thus, uncovering how language is used as a discursive tool for maintaining unequal power relations is extremely important in discourses around sexual misconduct and sexualized violence. In this study we used Critical Discourse Analysis and Manne’s theory of the moral economy of patriarchy to analyze Facebook posts supporting a religious leader who had committed sexual misconduct. The analysis reveals the patriarchal ideology underlying some of the Facebook conversation discourses and the discursive strategies used by individuals to try to normalize their sexist arguments. Content of the posts shows the religious leader’s defenders showing sympathy for the perpetrator, ignoring the female victims, and minimizing sexual assault, as they argue that he should not be criticized or held accountable for his actions.

The Influence of Video-Modeled Sexual Assault Disclosure and Self-Efficacy Messages on Sexual Assault Disclosure Efficacy of Adolescent Girls

Adolescent female victims of sexual assault must often disclose their victimization to trusted adults to seek positive physical and mental health outcomes; however, adolescent girls face unique barriers to disclosure, and they are less likely to disclose compared to adult women. Media interventions could be useful in motivating adolescent girls to feel more efficacious about disclosing sexual assaults. Self-efficacious messages in media that model disclosure behavior could motivate adolescent girls to feel more confident disclosing information about an assault and seeking positive health outcomes. This study used quasi-experimental methods to test the effect of a YouTube vlog containing a self-efficacy message about sexual assault disclosure. Results indicate that exposure to the self-efficacious message leads to higher sexual assault disclosure efficacy among adolescent girls who identify with self-efficacious media characters (B = −.0867, SE = .059, 95% CI [−.2318, −.0033]), albeit indirectly through perceived discrimination of sexual assault victims and approach coping behaviors. Appropriate interventions targeting disclosure of sexual assault by adolescent girls could include a more holistic view of disclosure and use new mediums like YouTube vlogs to deliver self-efficacious messages.

How Do Age, Sex, Political Orientation, Religiosity, and Sexism Affect Perceptions of Sex Assault/Harassment Allegations?

The recent #MeToo movement empowered female sexual harassment and assault victims to publicly share their stories, using social media as the primary platform. Though the goals of the movement included de-stigmatization and support for victims, the discourse that followed often resulted in highly varied responses to reported incidents. In this study, we examined American adult (n = 512) perceptions about #MeToo and whether gender and ideological beliefs, including sexism, religiosity, and political affiliation, as well as pre-allegation likability of the alleged perpetrator, influenced respondents’ assessments of the incidents. We focused our examination on two very different, high-profile examples of sexual misconduct allegations, specifically against film producer Harvey Weinstein and comedian Aziz Ansari. We found that personal characteristics of respondents related to individuals’ negative assessments of alleged sexual assault perpetrators. Regression analyses showed that higher age and stronger beliefs that sexism exists in our culture predicted harsher judgments of Weinstein, but stronger beliefs that sexism exists in our culture, male gender, lower levels of pre-allegation favorability for Ansari, and higher levels of social religiosity predicted harsher judgments of Ansari. Practical implications of these disparate findings are discussed.

An Examination of Sexual Practice Experience of Female Sexual Assault Victims

An Examination of Sexual Practice Experience of Female Sexual Assault Victims

The effectiveness of combining mindfulness and art-making on depression, anxiety and shame in sexual assault victims: A pilot study

This article describes an 8-week intervention program for 16 female sexual assault victims in Iran aged 20–49. Sexual assault causes negative psychological consequences such as depression, anxiety and shame in victims. Although evidence-based treatments are effective in trauma treatment, they sometimes cannot cover the therapeutic needs of all patients and they have high dropout rates. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of combining mindfulness and art-making on depression, anxiety and shame in female Iranian sexual assault victims who were randomly assigned to control or experimental group in this study. Psychological questionnaire data were collected (Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R), Beck’s Depression Inventory-2 (BDI-2), Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and The Personal Feelings Questionnaire-2 (PFQ-2)) to assess the Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity and the changes in depression, anxiety and shame symptoms during the program. After conducting a one-way analysis of covariance, the findings indicated statistically significant effects of combining mindfulness and art-making on reducing depression, anxiety and shame symptoms in post-test and follow-up stages compared to no treatment controls. This article suggests that this program could facilitate the process of treatment for female sexually assaulted victims as an independent therapy or as a supplementary treatment accompanied by evidence-based methods.

Post-traumatic stress disorder and related factors among female victims of sexual assault required to attend a University Hospital in Turkey: A cross-sectional cohort study.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the most common consequences of sexual assault, but it is not invariable. Our aim was to investigate pre-, peri- and post-traumatic factors associated with post-traumatic stress disorder among adult women who had been sexually assaulted. All women attending a specialist university clinic for victims of sexual assault referred by the courts for a mental health assessment were invited to participate. At the time, the Turkish penal code required such referral (the year up to September 2015). Consenting women completed a sociodemographic information form, the Traumatic Stress Symptom Checklist, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Short Form-36 reflecting perceived quality of life, the Beck Depression Scale and the Beck Anxiety Scale. Sixty women were eligible and agreed to participate. Two-thirds of them (41, 68%) reported features of PTSD. In bivariate analyses, the women with PTSD also rated themselves as having a wide range of health and social disadvantages. Self-perceived poverty of social support and having suicidal thoughts were independently associated with PTSD. Although the rate of mental health and social problems among the women with PTSD were high, less than a third had actually sought help for their difficulties. While a requirement in the penal code that such women should have a psychiatric assessment seems over-intrusive and has since been dropped, our findings suggest that more efforts should be made to ensure that such women have help available if they want it.

Epidemiological, Clinical Aspects and Treatment of Victims of Sexual Abuse in the Gynecology and Obstetrics Department of Pikine National Hospital in 183 Cases

Introduction: Sexual abuse or sexual assault is part of violence against women, as is physical violence, female genital mutilation and forced marriage. According to the Criminal Code, this is any sexual offense committed with violence, coercion, threat or surprise on the person of others. It is a criminal act punishable by the laws in force in almost every country in the world. Study Objectives: 1) draw up an epidemiological profile of female victims of sexual abuse; 2) develop the treatment protocol. Methodology: This is a 7-year descriptive retrospective study from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2016 at the Center Hospitalier National de Pikine (Dakar). Included in this study were all of the patients admitted during our investigation period who were the victims of suspected or certain sexual abuse, with or without requisition. For each case, the following parameters were studied: the epidemiological characteristics (age, gestation, parity and place of residence), the circumstances of the attack (time and place), the characteristics of the aggressor (age, link with the victim, number of aggressor), the type of sexual contact, the possible lesions found during the physical examination (genital and extra-genital), the mode of admission, the delay of the consultation, the attitude after the sexual abuse, the gynecological and obstetrical status of the victim, the repercussions and psychological follow-up, the paraclinical assessment, the treatments administered. Data were collected using a survey form and analyzed with SPSS software. Results: During the study period, 183 victims of sexual abuse were received and treated at the level of our structure out of a total of 39,760 patients, representing a frequency of 0.46%. The age of the victims varied between 2 and 36 years with an average of 13 years. The 11 to 15 age group was the most represented. Students were the most represented among victims of sexual abuse (87.4%). Workers represented 9.3% of the victims. Infants made up 3.3% of the victims; the average age of the alleged attackers was 31 when they were known to their victim. Half of the victims (50.3%) were in the pre-pubertal stage. Among those who were in genital activity (91 cases or 49.7%), 16 cases of pregnancy were reported; which represented 8.7% of cases. Only 20.2% of victims had genital trauma. Prescription of emergency contraception was carried out for 47% of the victims who were in genital activity. After the clinical examination, 17% of the victims had received antibiotic prophylaxis. Conclusion: Sexual abuse is currently a real socio-cultural drama. Preventing them involves raising public awareness. Their management must be early and adapted in order to prevent sexually transmitted infections and psychological consequences.