Why Are Rape Victims More Likely to Get Raped Again
Dean K. Kilpatrick, Ph.D.
National Violence Confronting Women Prevention Inquiry Center
Medical University of Due south Carolina
The National Women's Study produced dramatic confirmation of the mental health impact of rape. The written report adamant comparative rates of several mental health problems amid rape victims and non-victims. The study ascertained whether rape victims were more likely than non-victims to experience these devastating mental wellness problems. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
The first mental wellness problem examined was posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), an extremely debilitating disorder occurring afterward a highly disturbing traumatic upshot, such as military machine combat or violent crime.
Most one-third (31%) of all rape victims developed PTSD sometime during their lifetime; and more than than one in x rape victims (11%) still has PTSD today.Rape victims were 6.ii times more than likely to develop PTSD than women who had never been victims of criminal offence (31% vs 5%).
Rape victims were 5.5 times more likely to take current PTSD than those who had never been victims of crime (xi% Vs 2%).
The U.S. Demography Bureau estimates that there are approximately 96.three 1000000 adult women in the Us age eighteen or older. If 13% of American women have been raped and 31% of rape victims accept developed PTSD, and then 3.viii million adult American women accept had rape-related PTSD (RR-PTSD):
Other Mental Health IssuesMajor depression is a problem affecting many women, non just rape victims. Notwithstanding, 30% of rape victims had experienced at to the lowest degree one major depressive episode in their lifetimes, and 21% of all rape victims were experiencing a major depressive episode at the fourth dimension of assessment: Some mental heath problems are life threatening. When asked if they always thought seriously most committing suicide: Substance Abuse
There was substantial evidence that rape victims had higher rates than non-victims of drug and booze consumption and a greater likelihood of having drug and alcohol-related bug. Compared to women who had never been crime victims, rape victims with RR-PTSD were: The National Women'southward Report findings provide compelling prove about the extent to which rape poses a danger to American women's mental wellness -- and even their connected survival -- considering of increased suicide risk. Thus, rape is a problem for America's mental and public wellness systems equally well as the criminal justice system.
Key Concerns of Rape Victims
To finer respond to rape victims, service providers and criminal justice officials need to understand the major concerns of rape victims. Without accurate information, it is hard to develop policies and programs to meet victims� needs.
The National Women�southward Study identified several disquisitional concerns. To decide whether victims� concerns have changed over time, the study divided these concerns into two categories: all rape victims vs. victims that had been raped within the previous 5 years (1987-91). The changes in concerns included:
- The victim�s relatives knowing nigh the assail: Relatively trivial modify over time. 70-one percent of all victims and 66% of victims within past 5 years are concerned about relatives finding out about the rape.
- People blaming the victim:Rape victims are concerned about being blamed for the rape, and this has not changed over time. In fact, 69% of all victims and 66% of recent rape victims say they worry about existence blamed.
- People exterior her family unit knowing she had been sexually assaulted:No meaning difference. Sixty-eight percentage of all victims and 61% of rape victims inside the past five years are concerned about this.
- The victim�s identity existence revealed in the news media: Women raped within the last five years are more probable to be concerned about the possibility of their names beingness published than all rape victims (60% vs. 50%).
- Becoming pregnant: 60-one percentage of recent rape victims, as opposed to 34% of all rape victims, are concerned about getting pregnant.
- Contracting a sexually transmitted disease (not including HIV/AIDS): Recent rape victims were more than twice as concerned equally all rape victims nigh contracting sexually transmitted diseases. (43% Vs xix%).
- Contracting HIV/AIDS: Contempo rape victims were 4 times more than likely than all victims to exist concerned nigh getting HIV/AIDS as a result of the rape - regardless of the recency of the rape (xl% Vs 10%).
The stigma of rape persists. Victims are greatly concerned about others discovering they were raped. Service providers and criminal justice officials should endeavour to maintain the confidentiality and respect the privacy needs of victims
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