Sexual Assault in the United States
- One in five women and one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives.
- In the U.S., 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men experienced some form of contact sexual violence in their lifetime.
- 51.1% of female victims of rape reported being raped by an intimate partner and 40.8% by an acquaintance.
- 52.4% of male victims report being raped by an acquaintance and 15.1% by a stranger
- Almost half (49.5%) of multiracial women and over 45% of American Indian/Alaska Native women were subjected to some form of contact sexual violence in their lifetime
- 91% of victims of rape and sexual assault are female, and nine percent are male
- In eight out of 10 cases of rape, the victim knew the perpetrator
- Eight percent of rapes occur while the victim is at work.
Cost & Impact of Sexual Assault
- The lifetime cost of rape per victim is $122,461
- Annually, rape costs the U.S. more than any other crime ($127 billion), followed by assault ($93 billion), murder ($71 billion), and drunk driving, including fatalities ($61 billion)
- 81% of women and 35% of men report significant short- or long-term impacts such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Health care is 16% higher for women who were sexually abused as children and 36% higher for women who were physically and sexually abused as children
Child Sexual Abuse
- 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually abused before they turn 18 years old
- 30% of women were between the ages of 11 and 17 at the time of their first completed rape
- 12.3% of women were age 10 or younger at the time of their first completed rape victimization
- 27.8% of men were age 10 or younger at the time of their first completed rape victimization
- More than one third of women who report being raped before age 18 also experience rape as an adult
- 96% of people who sexually abuse children are male, and 76.8% of people who sexually abuse children are adults
- 34% of people who sexually abuse a child are family members of the child
- It is estimated that 325,000 children per year are currently at risk of becoming victims of commercial child sexual exploitation
- The average age at which girls first become victims of prostitution is 12-14 years old, and the average age at which boys first become victims of prostitution is 11-13 years old
- Only 12% of child sexual abuse is ever reported to the authorities
Campus Sexual Assault
- 20% – 25% of college women and 15% of college men are victims of forced sex during their time in college
- A 2002 study revealed that 63.3% of men at one university who self-reported acts qualifying as rape or attempted rape admitted to committing repeat rapes
- More than 90% of sexual assault victims on college campuses do not report the assault
- 27% of college women have experienced some form of unwanted sexual contact
- Nearly two thirds of college students experience sexual harassment
Crime Reports
- Rape is the most under-reported crime; 63% of sexual assaults are not reported to police
- The prevalence of false reporting is low — between 2% and 10%. For example, a study of eight U.S. communities, which included 2,059 cases of sexual assault, found a 7.1% rate of false reports. A study of 136 sexual assault cases in Boston found a 5.9% rate of false reports. Researchers studied 812 reports of sexual assault from 2000-2003 and found a 2.1% rate of false reports.
Information provided by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) if you would like to learn more visit http://www.NSVRC.org