From: Sexual Assault: Dispelling the Myths
http://www.womanabuseprevention.com/html/sexual_assault.html
By Ontario Women's Directorate
Dispelling the Myths
MYTH: Sexual assault is not a common problem.
FACT: Sexual assault is experienced by Canadian women every day at home, at work, at school and on the street.
A 1993 Statistics Canada survey found that one-half of all Canadian women have experienced at least one incident of sexual or physical violence. Almost 60% of these women were the targets of more than one such incident. (1)
A 1984 study found that one in four Canadian women will be sexually assaulted during her lifetime. Half of these assaults will be against women under the age of 16. (2)
For women with disabilities, these figures may be even higher one study indicates that 83% of women with disabilities will be sexually assaulted during their lifetime. (3)
MYTH: Women lie about being sexually assaulted, often because they feel guilty about having sex.
FACT: Women rarely make false reports about sexual assault. In fact, sexual assault is a vastly under-reported crime. According to Statistics Canada, only 6% of all sexual assaults are reported to police.
For example, four out of five female undergraduates recently surveyed at Canadian universities said that they had been victims of violence in a dating relationship. Of that number, 29% reported incidents of sexual assault. (5)
REFERENCES
(1)Statistics Canada, "The Violence Against Women Survey," The Daily, November 18, 1993.
(2) J. Brickman and J. Briere, "Incidence of Rape and Sexual Assault in an Urban Canadian Population," The International Journal of Women's Studies, Vol. 7, no. 3, 1984.
(3) Liz Stimpson and Margaret C. Best, Courage Above All: Sexual Assault Against Women with Disabilities, Toronto: DisAbled Women's Network, 1991.
(4) J. Brickman and J. Briere, "Incidence of Rape and Sexual Assault in an Urban Canadian Population", The International Journal of Women's Studies, Vol. 7, no. 3, 1984.
(5) W. DeKeseredy and K. Kelly, "The Incidence and Prevalence of Woman Abuse in Canadian University and College Dating Relationships: Results From a National Survey," Ottawa: Health Canada, 1993.
(6) D. Kinnon, "Report on Sexual Assault in Canada," Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women, Ottawa, 1981.
(7) Helen Lenskyj, "An Analysis of Violence Against Women: A Manual for Educators and Administrators," Toronto: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, 1992.
(8) Lenskyj, 1992.
(9) Statistics Canada, 1993.
(10)Canadian Panel on Violence Against Women, 1993.
FURTHER RESOURCES
Toronto Rape Crisis Centre, "Rape," No Safe Place: Violence Against Women and Children, Connie Guberman, Toronto: Women's Press, 1985.
Diana Russell, Sexual Exploitation: Rape, Child Abuse and Workplace Harassment, California: Sage Publishing, 1984.
Audio-visual: The Family Violence Prevention Division of Health and Welfare Canada has compiled a collection of over 90 films and videos on violence against women and children which can be borrowed free of charge through the regional offices of the National Film Board.
Reporting Issues
Facts to consider
The majority of sexual assaults are not reported to police.
According to Statistics Canada, only 6% of all sexual assaults are reported to police. (1)
Only 1% of women who have been sexually assaulted by an acquaintance report the incident to police. (2)
An Alberta study on sexual assault against people with disabilities found that while 88% of offenders are known to the victim (family members, friends, acquaintances, caregivers), 80% are never charged and less than 10% are convicted. (3)
In one study, women gave the following reasons for not reporting incidents of sexual assault:
belief that the police could do nothing about it (50% of women gave this reason);
concern about the attitude of both police and the courts toward sexual assault (44%);
fear of another assault by the offender (33%);
fear and shame (64%). (4)
Women who have been sexually assaulted often fear that if they report a sexual assault, the will be revictimized by the justice system.
For women of colour, and immigrant and refugee women that fear is compounded by racism.
The credibility of women with disabilities has often been questioned when they report sexual assault, particularly in the case of women with developmental, psychiatric and learning disabilities.
The credibility of sex trade workers is also often questioned.
Incidents of sexual assault are often questioned by police, doctors, courts, even family and friends.
If a woman is raped by a man she knows, it is often perceived that she "asked for it" in some way. Women often hear, and may tell themselves, messages such as "what did you think he wanted," "you drank with him didn't you," or "you should have expected something like this to happen."
REFERENCES
(1) Statistics Canada, "The Violence Against Women Survey," The Daily, November 18, 1993.
(2) Diana Russell, Sexual Exploitation: Rape, Child Abuse and Workplace Harassment, California: Sage Publishing, 1984
(3) D. Sobsey, "Sexual Offenses and Disabled Victims: Research and Practical Implications," Vis-A-Vis: A National Newsletter on Family Violence, 6, no. 4, Winter, 1988. Ottawa: Canadian Council on Social Development.
(4) Solicitor General of Canada, "Canadian Urban Victimization Survey," Bulletin 4: Female Victims of Crime. Ottawa, 1985.
The Impact on Health
Facts to Consider
Sexual assault can have profound effects on women's health and well-being. It can result in physical injuries as well as psychological and emotional trauma.
Statistics Canada indicates that women are physically injured in 11% of sexual assaults. (1)
The effects of sexual assault on a woman's mental health and well-being can be just as serious as physical injuries. Nine out of ten incidents of violence against women have an emotional effect on the victim. The most commonly reported effects are anger, fear and becoming more cautious and less trusting. (2)
The emotional and psychological effects of sexual assault can also include:
depression
confusion
sleep disturbances, including nightmares
erratic mood swings
eating disorders
anxiety
flashbacks
Assaults on women with disabilities can trigger severe physical reactions. A woman with epilepsy may have a seizure, a woman with cerebral palsy may develop even more unclear speech, or a woman with diabetes may go into insulin shock. (3)
A Toronto study shows that 83% of female psychiatric in-patients reported a history of physical or sexual abuse. (4)
Research indicates that there is a higher rate of drug use among women who have been sexually or physically abused. Of women who have been sexually assaulted as adults, 20% use sleeping pills and 20% use sedatives. (5)
Sexual abuse by physicians is a significant problem one study found that 8% of Ontario women aged 25-44 have been sexually harassed or abused by their physician. (6)
REFERENCES
(1)Statistics Canada, "The Violence Against Women Survey, " The Daily, November 18, 1993.
(2) Statistics Canada, 1993.
(3) DisAbled Women's Network (DAWN), Violence Against Women With Disabilities, Toronto: DAWN
Canada, 1989.
(4) Temi Firsten, An Exploration of the Role of Physical and Sexual Abuse for Psychiatrically
Institutionalized Women, Toronto: Ontario Women's Directorate.
(5) J. Groeneveld and M. Shain, "Drug Abuse Among Victims of Physical and Sexual Abuse: A
Preliminary Report," Toronto: Addiction Research Foundation, 1989.
(6) Health and Welfare Canada, "Canada Health Monitor Survey," Ottawa, 1991.
FURTHER RESOURCES
Margaret Gordon and Stephanie Riger, The Female Fear, New York: The Free Press, 1989.
Jillian Ridington, Beating the Odds: Violence Against Women with Disabilities, Toronto: DAWN Canada, 1989.
"Aftermath: Short Term Effects of Sexual Assault," 1990.
This video on the physical, psychological and emotional effects of sexual assault is available from Women's College Hospital, Sexual Assault Care Centre, Toronto, Ontario. A second video entitled, "Long Term Effects of Sexual Assault" is also available.
or simply, what Gen wrote.
As for the 1/4 girls will be raped statistic (I don't really want to use this as a reference, but I couldn't find an academic source at the moment):
http://www.elitecanada.com/pdfs/cnd_rape_stats.pdf
scroll down to the "General Rape Statistics" section, "College Rape Statistics" section. I think this is what my prof was referring to.
To make things a bit more confusing to the topic:
http://www.canadiancrc.com/Newspaper_Articles/IWF_One_In_Four_Rape_Stat_27APR06.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_statistics
But after talking with some of the ladies I knew who confided with me about being raped, and the number of women I know who were, compared to the total number of women I know, it does seem true from their accounts that they tend to underreport, and that they don't report because they don't feel the police will be able to help and/or protect them, or fear retaliation. I don't really know how valid the 1/4 stat is, because without the actual study and design to analyze, it is hard to say, but anecdotally, I feel it is in the ballpark.
What Gen wrote, coincides with what I learned, and what was discussed and presented in class by leaders in the field.