Search Results (384)

Background: Black transgender women experience disproportionately high rates of violent victimization rooted in intersecting systems of oppression, including cisgenderism and anti-Black racism. Although victimization is linked to psychological distress, the mental health impacts of intersectional violence, which targets overlapping marginalized identities, remain understudied. Objectives: To examine the associations between anticipated and experienced intersectional victimization and psychological distress among Black transgender women. Methods: Online survey data from 151 Black transgender women (age ≥ 18) in the United States (US) between October 2021 and February 2024 were analyzed using t-tests and multivariate linear regressions. Results: In models controlling for age, employment, and US region, experienced sexual, physical, and threats of intersectional violence, as well as anticipated intersectional violence, were associated with increased post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity, in separate models. Conversely, only experienced sexual intersectional violence and anticipated intersectional violence were associated with greater depressive symptom severity. When all violence variables were included simultaneously, experienced intersectional sexual violence and anticipated violence remained significantly associated with PTSD and depressive symptoms in separate models. Conclusions: Service providers who work with Black transgender women should routinely assess for anticipated and experienced intersectional victimization to guide person-centered interventions. Further research is needed to distinguish the effects of intersectional victimization from opportunistic victimization and to inform the adaptation of targeted mental health interventions. Full article

Despite near-global legal reforms to tackle voyeurism and upskirting offences (VUs), such behaviours remain prevalent in Singapore—an under-reached population for empirical research in the niche of image-based sexual abuse and one where conservative views and sex-related taboos persist. This study consists of interviews with ten young adult Singaporean nationals about their understanding of VUs, victim-survivors thereof, and how such views interact with Singaporean culture and societal norms. Reflective thematic analysis was used to delineate the two predominant themes of the (1) Unaccountability of Perpetrators, wherein VUs are minimised and excused at both societal (Technological and Institutional Affordances) and individual levels (Sexual Deviancy & Pornography), and (2) Burden of Victimisation, which explored perceptions of victim-survivors as a gendered experience (Gendered Vulnerability), where norms around modesty impacted victim-blaming (Moralised Modesty & Responsibility), resulting in harm minimisation (Harm Awareness & Minimisation). Findings have implications for how legislators, law enforcement, and educational institutions address the minimisation of gender-based violence through shifts in social narratives, awareness, and responses. Full article

Background/Objectives: Online sexual violence is an increasingly prevalent form of gender-based harm facilitated by digital technologies, with significant consequences for the health, well-being, and rights of adult women. Despite growing attention to this phenomenon, women’s lived experiences remain underexplored, particularly regarding sexual consent and institutional responses. This study aimed to examine how adult women experience online sexual violence, how consent is negotiated or constrained in digital contexts, and how coping and institutional mechanisms are perceived. Methods: A qualitative study with a hermeneutic phenomenological approach was conducted. Data were collected through three focus groups with 23 women aged 21 to 42 years who were active users of social media. Results: Participants reported diverse forms of online sexual violence, including unsolicited sexual messages and images, persistent harassment, coercion, blackmail, and threats. Sexual consent was often undermined by emotional manipulation, social pressure, and fear, placing women in vulnerable positions. These experiences negatively affected well-being, contributing to anxiety, reduced self-esteem, fear, and difficulties in sexual and emotional relationships. Coping strategies were mainly individual, such as blocking perpetrators or reporting content, while social support was frequently perceived as insufficient. A generalized distrust of institutional responses emerged, with formal mechanisms viewed as ineffective or inaccessible. Conclusions: For the study participants, online sexual violence is increasingly normalized and concealed within digital environments, reinforced by anonymity and impunity. The findings highlight the need for continued research and the development of interventions that include early sexual and emotional education, awareness-raising initiatives, digital regulation, specialized professional training, and the strengthening of victim-centered support networks. Full article

The aim of this study is twofold: (a) to identify the prevalence of sexual harassment and sex-based harassment among teaching and research staff (TRS) at a public university; and (b) to examine the predictive capacity of sociodemographic variables and prior harassment experiences on the frequency of different forms of sexual victimization (SEQ): gender harassment, unwanted sexual attention, and sexual coercion. A total of 425 TRS members participated (48.9% women, 50.6% men, 0.5% not identified; mean age = 45.88, SD = 22.2), all affiliated with a public university in northwestern Spain. Findings showed that female TRS explicitly self-identified as victims of sexual harassment and gender-based harassment within the university. Overall mean scores on the three SEQ subscales were low, yet women reported significantly higher levels of gender harassment and unwanted sexual attention. Female TRS also showed higher levels of technology-facilitated sexual harassment compared with their male counterparts. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that prior sexual victimization and technology-facilitated harassment were the strongest predictors across all SEQ dimensions. Unwanted sexual attention and TFSV predicted sexual coercion, whereas higher professional rank was associated with a reduced risk within this university. In conclusion, this public university requires well-disseminated and trusted protocols that explicitly address digital forms of sexual violence, alongside sustained preventive programs aimed at reducing revictimization. Full article

Depression, although a consequence of sexual violence, has not been studied in the context of college students’ views of campus sexual violence climate. Depression is one of the most prevalent and impairing mental health concerns among college students and has well-established links to sexual violence victimization; therefore, it serves as a theoretically and clinically meaningful focal outcome. Therefore, we assessed perceptions of institutional climate in the context of self-reported depression. Undergraduates (n = 716) reported perceptions and experiences of campus sexual violence and misconduct, connectedness, attitude, and depressive symptoms in an online survey. More than a third of participants reported elevated depressive symptoms. This was associated with campus connectedness and attitude, perceived campus climate, and personally experiencing rape, assault, or harassment. In a multivariate model, only the perceived climate variables did not retain significance. Elevated depressive symptoms were associated with connectedness and attitude towards the university and experiencing sexual harassment/assault. Understanding and explicitly addressing these connections may be beneficial for the effectiveness of campus prevention and intervention. Full article

Sexual harassment remains a widespread issue in higher education, with serious consequences, especially for women within the university setting. In this research, we explored the mediating role of psychological distress in the link between sexual harassment and coping strategies among women in higher education. In total, 637 women from the university community participated in this study, of whom 100 were victims of sexual harassment at their university. In Study 1, sexual harassment was found to predict higher levels of anxiety and depression, which were in turn associated with greater use of coping strategies focused on self-criticism, wishful thinking, and social withdrawal. In Study 2, sexual harassment predicted increased negative affect, which was subsequently associated with a stronger reliance on rumination. Taken together, the findings could suggest that the psychological distress women experience due to sexual harassment may determine their coping strategies. These results underscore the importance of adopting institutional measures that not only address the psychological impact of sexual harassment but also promote more adaptive coping strategies to reduce its long-term impact on women in higher education. Full article

In recent decades, awareness of sexual violence against men has grown, yet research and services remain limited compared to those addressing women’s experiences. This qualitative study examined how male survivors in Canada navigate social connection, masculinity, and resilience following sexual violence. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, in-depth interviews were conducted with three men aged 40–70 who experienced sexual abuse beginning in childhood. The analysis generated six experiential themes—Nature of the Abuse, Impacts of the Abuse, Breaking the Silence, Healing Journey, Victim versus Survivor, and Life Today—alongside a central theme, Words of Wisdom, which captured survivors’ efforts to transform suffering into meaning and connection. Findings highlight how stigma, silence, and masculine norms disrupted trust and disclosure, while peer support, spirituality, and redefined understandings of masculinity fostered relational recovery. Although situated in Canada, the study offers broader insights into how men negotiate vulnerability, identity, and connection after sexual violence. These findings underscore the importance of relational, survivor-centred approaches in therapy, community support, and policy. Full article

A recently developed nonpartisan authoritarian aggression scale (NAAS) has a robust nomological network that includes attitudes toward women and LGBTQ+ individuals. The current research was meant to further validate the scale by demonstrating its ability to predict unique variance in attitudes relating to sex crimes (i.e., rape myth acceptance) and anti-transgender hate crimes when controlling for potentially relevant cognitive (i.e., need for cognition, intolerance of uncertainty) and cultural (i.e., Christian nationalism) variables. A sample of 100 U.S. participants was recruited from Prolific and completed an online survey via Qualtrics. A series of correlation analyses showed that the NAAS was significantly related to all of the other predictor variables as well as both the sex and hate crime outcomes at the bivariate level, adding to the nomological network of the NAAS. Multiple regression analyses showed that the combination of predictors explained significant variance in both outcomes and that the NAAS was the only predictor to explain unique variance in both sex crime and anti-transgender hate crime attitudes. The results imply that authoritarian aggression poses a danger for women, transgender individuals, and victims of sex crimes and hate crimes more broadly. Future research should examine ways of attenuating authoritarian aggression in individuals and communities to protect those who are vulnerable due to their sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Full article

Background/Objectives: Domestic violence against women is a widespread global health issue profoundly affecting victims, their families, and society. This study aimed to assess the prevalence, patterns, risk factors, and health sequelae of domestic violence among females during reproductive age in Sharkia governorate, Egypt. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted from April to December 2024. A total of 379 females of reproductive age (15–49 years) were recruited using simple random sampling from secondary schools and Maternal and Child Health centers affiliated with the Ministry of Health. Data were collected using a structured interview questionnaire covering sociodemographic characteristics, violence exposure (physical, psychological, economic, and sexual), risk factors, causes, severity, perpetrators, and consequences. Results: The overall prevalence of domestic violence was 88%. Psychological violence was the most common form (78%), followed by physical violence (63%), and economic violence (43%). Insults were the predominant form of verbal abuse, while slapping and beating were the most common manifestations of physical violence. Husbands were identified as the primary perpetrators across all violence types. Major risk factors included cigarette use by the abuser (47%), alcohol and drug use (14%), and psychological problems (11%). The most frequently reported consequences were anxiety, fear, and depression (82%), followed by insomnia (55%) and seeking separation (49%). Conclusions: Domestic violence against women of reproductive age is highly prevalent in the study setting, with significant physical and psychological consequences. Comprehensive interventions, including awareness campaigns, legal enforcement, women empowerment programs, and healthcare provider training, are urgently needed to address this critical public health issue. Full article

Existing law provides no settled account of how deepfake sextortion should be characterised and regulated in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, creating uncertainty for charging, adjudication and platform compliance at the point when the Online Safety Act 2023 allocates duties to regulated services under Ofcom oversight. This article responds by analysing and synthesising the Online Safety Act 2023 with the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and residual harassment and communications offences, using doctrinal analysis and normative evaluation to identify points of alignment and misfit. It establishes criteria for identifying synthetic sexual coercion, including the elements that mark threat-stage conduct, the role of fabrication in the wrong, and the conditions under which epistemic harms should be treated as legally relevant within ordinary doctrine. It rejects three propositions: that intimate-image abuse is primarily a publication-based wrong; that an authentic image is a precondition for liability; and that content-led platform duties adequately address coercion before dissemination. This analysis specifies how courts and prosecutors should classify conduct and select offences, how services should operationalise risk assessment and mitigation for threat-stage harms, and which targeted reforms to offence design, platform duties and victim-facing procedures are required to secure predictable protection and effective redress. Full article

Exposure to violence (physical, domestic, or sexual assault) increases risk for alcohol problems and alcohol use disorder (AUD), consistent with self-medication and drinking-to-cope theories of alcohol use, which posit that some individuals may misuse alcohol to alleviate distress associated with trauma. Yet how violence exposure and coping motives interact to influence objective AUD risk markers remains unclear. Emerging evidence suggests that trauma type affects psychiatric outcomes, but its role in moderating AUD risk via coping motives remains unknown. We examined these gaps in the literature in a cohort of youth (ages 16–19; n = 157) over-sampled for violence exposure. Participants completed a structured trauma interview and an assessment of drinking motives. A total of 60 participants reported experiencing sexual assault (SA), 54 physical assault (PA), and 32 domestic violence (DV). AUD risk was captured using the alcohol cue reactivity paradigm. Participants were exposed to images of alcoholic beverages, high-calorie foods (reward-related control), and neutral objects. The late positive potential (LPP), an event-related potential captured via electroencephalogram, was used to index cue reactivity. We ran two linear regression analyses to assess the relationship between trauma type and coping motives to drink on LPP to alcohol and food cues (>neutral). For alcohol cues, there was a significant SA and coping interaction. At high levels of coping motivations, SA was associated with enhanced LPP to alcohol cues. At low levels of coping motivations there was no association. No effects were observed for food cues. Our results demonstrate that heightened coping motives to drink are associated with enhanced alcohol cue reactivity among SA victims, indicating increased vulnerability for AUD risk. Full article

This study analyzes the perspectives of support providers to survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA) on the potential links between pornography and the sexual abuse of children. Drawing from fifty interviews, eight focus group discussions, and post-interview surveys with frontline child advocacy support professionals from various backgrounds and settings, each with at least five years of experience in the field, this paper presents a conceptual model that situates pornography and CSA within interconnected “zones of violence” across digital, institutional, and community environments. Participants identified overlapping risk factors that can heighten pornography exposure and CSA vulnerability, including strained guardian–child relationships, inadequate supervision and digital literacy, socioeconomic precarity, limited access to services, and restrictive or patriarchal sexual norms. They described mediating processes linking pornography to abuse—social modeling, normalization of coercive and violent sexual scripts, grooming, power/threat dynamics (including sextortion and blackmail), and the production and circulation of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Respondents perceived pornography as pervasive in young people’s lives, reported that it contributes to perceived shifts in CSA patterns, and emphasized the absence of best practices. They advocated comprehensive, digitally literate sex education; routine, developmentally appropriate screening; trauma-informed responses that avoid labeling and criminalizing children; and coordinated, multidisciplinary reforms. Full article

Although scholarship has long called for attention to the intersection of race and gender in workplace harassment, the experiences of Black Americans remain insufficiently theorized. Existing frameworks often assume harassment to be gender-based in ways that center White women’s victimization, leaving limited conceptual space to understand how Black women and Black men are targeted. In this essay, we synthesize research on racialized sex-based harassment (RSBH) to illustrate how harassment directed at Black Americans is shaped by cultural narratives that simultaneously sexualize, criminalize, and devalue them. Specifically, we introduce sociohistorical archetypes (e.g., Jezebel, Mammy, Sapphire, Mandingo, Brute, Uncle Tom) as cultural mechanisms through which RSBH is enacted, rationalized, and normalized within organizational contexts. We argue that RSBH functions as a mechanism for enforcing racialized gender hierarchy: it draws on sociohistorical meanings attached to Black femininity and masculinity to mark certain identities as inherently available, threatening, or subordinate. We further review evidence linking RSBH to psychological distress, social identity threat, physiological strain, and career stagnation, as well as factors that shape vulnerability and adaptation. By conceptualizing RSBH as a patterned and predictable form of identity-based harm, grounded in the lasting impact of sociohistorical archetypes, rather than a variation of generalized sexual harassment, this work advances theories of harassment and race in organizations. We conclude by outlining implications for measurement, organizational policy, and intervention efforts aimed at disrupting the reproduction of racialized gender inequality at work. Full article

This study presents an Italian adaptation of the Teachers’ Reporting Attitude Scale for Child Sexual Abuse (TRAS-CSA), aiming to assess teachers’ attitudes towards reporting suspected cases of child sexual abuse (CSA) and to explore the scale’s psychometric properties in the Italian context. Given the critical role schools play in identifying and addressing CSA, understanding teachers’ attitudes is vital for improving reporting rates and protecting victims. A sample of 1318 Italian teachers (12.8% male; age: 25–65; M = 46.71; SD = 10.25) from various educational levels participated in the study. Exploratory factor analysis identified two primary factors: Awareness of Role and Commitment to Reporting (Factor 1) and Concern and Distrust Towards Reporting (Factor 2). Results indicated that male teachers demonstrated significantly higher scores on the concern factor, while teachers from secondary schools exhibited higher commitment to reporting compared to those from preschool and primary levels. The adapted TRAS-CSA demonstrates solid psychometric properties, providing a valuable tool for future research and intervention strategies in Italy to enhance awareness and action against child sexual abuse within educational settings. Implications for educational policies and teacher training frameworks are discussed to bolster the preventive efforts against CSA. Full article

This article discusses the implications of gender- and race-based discrimination on the social relationships and trauma recovery process of victim–survivors of sexual violence. Challenges faced by victim–survivors in reflecting on their trauma experience and seeking social and professional support are discussed. Marginalizing social and sexual norms, implications of gender- and race-based oppression, and context-based factors in trauma recovery work are also discussed. The analysis shared in this article is based on a literature review, supported by a case discussion. Using key words like sexual trauma/sexual violence/rape, sexism, racism, racial trauma, and social marginalization, the author conducted a search and review of the available scientific literature using two databases: PsycINFO and Google Scholar. The results from the literature review and analysis suggest that fostering healthy relational experiences is key to safely and effectively supporting sexual trauma recovery for racialized women victim–survivors. Based on the analysis of the existing literature and a clinical case, this article seeks to shed light on multilayered relational challenges facing racialized women victim–survivors of sexual violence. A relational–systemic approach to clinical work with the studied population is also discussed and recommended. Full article