Same-sex sexual violence in the military: A scoping review

Abstract

Introduction: Sexual violence (SV) is a globally prevalent issue, and the majority of research focuses on the historical view of SV as an act perpetrated by men against women. Same-sex sexual violence (SSSV) incidents represent a small proportion of recorded sexual offences, and therefore prevalence and consequences of this have received little attention. Male-dominated occupations, such as the military, are associated with higher rates of SV and data points to a particular vulnerability to SSSV of male service personnel (SP). Methods: This review aims to map the literature pertaining to SSSV in the military. A comprehensive scoping review methodology was adopted, following a rigorous accepted framework. Four databases were searched for English language, peer-reviewed, original research papers that were focused on SSSV in the military context. Results: Eleven papers were identified that met the criteria for inclusion; 10 originated from the United States and one from South Korea. Themes identified included prevalence and nature of SSSV in the military, characteristics of survivors and perpetrators, barriers to reporting, and the outcomes associated with SSSV in the military. Discussion: The evidence that does exist suggests that male SP are particularly at risk of SSSV, and experience poorer psychological and social outcomes due to SSSV compared to female SP and those who experience opposite-sex sexual violence (OSSV). More research is required internationally to provide accurate and up-to-date estimates of prevalence, and to account for cultural and structural differences in military organizations.

An ecological approach to understanding the impact of sexual violence: a systematic meta-review

“…However, differences in depression and suicidal ideation between survivors and controls are not consistently confirmed in some reviews (Ullman, 2004 ; Ribeiro et al, 2009 ; Beydoun et al, 2012 ; Dillon et al, 2013 ; Finneran and Stephenson, 2013 ; Wadsworth and Records, 2013 ; Sparrow et al, 2017 ; Paulson, 2020 ; Forkus et al, 2021 ; Lim et al, 2022 ; Lombardi et al, 2023 ). Survivors also report feeling increased anger according to some reviews (Godier-McBard and Jones, 2020 ; Kahsay et al, 2020 ; Klein and Martin, 2021 ; Rani et al, 2022 ).…”

“…According to numerous reviews, up to two thirds of survivors report depressive symptoms and almost two in five patients with depression report having experienced ASA. In addition, when comparing survivors vs. controls and survivors of other trauma types, small to large effect sizes in depressive symptoms are found (Goodman et al, 1997 ; Campbell et al, 2000 ; Van Berlo and Ensink, 2000 ; Ullman, 2004 ; Classen et al, 2005 ; Ribeiro et al, 2009 ; Chen et al, 2010 ; Peterson et al, 2011 ; Beydoun et al, 2012 ; Dillon et al, 2013 ; Finneran and Stephenson, 2013 ; Mauritz et al, 2013 ; Wadsworth and Records, 2013 ; Alvarez-Segura et al, 2014 ; Ba and Bhopal, 2017 ; Chmielowska and Fuhr, 2017 ; Dworkin et al, 2017 ; Bows, 2018 ; Dworkin, 2018 ; Pulverman et al, 2019 ; Shamblaw et al, 2019 ; Dame et al, 2020 ; Godier-McBard and Jones, 2020 ; Kahsay et al, 2020 ; Paulson, 2020 ; Forkus et al, 2021 ; Klein and Martin, 2021 ; Mazza et al, 2021 ; Diez-Canseco et al, 2022 ; Klein et al, 2022 ; Nicholas et al, 2022 ; Rani et al, 2022 ; Lombardi et al, 2023 ; Spencer et al, 2023 ). In addition, 37% of patients with bipolar disorder report having experienced ASA, and a small to large effect size is found when comparing the bipolar disorder prevalence in survivors and controls (Mauritz et al, 2013 ; Dworkin et al, 2017 ).…”

“…Sexual violence additionally is related to occupational functioning. Specifically, survivors report being more dissatisfied with their jobs, colleagues, and supervisors, as well as report decreased job productivity, commitment and attendance (Wilness et al, 2007 ; Stewart et al, 2019 ; Godier-McBard and Jones, 2020 ).…”

“…Alongside changes in sexual frequency, more than one in 10 to nearly six in 10 survivors report sexual difficulties (e.g., sexual dysfunction, decreased sexual satisfaction, decreased sexual desire, decreased sexual pleasure) with reviews finding small to medium-sized effects when comparing survivors, controls, and survivors of other trauma types (Campbell et al, 2000 ; Van Berlo and Ensink, 2000 ; Coker, 2007 ; Ba and Bhopal, 2017 ; Pulverman et al, 2019 ; Dame et al, 2020 ; Godier-McBard and Jones, 2020 ; Pulverman and Creech, 2021 ). However, two reviews found no difference between survivors and (military) controls regarding sexual wellbeing (Peterson et al, 2011 ; Pulverman et al, 2019 ).…”

“…In addition, it was found that 10.0%−60.0% of survivors report social dysfunction (Ba and Bhopal, 2017 ) and that 66.0%−75.0% report distrust of others, 20.0% report withdrawal from social activities and 80.0% made social changes (e.g., joining a religious group, joining delinquent peer groups, avoiding areas; Peterson et al, 2011 ). In addition, SV survivors report experiencing interpersonal problems, including problems with peers and family (Messman-Moore and Long, 2003 ; Dillon et al, 2013 ; Godier-McBard and Jones, 2020 ; Kahsay et al, 2020 ; Spencer et al, 2023 ). Three reviews evaluated the impact of ASA on ongoing intimate relationships.…”