Sexual violence prevalence and disclosure patterns among college undergraduates: exploring types of sexual violence and incident-specific characteristics

Patterns of Violence Victimization and Disclosure Among Transgender/Gender Nonconforming and Cisgender Latinx College Students

“…Studies with Latinx and transgender college students indicate high rates of sexual violence for these populations (Cusano et al, 2021;Hoxmeier, 2016), but often these studies fail to account for the intersection of ethnicity and Those who disclosed to both an informal and formal source. f Those who disclosed to any source (informal only, formal only, both formal and informal, or other).…”

“…Preliminary research indicates that some students belonging to minoritized groups have lower rates of disclosure than White students. For example, Asian students have been found to have low rates of disclosure, while Latinx students were less likely than White students to make a formal disclosure (Cusano et al, 2021). In a qualitative study with Latinx college cisgender women, students described that disclosing sexual violence would lead to gossip and bring shame to the family, and thus, keeping this information hidden from within and outside of the family is a way to prevent gossip (Christensen et al, 2021).…”

“…Likewise, Black college students have been found to disclose less than their White peers (Ameral et al, 2020), and disclosure to formal campus supports at Historically Black Colleges or Universities is rare (Lindquist et al, 2016). Similar to students of color, gender nonconforming and male students disclose at lower rates compared to their female peers (Cusano et al, 2021).…”

“…Studies conducted with college students find high rates of sexual violence victimization in the Latinx population. For example, Cusano et al (2021) found that 21% of Hispanic undergraduate students experienced at least one form of sexual violence since their enrollment, indicating that sexual violence among Latinx college students is a pressing issue needing more attention. However, few studies have directly examined sexual violence among this population, instead focusing on larger samples of primarily White students.…”

“…While most survivors of sexual violence do not disclose their experiences to official sources (formal disclosures) such as the police or campus Title IX offices (Fisher et al, 2003), three out of four cisgender women do disclose their experience to a friend or peer (Fisher et al, 2003; Orchowski et al, 2013). Studies found that 4% of survivors disclose to a campus official (Cusano et al, 2021; Fisher et al, 2003). When the definition of formal disclosing is expanded to include victim services centers, counseling, and so on, Cusano et al (2021) demonstrated higher rates (33%) of survivors’ disclosure to a formal source.…”