The impact of sociocultural contexts on mental health following sexual violence: A conceptual model.

Dworkin, Emily R.; Weaver, Terri L.

doi:10.1037/vio0000350

Cited by 27 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…Recent work has underscored the importance of acknowledging social determinants of mental health, including the potential contribution of risk and protective factors at various social ecological levels, including individual, interpersonal, and community levels (Dworkin & Weaver, 2021). Factors at each level have been shown to confer risk or protection over time (Nichter et al, 2020), and may vary based on self-identified SGM status (McDowell et al, 2019).…”

Section: Social–ecological Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contrasting ecological contexts among treatment-seeking military sexual assault survivors: Consideration of relationships with sexual and gender minority identification.

Paulson¹,

Florimbio²,

Rogers³

et al. 2024

Psychological Services

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Survivors of military sexual trauma (MST) seeking mental health services may present with concerns extending beyond symptom relief. Attention to social, economic, and coping resource contexts is salient for care consideration. Although those identifying as sexual and gender minorities (SGM) are overrepresented among service members exposed to assaultive MST, research contrasting ecological resource variability among treatment seekers is limited. The present study delineates modifiable risk and protective factors that might be used to inform MST-related health care for Veterans, broadly, and SGM-identifying Veterans, specifically. Veterans (N = 493, 12.8% identifying as SGM) presenting for treatment secondary to military sexual assault completed a semistructured clinical interview and intake survey including demographic characteristics, diversity-related factors, and access to psychosocial resources. SGM/non-SGM-identifying groups were contrasted on individual-, interpersonal-, and community-level ecological characteristics. SGM-identifying Veterans were less likely to report access to sufficient financial resources and had double the prevalence rate of housing instability in contrast to non-SGM-identifying Veterans. No significant differences emerged in terms of past-year interpersonal violence exposure, endorsement of helpful spiritual beliefs, or availability of social support based on SGM identification. Findings underscore the importance of attending to the intersection of SGM identity and ecological factors that can influence Veterans' clinical presentation and treatment engagement. Recommendations for provision of MST services are made. Impact StatementThe present study supports the notion that military sexual trauma is a significant public health concern, and highlights important ecological factors for clinicians to consider in assessing and treating sexual and gender minority-identifying Veterans.

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Section: Social–ecological Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contrasting ecological contexts among treatment-seeking military sexual assault survivors: Consideration of relationships with sexual and gender minority identification.

Paulson¹,

Florimbio²,

Rogers³

et al. 2024

Psychological Services

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Recovery from sexual assault is fundamentally embedded in survivors’ social contexts, which can be a source of protection or risk for mental health (Dworkin & Weaver, 2021; Joseph et al, 1997; Williams & Joseph, 1999). Perceived global functional support, or the perception that social support is available, is consistently associated with less trauma-related psychopathology in cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of trauma exposure (Guay et al, 2006; Wang et al, 2021), including sexual assault (Littleton, 2010; Ullman, 1999).…”

Section: Social Support and Mental Healthmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social Network Changes and Disclosure Responses After Sexual Assault

Jaffe

Blayney

Schallert

et al. 2022

Psychology of Women Quarterly

Self Cite

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Social support after sexual assault is important for recovery, but violence and recovery may also challenge relationships. We examined functional and structural social support changes following sexual assault and their association with mental health. College women ( N = 544) with and without a sexual assault history completed a cross-sectional survey assessing current and past egocentric social networks. Functional support (perceived global support, assault disclosure, and perceived helpfulness of responses) and structural support (network density, size, and retention) were examined. Multilevel models revealed that, relative to non-survivors, survivors reported smaller, less dense past networks, but similarly sized current networks. Survivors retained less of their networks than non-survivors, and network members who provided unhelpful responses to disclosure were less likely to be retained. Structural equation modeling revealed that, among survivors, perceived unhelpful responses to disclosure and a greater loss of network members were associated with worse mental health. Findings suggest that survivors may experience a restructuring of social networks following sexual assault, especially when network members respond in unhelpful ways to disclosure. Although survivors appeared to build new relationships, this restructuring was associated with more mental health problems. It is possible that interventions to improve post-assault social network retention may facilitate recovery.

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“…Finally, framing effects can activate stereotypes or myths regarding sexual violence, particularly rape (Littleton et al, 2006). American culture tends to promote attitudes and beliefs that blame victims and diminish the perpetrator’s responsibility (Dworkin & Weaver, 2020; Johnson & Johnson, 2017). An example of the deep stigma associated with rape is the construct of rape acknowledgment, defined in part by the internalization of stigma.…”

Section: Prior Research On Framing Effects In Violence Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Study Title-Based Framing Effects on Reports of Sexual Violence and Associated Risk Factors in College Students

Anderson

Namie

Michel

et al. 2021

J Interpers Violence

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Objective: There are many methodological issues in studying sexual violence, including potential framing effects. Framing effects refer to how researchers communicate the purpose of a study to participants, such as, how the study is advertised or explained. The aim of this study was to investigate if framing effects were associated with differences in participants’ self-reported experiences of sexual violence and related correlates. Methods: College students ( N = 782) were recruited to participate in one of four identical studies that differed in the title: “Questionnaires about Alcohol,” “Questionnaires about Crime,” “Questionnaires about Health,” or “Questionnaires about Sexual Assault.” Participants chose one of the four studies and completed measures of sexual violence as well as attitudinal and behavioral measures in randomized order. Results: We found significantly more reports of childhood sexual abuse (33.6% vs. 18.5%), rape (33.9% vs. 21.1%), higher frequency of victimization ( M = 11.35 vs. 5.44), and greater acknowledged rape for bisexual people (46.2% vs. 0.0%) in the sexual assault (SA) condition compared to other conditions. There were no differences in sexual violence perpetration or attitudinal or behavioral measures. Conclusion: These results revealed that framing effects, based on the study title, affect outcomes in sexual victimization research. Rape was reported 1.6× more in the “Sexual Assault” condition than in the “Health” condition. It is unclear whether these framing effects reflect self-selection bias or framing related increased reports in the SA condition, suppression of reports in other conditions, or a combination thereof.

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The impact of sociocultural contexts on mental health following sexual violence: A conceptual model.

Cited by 27 publications

References 72 publications

Contrasting ecological contexts among treatment-seeking military sexual assault survivors: Consideration of relationships with sexual and gender minority identification.

Contrasting ecological contexts among treatment-seeking military sexual assault survivors: Consideration of relationships with sexual and gender minority identification.

Social Network Changes and Disclosure Responses After Sexual Assault

Study Title-Based Framing Effects on Reports of Sexual Violence and Associated Risk Factors in College Students

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