Institutional Response and Impact of Reporting Sexual Violence: An Examination of Sexual and Gender Minority College Students

Abstract

Although college students who are sexual and gender minorities (SGM) experience higher rates of sexual victimization than their peers who identify as heterosexual and cisgender, there is a paucity in the literature investigating how college campuses can address the needs of SGM college students in violence prevention and response. The present research examines a subset of data from the Healthy Minds Survey (HMS), a national web-based survey administered across two universities from 2016 to 2017. We examined the role of SGM status in the rates of sexual violence, perceptions of their college/university’s institutional response to reports of sexual violence (e.g., taking a report seriously and taking corrective action), and the perceived impact of reporting sexual violence (e.g., students would support the person making a report). Logistic regression analyses revealed higher rates of sexual victimization among sexual minority students (compared to heterosexual), women (compared to men), and transgender and gender diverse (TGD) students (compared to cisgender). In addition, sexual minority (compared to heterosexual), women (compared to men), and TGD (compared to cisgender) students were more likely to perceive their institution would have a poor response to reports of sexual violence. Women and sexual minority students were also likely to believe that students who report sexual violence would suffer academically. These findings highlight the need for continued efforts to enhance sexual assault prevention and response efforts on college campuses, especially for SGM students.

Keywords

interpersonal violence sexual assault reporting college students sexual minority

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Ali

(2011). Dear colleague letter. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights.

Altmaier

(2019). Are you my ally: Implications for training on bias-related incidents. Journal of College and University Student Housing, 45(3), 56-70.

Backhaus

Lipson

S. K.

Fisher

L. B.

Kawachi

Pedrelli

(2019). Sexual assault, sense of belonging, depression and suicidality among LGBQ and heterosexual college students. Journal of American College Health, 69(4):404–412. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2019.1679155

Black

M. C.

Basile

K. C.

Breiding

M. J.

Smith

S. G.

Walters

M. L.

Merrick

M. T.

Stevens

M. R.

(2011). The national intimate partner and sexual violence survey (NISVS): 2010 summary report. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention.

Bogen

K. W.

Leach

N. R.

Meza Lopez

R. J.

Orchowski

L. M.

(2018). Supporting students in responding to disclosure of sexual violence: A systematic review of online university resources. Journal of Sexual Aggression, 25(1),31–48.

Brown

R. D.

Clark

B. L.

Gortmaker

Robinson-Keilig

(2004).Assessing the campus climate for gay, lesbian, and transgender (GLBT) students using multiple perspectives approach. Journal of College Student Development, 45(1), 8–26.

Cantor

Fisher

Chibnal

Harps

Townsend

Thomas

Lee

Kranz

Hervison

Madden

(2020). Report on the aau campus climate survey on sexual assault and misconduct, revised. Westat. https://www.aau.edu/key-issues/campus-climate-and-safety/aau-campus-climate-survey-2019.

Carey

K. B.

Norris

A. L.

Durney

S. E.

Shepardson

R. L.

Carey

M. P.

(2018). Mental health consequences of sexual assault among first-year college women. Journal of American College Health, 66(6), 480–486. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2018.1431915

Coulter

R. W. S.

Rankin

S. R.

(2020).College sexual assault and campus climate for sexual- and gender-minority undergraduate students. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 35(5–6),1351–1366.

10.

Coulter

R. W. S.

Rankin

S. R.

(2020).College sexual assault and campus climate for sexual- and gender-minority undergraduate students. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 35(5-6), 1351-1366. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260517696870.

11.

Coulter

R. W. S.

Mair

Miller

Blosnich

J. R.

Matthews

D. D.

McCauley

H. L.

(2017). Prevalence of past-year sexual assault victimization among undergraduate students: Exploring differences by and intersections of gender identity, sexual identity, and race/ethnicity. Prevention Science, 18(6),726–736.

12.

Dentato

M. P.

Halkitis

P. N.

Orwat

(2013).Minority stress theory: An examination of factors surrounding sexual risk behavior among gay &bisexual men who use club drugs. Journal of Gay &Lesbian Social Services, 25(4), 509–525. https://doi.org/10.1080/10538720.2013.829395

13.

Department of Justice (2014).Office of Justice ProgramsRape and sexual victimization among college-agedfemales, 1995-2013. Bureau of Justice Statistics. www.rainn.org/statistics.

14.

Dills

Fowler

Payne

(2016).Sexual violence on campus: Strategies for prevention. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention.

15.

Dworkin

E. R.

Menon

S. V.

Bystrynski

Allen

N. E.

(2017). Sexual assault victimization and psychopathology: A review and meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 56, 65–81.

16.

Edwards

K. M.

Sylaska

K. M.

Barry

J. E.

Moynihan

M. M.

Banyard

V. L.

Cohn

E. S.

Ward

S. K.

(2015a). Physical dating violence, sexual violence, and unwanted pursuit victimization: A comparison of incidence rates among sexual-minority and heterosexual college students. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 30(4), 580–600.

17.

Edwards

K. M.

Sylaska

K. M.

Neal

A. M.

(2015b).Intimate partner violence among sexual minority populations: A critical review of the literature and agenda for future research. Psychology of Violence, 5(2), 112–121.

18.

Eisenberg

Golberstein

Hunt

J. B.

(2009).Mental health and academic success in college. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, 9(1), 40.

19.

Eisenberg

Lipson

S. K.

Ceglarek

Kern

Phillips

M. V.

(2018). College student mental health: The national landscape. In Cimini

M. D.

Rivero

E. M.

(Eds.), Promoting behavioral health and reducing risk among college students: A comprehensive approach (pp. 105–117). Routledge.

20.

Evans

Nagoshi

J. L.

Nagoshi

Wheeler

Henderson

(2017).Voices from the stories untold: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer college students’ experiences with campus climate. Journal of Gay and Lesbian Social Services, 29(6), 1-19.

21.

Evans

N. J.

(2002). The impact of an LGBT safe zone project on campus climate. Journal of College Student Development, 43(4), 522–539.

22.

Federici

Katz

(2017).Effect of exposure to a safe zone symbol on perceptions of campus climate for LGBTQ students. Proceedings of GREAT Day, 3(3), 1–8.

23.

Frankfurt

S. B.

DeBeer

B. B.

Morissette

S. B.

Kimbrel

N. A.

La Bash

Meyer

E. C.

(2018). Mechanisms of moral injury following military sexual trauma and combat in post-9/11 US. War Veterans. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 9, 520. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00520.

24.

Griner

S.B.

Vamos

C.A.

Thompson

E.L.

Logan

Vázquez-Otero

Daley

E.M.

(2020). The intersection of gender identity and violence: Victimization experienced by transgender college students. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 35(23–24), 5704–5725.

25.

Healthy Minds Network (2017)The healthy minds study: 2016-2017 data report. https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/resources/healthy-minds-study-2016-2017-data-report

26.

Healthy Minds Network (2018).What’s new?http://www.healthymindsnetwork.org/

27.

Healthy Minds Network (2019). Data for researchers. https://healthymindsnetwork.org/research/data-for-researchers/

28.

Hequembourg

A. L.

Parks

K. A.

Collins

R. L.

Hughes

T. L.

(2015). Sexual assault risks among gay and bisexual men. The Journal of Sex Research, 52(3), 282–295. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2013.856836

29.

Hughes

McCabe

S. E.

Wilsnack

S. C.

West

B. T.

Boyd

C. J.

(2010).Victimization and substance use disorders in a national sample of heterosexual and sexual minority women and men. Addiction, 105(12), 2130–2140. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2010.03088.x

30.

Institute of Medicine (2011).The health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people: Building a foundation for better understanding. https://doi.org/10.17226/13128

31.

Johnson

L. M.

Matthews

T. L.

Napper

S. L.

(2016).Sexual orientation and sexual assault victimization among US college students. The Social Science Journal, 53(2), 174–183.

32.

Jordan

C. E.

Combs

J. L.

Smith

G. T.

(2014). An exploration of sexual victimization and academic performance among college women. TraumaViolence & Abuse, 15(3), 191–200. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838014520637

33.

Kammer-Kerwick

Wang

McClain

Hoefer

Swartout

Backes

Busch-Armendariz

(2019).Sexual violence among gender and sexual minority college students: The risk and extent of victimization and related health and educational outcomes. Journal of Interpersonal Violence,1–28.

34.

Katz

Federici

Ciovacco

Cropsey

(2016).Effect of exposure to a safe zone symbol on perceptions of campus climate for sexual minority students. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 3(3), 367–373.

35.

Kern

Hong

Song

Lipson

S. K.

Eisenberg

(2018).Mental health apps in a college setting: Openness, usage, and attitudes. MHealth, 4(20), 20. https://doi.org/10.21037/mhealth.2018.06.01.

36.

Krebs

Lindquist

Berzofsky

Shook-Sa

Peterson

Planty

Langton

Stroop

(2016).Campus climate survey validation study final technical report. Issue: Bureau of Justice Statistics Research and Development Series. https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/ccsvsftr.pdf

37.

Linder

Myers

J. S.

(2018).Institutional betrayal as a motivator for campus sexual assault activism. NASPA Journal About Women in Higher Education, 11(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/19407882.2017.1385489

38.

Lipson

S. K.

Eisenberg

(2018).Mental health and academic attitudes and expectations in university populations: Results from the healthy minds study. Journal of Mental Health, 27(3), 205–213. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638237.2017.1417567

39.

McKinley

C. J.

Luo

Wright

P. J.

Kraus

(2015).Reexamining LGBT resources on college counseling center websites: An over-time and cross-country analysis. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 43(1), 112–129.

40.

McMahon

Seabrook

R. C.

(2019). Reasons for nondisclosure of campus sexual violence by sexual and racial/ethnic minority women. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 57(4), 417–431. https://doi.org/10.1080/19496591.2019.1662798

41.

Mennicke

Geiger

Brewster

(2019).Interpersonal violence prevention considerations for sexual minority college students: Lower campus connection, worse perceptions of institutional support, and more accurate understandings of sexual consent. Journal of Family Violence, 35(1), 589–660. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-019-00089-5

42.

Meyer

I. H.

(1995).Minority stress and mental health in gay men. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 36(1), 38–56. https://doi.org/10.2307/2137286

43.

Meyer

I. H.

(2003).Prejudice, social stress, and mental health in lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations: Conceptual issues and research evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 129(5), 674–697. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.129.5.674

44.

Muthén

L. K.

Muthén

B. O.

(2017).Mplus(Version 8.0) [Mobile application software]. https://www.statmodel.com/index.shtml.

45.

National Institute of Health (2015).Racial and ethnic categories and definitions for NIH diversity programs and for other reporting purposes. https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not-od-15-089.html

46.

National Institutes of Health (2020). About SGMRO.National Institutes of health sexual &gender minority research office. https://dpcpsi.nih.gov/sgmro

47.

Parr

N. J.

(2020). Sexual assault and co-occurrence of mental health outcomes among cisgender female, cisgender male, and gender minority US college students. The Journal of Adolescent Health, 67(5), 722–726. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.03.040

48.

Paulk

Murray

Hunt

Williams

(2017). An Assessment of Campus Climate among Sexual Minority College Students. Research in Higher Education Journal, 33, 1–10. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1161487.pdf

49.

Porter

Williams

L. M.

(2011).Intimate violence among underrepresented groups on a college campus. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 26(16), 3210–3224.

50.

Rankin

Weber

Blumenfeld

Frazer

(2010). 2010 state of higher education for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. Campus Pride.

51.

Rankin

S. R.

(1998). The campus climate report: Assessment and intervention strategies. In Sanlo

R. L.

(Ed.), Working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender college students: A handbook for faculty and administrators (pp. 277–284). Greenwood Press.

52.

Rankin

S. R.

(2004). Campus climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. The policy Institute of the national gay and lesbian task force. https://www.whoi.edu/cms/files/CampusClimate_23425.pdf

53.

Rankin

S. R.

(2005). Campus climates for sexual minorities. New Directions for Student Services, 2005(111), 17–23.

54.

Ratts

M. J.

Kaloper

McReady

Tighe

Butler

S. K.

Dempsey

McCullough

(2013). Safe space programs in K-12 schools: Creating a visible presence of LGBTQ allies. Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling, 7(4), 387–404.

55.

Reid

L. D.

Radhakrishnan

(2003).Race matters: The relation between race and general campus climate. Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology, 9(3), 263–275. https://doi.org/10.1037/1099-9809.9.3.263

56.

Rothman

Silverman

(2007). The effect of a college sexual assault prevention program on first-year students’ victimization rates. Journal of American College Health, 55(5), 283–290.

57.

Smith

C. P.

Freyd

J. J.

(2013). Dangerous safe havens: Institutional betrayal exacerbates sexual trauma. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 26(1), 119–124.

58.

Smith

C. P.

Freyd

J. J.

(2014).Institutional betrayal. American Psychologist, 69(6), 575–587.

59.

Smith

C. P.

Freyd

J. J.

(2017). Insult, then injury: Interpersonal and institutional betrayal linked to health and dissociation. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 26(10), 1117–1131. https://doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2017.1322654

60.

Stallman

H. M.

Lipson

S. K.

Zhou

Eisenberg

(2020). How do university students cope? An exploration of the health theory of coping in a US sample. Journal of American College Health, 16, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2020.1789149

61.

Tetreault

P. A.

Fette

Meidlinger

P. C.

Hope

(2013). Perceptions of campus climate by sexual minorities. Journal of Homosexuality, 60(7), 947–964.

62.

The Safe Zone Project (2019). Safe zone project. https://thesafezoneproject.com/

63.

The White House (2014). Not alone: The first report of the white house task force to protect students from sexual assault. U.S. Government Printing Office.

64.

Truman

J. L.

Langton

(2015). Crime victimization, 2014 (NCJ 248973).U.S. Department of Justice.

65.

United States Department of Education (2015). Title IX and sex discrimination. https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/tix_dis.html

66.

Walsh

W. A.

Banyard

V. L.

Moynihan

M. M.

Ward

Cohn

E. S.

(2009). Disclosure and service use on a college campus after an unwanted sexual experience. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 11(2), 134–151.

67.

Woodford

M. R.

Kulick

Garvey

J. C.

Sinco

B. R.

Hong

J. S.

(2018). LGBTQ policies and resources on campus and the experiences and psychological well-being of sexual minority college students: Advancing research on structural inclusion. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 5(4), 445–456.

68.

World Health Organization (2019). Definition and typology of violence. https://www.who.int/violenceprevention/approach/definition/en/

69.

Worthen

M. G. F.

(2013). An argument for separate analyses of attitudes toward lesbian, gay, bisexual men, bisexual women, MtF and FtM transgender individuals. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, 68(11–12), 703–723. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-012-0155-1

70.

Yost

M. R.

Gilmore

(2011). Assessing LGBTQ campus climate and creating change. Journal of Homosexuality, 58(9), 1330–1354.

71.

Zhang

A. Y.

Snowden

L. R.

Sue

(1998). Differences between Asian and white Americans’ help seeking and utilization patterns in the Los Angeles area. Journal of Community Psychology, 26(4), 317–326. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1520-6629