In this chapter, we describe the history of sexual violence as it pertains to postsecondary institutions, focusing on social movements, research, and policy, and their implications for higher education.

Assessed alcohol's role in sexual assaults by male college students. Interactions of alcohol use with assault variables did not suggest any role of alcohol use in predicting sexual aggression severity. Offender propensity to abuse alcohol and victim preassault alcohol use directly and indirectly related to sexual aggression severity. Offender…

Rape is believed to be one of the most underreported crimes with 3 to 10 rapes committed for every one that is reported. Rape represents an extreme behavior which can be placed on a continuum of sexual aggression defined by degrees of coercion and force. The prevalence of sexual aggression among college students nationally was examined in 3,187…

Examined accuracy with which rape and lesser sexual assaults were predicted among 2,723 college women. Fourteen risk variables operationalized three vulnerability hypotheses: vulnerability-creating traumatic experiences, social-psychological vulnerability, and vulnerability-enhancing situations. Only traumatic experiences variables clearly…

Administered the Sexual Experiences Survey to a national sample of women and men enrolled in 32 institutions of higher education. Women's reports of experiencing and men's reports of perpetrating rape, attempted rape, sexual coercion, and sexual contact were obtained. The findings support published assertions of high rates of rape and other forms…

Examined rape by strangers and by acquaintances, including nonromantic acquaintances, casual dates, steady dates, and family members in 489 rape victims. Acquaintance rape typically involved single offender and multiple episodes, was less often perceived as rape or revealed to anyone, and, except for rapes by family members, was rated less…