Study shows 20 percent of Indiana women have been raped

INDIANAPOLIS (WANE) Statistics revealed in a Centers for Disease Control survey indicate 20.4 percent of Indiana women have been raped during their lifetime and in the U.S., 24 people experience sexual violence every minute.

The findings were released Tuesday by the Indiana State Department of Health.   The CDC survey also found that 43.9 percent of Indiana women have experienced sexual violence other than rape.  For Indiana men that percentage is 25.8 percent.

The first of its kind survey was conducted by the CDC in 2010.  The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey is ongoing, and will track trends in sexual violence, stalking and intimate partner violence. Additional reports will be released in 2012 that provide more detailed analyses of particular kinds of violence and victimization among special populations.

The study concludes that sexual violence, stalking and intimate partner violence are a major public health hazard in the United States.

Some of the more alarming stats from the survey are detailed below:

• Nearly 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men have been raped in their lifetime.
• Approximately 80% of female victims were raped before the age of 25, and almost half before the age of 18. About 35% of women who were raped as minors were also raped as adults compared to 14% of women without an early rape history.
• 1 in 4 women have been the victims of severe physical violence by an intimate partner while 1 in 7 men experienced severe violence by an intimate partner.
• 81% of women who experienced rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner reported significant short and long term impacts related to the IPV experienced such as fear, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and injury, while 35% of men reported such impacts from the IPV experienced.
• Women who experienced rape or stalking by any perpetrator or physical violence by an intimate partner were more likely than women who did not experience these forms of violence to report asthma, diabetes, and irritable bowel syndrome, as well as other health consequences.
   

The survey respondents included English and Spanish speaking female and male adults living in the United States. Respondents were asked about victimization over their lifetime and in the 12 months prior to taking the survey.

To learn more about sexual violence prevention in Indiana and the Sexual Violence Primary Prevention Council, visit the Office of Women’s Health at the Indiana State Department of Health at www.womenshealth.isdh.in.gov.