Citation

Witt A, Rassenhofer M, Allroggen M, Brahler E, Plener PL, Fegert JM. Sex. Abuse 2019; 31(6): 643-661.

Affiliation

University of Ulm, Germany.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1079063218759323

PMID

29502476

Abstract

The lifetime prevalence of sexual abuse in institutional settings in Germany was examined in a sample representative of the general adult population ( N = 2,437). Participants completed a survey on whether they had ever experienced such abuse, its nature (contact, noncontact, forced sexual, intercourse), the type of institution (e.g. school, club), and the relationship of perpetrator to victim (peer, caregiver, staff member). Overall, 3.1% of adult respondents (women: 4.8%, men: 0.8%) reported having experienced some type of sexual abuse in institutions. Adult women reported higher rates of all types than did men, with rates of 3.9% versus 0.8% for contact sexual abuse, 1.2% versus 0.3% for noncontact sexual abuse, and 1.7% versus 0.2% for forced sexual intercourse. We conclude that a remarkable proportion of the general population experiences sexual abuse in institutions, underscoring the need for development of protective strategies. Especially, schools seem to represent good starting points for primary prevention strategies.

Language: en

Keywords

abuse; child sexual abuse; sexual abuse; sexual offender; victim