Past sexual assaults on female college students triples risk of future victimization

A new study has revealed that female college students, who have suffered severe sexual victimization, were three times more likely to experience the assault in future.

The research by University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions (RIA) indicated that female college students who are victims of sexual assault are at a much higher risk of becoming victims again.

Kathleen A. Parks, PhD, said that initially, they were attempting to see if victimization increased drinking, and if drinking then increased future risk, instead, they found that the biggest predictor of future victimization was not drinking, but past victimization.

However, it was also found that severe sexual victimization decreased across the years in college, she further added.

In light of the recent report from the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault, the study shows that campuses need to be aware of the increased risk of future victimization for women who have experienced sexual assault, the researchers say.

Colleges also must keep an eye out for long-term drinking problems with trauma victims: women who were victims showed an increase in drinking in the year following their assaults, perhaps as a coping mechanism.

The study appeared in the online edition of Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.