Experiencing sexual violence may have serious long-term consequences for victims. Seeking help may decrease the chances of developing long-term physical and psychosocial problems. Still not every victim seeks help, and especially with victimization of sexual violence, there may be several reasons as to why. The barriers to help-seeking are diverse and may depend on several contextual factors. This study, as part of a larger research project, aimed to determine the barriers that victims of sexual violence experience in their decision to seek help in a non-college setting. This mixed-methods study included an online survey (N = 133) and open-ended survey (N = 207) amongst victims of 18 years and older. The online survey data were analyzed using chi-square tests for independence and t-tests; the open-ended survey data were analyzed using a descriptive approach. The online survey data showed that minimization of the incident was higher for non-help-seekers, whilst distrust toward support providers and issues with the accessibility of help were higher for help-seekers. No further significant associations were found between the decision to seek help and the barriers to help-seeking. From the open-ended survey data, three categories of barriers were distinguished: (a) individual barriers, such as feelings of shame, (b) interpersonal barriers, such as the fear of negative social reactions and (c) sociocultural barriers, such as societal stereotypes regarding sexual violence. The findings suggest that victims experience various, but primarily individual, barriers to help-seeking and that these barriers do not strongly differ between help-seekers and non-help-seekers. This study highlights the importance of addressing barriers to help-seeking on an organizational and societal level to encourage help-seeking.

Elder abuse, including emotional, physical, sexual, financial, and neglectful mistreatment is widespread in the United States, with as much as 11% of community-residing older adults experiencing some form of abuse in the past year. Little data exist regarding the prevalence of polyvictimization, or experience of multiple forms of abuse, which may exacerbate negative outcomes over that of any one form of victimization in isolation. This study evaluates the prevalence of elder polyvictimization among a nationally representative sample of community-residing U.S. older adults. Data from the National Elder Mistreatment Study were examined using bivariate and logistic regression analyses. Approximately, 1.7% of older adults experienced past-year polyvictimization, for which risk factors included problems accomplishing activities of daily living (odds ratio [OR] = 2.47), low social support (OR = 1.64), and past experience of traumatic events (OR = 4.81). Elder polyvictimization is a serious problem affecting community-residing older adults with identifiable targets for intervention.

The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of domestic violence in adolescent and adult mothers who were admitted to obstetrics services centers in Brazil and to identify risk factors of domestic violence and any adverse obstetric and perinatal outcomes. Researchers used standardized interviews, the questionnaire Abuse Assessment Screen, and a review of patients\' medical records. Descriptive statistical analyses were also used. The prevalence of domestic violence among all participants totaled 40.1% (38.5% of adolescents, 41.7% of adults). Factors associated with domestic violence during pregnancy were as follows: a history of family violence, a greater number of sexual partners, and being a smoker. No statistically significant association was found for adverse obstetric and perinatal outcomes. Results showed that, in Vitória, Espírito Santo, Brazil, pregnancy did not protect a woman from suffering domestic violence.

The 1990s saw the development of research on violence against women perpetrated by intercollegiate student-athletes. Research in this field stagnated during the last 15 years, despite the fact that this time period has evidenced multiple high-profile, even fatal, cases of violence against women at the hands of male student-athletes. These events prompted the Office of Civil Rights to call upon universities to more appropriately investigate and sanction perpetrators of sexual assault. The ensuing actions by universities are expected to bring a renewed focus on male student-athletes, requiring further research to explore student-athletes sexually abusing women. This article outlines the pertinent literature on violence against women by male student-athletes, and suggests future research using new institutionalism as a theoretical framework.