#StudentsToo. prevalence of sexual assault reports among students of three European universities and their actions post-assault

Abstract

Objective Previous research has indicated high rates of sexual assault (SA) among US students (> 25%). Yet this type of investigation has been less frequent at European universities. Methods We conducted an investigation at three universities, two Dutch universities (N = 95 and N = 305) and one university in Belgium (N = 307). Students were asked to estimate the prevalence of SA, and to report about their personal experience. We defined SA as any situation in which students were inappropriately touched, forced to a sexual act without their consent, or were (sexually) verbally intimidated. Results 56% of students (Location 1: n = 54/95; Location 2: n = 172/305; Location 3: n = 172/307) across all three samples reported experiencing SA. The disclosed assaults were mostly unwanted sexual contact (i.e., groping) by male strangers aged 18–35 years. One-third of the sample reported to have done nothing post-assault, and among those who took actions, the majority disclosed the assault to friends, but rarely to family members. Also, 3–5% of students (Location 1: n = 3; Location 2: n = 11; Location 3: n = 11) (falsely) denied the assault. Seeking justice and needing support were important motivators of action, whereas psychological factors (i.e., memory distrust) were antagonists of this. Finally, besides psychological factors, fear of interpersonal consequences (e.g., being labelled as a “drama queen”) was a strong influence to either deny or try to forget the assault. Conclusion SA appears to be frequent among European students and further investigation including other European universities is warranted.