An Examination of Sexual Assault, Intimate Partner Violence, and Dating Violence among University Students in a Rural Setting

Sexual assault, dating violence, and IPV are critical issues, both nationally and in the state of Georgia. Data from the Georgia Department of Human Resources (2008) reveals that domestic violence is a leading cause of injury for women between the ages of 15-44. More recently, results from the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System reveal that 16.1% of high school students in Georgia had experienced dating violence in the previous year. With regard to college students, estimates of the prevalence of dating violence vary widely across studies, depending upon the sample and how the violence is measured. In general, studies of college student samples suggest that between 20% and 40% experience physical violence in their dating relationships. The current study addresses a significant gap in the literature by examining the prevalence of victimization in a rural setting. This paper will present findings from a large-scale survey of upper division college students enrolled in a medium sized university located in rural Georgia. Students’ reported experiences with sexual, physical, emotional victimization will be presented, and the relationship between victimization and a variety of demographic variables such as race, religion, sexual orientation, and fraternity/sorority membership will be discussed