Understanding Forced Sex During Adolescence: An Exploratory Study of Risk and Protective Factors

The overall purpose of this study was to explore predictors of forced sex among a sample of middle school students. Youth Risk Behavior Surveys were distributed to middle school youth in southeast Florida. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-Square Automatic Interaction Detector (CHAID), and logistic regression. In the final CHAID model, the segment most at risk was comprised of youth who had been harassed for being gay, lesbian, or bisexual and youth who had experienced dating violence. Past exposure with violence yielded the highest association with forced sex. Moreover, having multiple sexual partners, use of prescription drugs, and experiencing harassment for being gay, lesbian, or bisexual are predictors of forced sex. This study has implications for school-based prevention of forced sex through the identification of risk and protective factors that can be targeted with evidence-based interventions