Sexual victimization and health-risk behaviors: a prospective analysis of college women.
The present study utilizes the National College Health Risk Behavior Survey to examine the relationship between health-risk behaviors and sexual victimization among a sample of college women. A prospective design is utilized to examine the relationship between health-risk behaviors as measured at baseline and sexual victimization during a 3-month follow-up period. After controlling for age and parents' education, a history of adolescent sexual victimization was associated with the following health-risk behaviors as measured at pretest: increased likelihood of cigarette smoking, marijuana use, suicidal ideation, experience of physical violence within a dating relationship, use of diet pills and vomiting or laxatives to lose weight, multiple sexual partners, and early sexual intercourse. Prospectively, women's history of adolescent sexual victimization was the strongest predictor of sexual victimization during the 3-month follow-up. Implications of univariate associations between early sexual intercourse, suicidal ideation, and problematic weight loss behaviors and subsequent experience of sexual victimization are discussed.
Gidycz
Christine A
CA
Department of Psychology, Ohio University, Athens, OH 45701, USA. gidycz@ohio.edu
Orchowski
Lindsay M
LM
King
Carrie R
CR
Rich
Cindy L
CL
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D000328:Adult; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011902:Rape / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*