Rape....research paper
...entage of attempted rape reports slipped slightly to thirty-four percent, leaving sixty-five percent unreported. The top three reasons given for not reporting these crimes were: personal matters 16.8 percent fear of retaliation 11.3 percent, and to protect the offender 9.9 percent. (2) “The majority of sexual rapes are committed by someone the victim knows. Among victims aged eighteen to twenty-nine, two-thirds had a prior relationship with the offender. During 2000, about six in ten rape or sexual assault victims stated the offender was and intimate partner, relative, friend, or acquaintance.” A study of sexual victimization of college women showed that most victims knew the person who sexually victimized them. “For both completed and attempted rapes, about nine in ten offenders were known to the victim.” Sexual assault can be committed within any type of relationship, including marriage, dating, friendship, casual acquaintances, or co-workers. Sexual assault can occur in heterosexual or same-gender relationships. It does not matter whether there is a current or past relationship between the victim and offender; unwanted sexual activity is still sexual assault and is a serious crime. (3) The new date-rape drugs are even more dangerous. Like alcohol, these drugs knock out their victim, leaving him or her with no recollection of what happened while under their influence. But one doesn’t have to drink excessively to succumb to the effects, nor does one have to be drinking alcohol. A soft drink or even water will do. And because the drugs are eliminated from your body (metabolized) within 72 hours, it's difficult to detect them in drug screenings later on. “Rohypnol and GHB, gamma hydroxyl butyrate, are the most widely recognized and most used date rape drugs to date.” Both are tasteless, odorless, and colorless depressants that mix easily with any drink. These drugs render a person unconscious within minutes. These are only a few of the many different drugs that can play a role in rape. (5) Rape can scar the survivor both emotionally and physically and affects the entire family. Physical after-effects include sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy, Hepatitis B or HIV/Aids, urinary tract infections and damage. “Many rape survivors also experience severe physical symptoms of nervousness and tension, rapid heartbeat, chest pain, indigestion, nausea and vomiting, tremors, dizziness, fatigue, confusion or memory loss, headaches, and sleeplessness.” Rape survivors go through 3 definable stages of rape trauma syndrome: trauma, denial and resolution. The trauma stage could consist of fear of being alone. This may be especially acute shortly after the rape but could also continue for a long while afterwards. A person may be fearful and angry at all people of the opposite sex. Victims of date rape, especially, are left doubting their choice of partners and wondering how they can ever again date safely. Sexual problems are a very common effect. For some people, these may continue for a long time since the sexual act now has been associated with strong negative feelings. Depression can sometimes come and go over a long period of time. Usually, the more a survivor can talk about his or her situation, the easier it is for one to deal with the depression. Fear of retaliation may be a legitimate fear, especially if charges are pressed. Loss of trust may only surface long after the rape has occurred. This distrust usually sets in when the survivor begins to date again and fears the reoccurrence of rape. Concern over reactions from family and friends is another part of the trauma stage. Feelings of anger, helplessness, guilt, pain, embarrassment, or anxiety are also involved. These are all typical reactions and generally disappear over time. As a way of coping with the...