Journal article
Can I Ask for Help? The Relationship Among Incarcerated Males' Sexual Orientation, Sexual Abuse History, and Perceptions of Rape in Prison
JOURNAL OF INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE, v 35(19-20), pp 4117-4140
Oct 2020
PMID: 29294784
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
In 2003, Congress passed the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA). Although subsequent research to PREA has shed light on the prevalence and incidence of sexual violence in American prisons, few studies examine inmates' perceptions of rape and safety from rape in prison. Even less is known about how inmates' perceptions of rape influence mental health treatment-seeking behavior during incarceration. Using a sample of incarcerated men, this study adds to the limited body of research by examining the perceived fear of rape and mental health treatment-seeking behavior in two vulnerable prison populations-gay and bisexual inmates and inmates with a history of childhood sexual abuse. Compared with straight inmates, gay and bisexual inmates were approximately two times more likely to perceive that rape was a threat and three times more likely to voluntarily request mental health treatment in prison. Inmates with a history of childhood sexual abuse were over twice as likely to perceive the threat of rape and nearly four times more likely to request mental health treatment than inmates who did not report a history of childhood sexual abuse. Policy, practice implications, and recommendations for future research are discussed.
Metrics
Details
- Title
- Can I Ask for Help? The Relationship Among Incarcerated Males' Sexual Orientation, Sexual Abuse History, and Perceptions of Rape in Prison
- Publication Details
- JOURNAL OF INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE, v 35(19-20), pp 4117-4140
- Publisher
- SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC; THOUSAND OAKS
- Number of pages
- 0
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Drexel University
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:000556862800018
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-85042590867
- Other Identifier
- 991021860781604721
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This publication has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:
InCites Highlights
Data related to this publication, from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool:
- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Criminology & Penology
- Family Studies
- Psychology, Applied