Drunkenness and sexual victimizationA general population study of teenage girls

Hilde Pape

Norwegian Institute for Alcohol and Drug Research Statens institutt for rusmiddelforskning (SIRUS)

Preliminary results

In 2010 / 2011, Oslo was rocked by a wave of rapes

«’Take back the night’ is the claim, but [... ]

«’Take back the night’ is the claim, but [... ] one should rather call out ‘BOYCOTT THE NIGHT’» Margrete Geelmuyden, Aften 2/11- 2011

x

Indeed, alcohol use correlates with rape / sexual assault

Some evidence from aggregate level studies, e.g. US state-level data: 10% increase in alcohol consumption → 7% increase in the incidence of rapes (Cook & More 1993)

Individual level studies: Solid evidence of cross-sectional associations

e.g. US national study of college women: Frequent HED → OR 5 of reporting rape (Mohler-Kou et al 2004)

Event-level data:

Rapes / sexual assaults; alcohol typically involved (survey data + police reports)

Analyses of all cases of rape

registrered by

the police in Oslo (2010)

Different types of rape/sexual assault

Party-re-late

d34 %

Stranger-at -tack13 %

Vulnerabil-ity

20 %

In-ti-

mate re-la-

tionship25 %

Other8 %

«Many of those who report party-related rapes,

had black-out during the night and are unable to remember

what happened»

Event data: The victims’ use of alcohol

Stranger attack rapes;

«Typically, the victim is intoxicated

and on her way home at night»

Altogether, - 65% had used substances - 47% had used alcohol only

Alcohol use as a proximal risk factor

The context of drinking – presence of potential perpetrators (weak social control / no guardianship)

Effects of intoxication

- Impairment: Reduced abillity to recognize and respond to sexual assault risk

Alcohol use as a proximal risk factor

The context of drinking – presence of potential perpetrators (weak social control / no guardianship)

Effects of intoxication

- Impairment: Reduced abillity to recognize and respond to sexual assault risk

- Incapacitation: Inability to resist (or consent to) sexual activity

«Economics of crime»: Severe drunkenness increases victim vulnerability and reduces the expected cost of rape to potential offenders

Research on incapacitated sexual assault (ISA)

Little research; studies of US college students predominate (convenience samples / low rr)

Abstainers + non-binge drinkers included in the analyses(How age is related to ISA among youth who binge drink is unknown)

Lifetime ISA → current drinking / PTSD, mental health “outcomes”(Simple bi-variate analyses)

Apart from studies on the role of alcohol; almost no research has ran the risk of revealing that sexual assault vicims differ from “ideal victims”

i.e. “those who, when hit by crime, most readily are given the complete and legitimate status of being a victim” (Christie 1986: 18)

No study on the associations between personality traits and ISA.

Yet, one may assume that impulsivity and related traits increase the risk.The association between an early onset of drinking and ISA supports this assumption

Aims

• To examine the prevalence of ISA among teenage girls in Norway and to explore how it varies with drinking behavior and age

• To test the assumption that impulsivity is related to ISA

• To examine the association between an early onset of drinking and ISA, taking impulsivity into account

• To assess associations between ISA and other alcohol-related outcomes

• To assess associations between ISA and involvement in problem behaviour (illegal drug use / delinquency)

Sample

A school survey in 16 Norwegian municipalities (2006)

Full cohorts of students

Response rate: 85%

Analyses of 15-18 year-old girls

Non-binge drinkers exluded

Impulsivity (Plutnick 1989) : Sum score based on 6 items

Measures

Incapacitated sexual assault (ISA) – past year :Been sexually assaulted without being able to resist because you were very drunk

Frequency of intoxication past year

Severe drunkenness - How often during the past year have you…

.. been so drunk that you could not stand upright? (motor impairment)

.. been somewhere without remebering how you got there? (blackout)

Age at first alcohol intoxication

Impulsivity (Plutnick 1989): 6 items – sum-score

Behaviours in relation to drinking – past year - Involved in fights - Vandalism - Drink driving - Voluntary sex that one later regretted

Illegal drug use, Police contact due to delinqueny – past year

Impulsivity (Plutnick 1989) : Sum score based on 6 items

Composite measureAveraging the frequency of

motor impairment and blackout

Prevalence of incapacitated sexual assault (ISA)

All girls Alcohol past yr (83%)

Intoxicated past yr (73%)

5,2%6,4%

7,4%

N=3832

N=3128 N=2702

Prevalence of incapacitated sexual assault (ISA)

All girls Alcohol past yr (83%)

Intoxicated past yr (73%)

5,2%6,4%

7,4%

15 yr-olds: 57% 16 yr-olds: 63%17 yr-olds: 76%18 yr-olds: 83 %

N=3832

N=3128 N=2702

The prevalence of ISA by indicators of heavy episodic drinking

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40ISA by frequency of intoxication

None 1 2-4 5-10 11-20 20+0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80ISA by frequency of severe drunkenness

Blackout

Motor impair-ment

Prevalence of ISA by age

15 yrs 16 yrs 17 yrs 18 yrs

10.59.1

7.45.4

The result did not reflect age differences in the frequency of intoxication:

15 16 17 18

12.814.3 15.1

17.3

Mean freq. of intoxication by age (r=0.20**)

However, symptoms of severe drunkenness were inversely related to age

The effect of age on ICA, taking severe drunkenness into account;

B SE OR 95% CI

Age -0.26 0.07 0.77** 0.65-0.92

Age -0.17 0.09 0.84 0.70-1.01 Severe drunkenness 0.11 0.01 1.12 *** 1.10-1.14

15 yrs 16 yrs 17 yrs 18yrs0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5Balckout Motor impairment % of intoxication episodes involving..

Motor impairment Blackout

15 yrs 15.0 13.9

16 yrs 11.8 10.3

17 yrs 9.4 9.6

18 yrs 5.3 6.1

Mean freq.

*** p<0.0001 **p<0.01

However, symptoms of severe drunkenness were inversely related to age

The effect of age on ICA, taking severe drunkenness into account;

B SE OR 95% CI

Age -0.26 0.07 0.77** 0.65-0.92

Age -0.17 0.09 0.84 0.70-1.01

Severe drunkenness 0.11 0.01 1.12 *** 1.10-1.14

15 yrs 16 yrs 17 yrs 18yrs0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5Balckout Motor impairment % of intoxication episodes involving..

Motor impairment Blackout

15 yrs 15.0 13.9

16 yrs 11.8 10.3

17 yrs 9.4 9.6

18 yrs 5.3 6.1

Mean freq.

*** p<0.0001 **p<0.01

Impulsivity and ISA

Impulsivity 0.89 0.17 2.44*** 1.74-3.42

Severe drunkenness 0.08 0.01 1.08*** 1.05-1.10

Freq of intoxication 1-4 5-10 1 / month 2-3 / month 1 / week 2+ / week

1.000.030.230.460.961.08

0.250.270.230.270.42

0.97 1.26 1.59* 2.65*** 2.94*

0.59-1.580.74-2.111.01-2.501.57-4.481.29-6.71

Age -0.18 0.09 0.83 0.69-1.01

B SE OR 95% CI

Impulsivity 1.40 0.16 4.06*** 2.74-5.54

Victims Non-victims

48.7

25,0

% High level of impulsivity

mean sumscore >2.5

(scale:1.00-4.00)

*** p<0.0001 *p<0.05

Early onset of drinking and ISA

Victims Non-victims

26.5

11.3

% First alco intox ≤ 13 yrs.

When controlling for the frequency of intoxication, severe drunkenness and age, the effect of early drinking onset on ISA remained significant: OR=1.62 (1.10-2.37)

B SE OR 95% CI

Early intox. debut 0.38 0.20 1.46 1.46-0.99 Severe drunkenness 0.73 0.12 1.07*** 1.05-2.15 Freq of intoxication 1-4 5-10 1 / month 2-3 / month 1 / week 2+ / week

1.00-0.050.210.400.910.95

0.250.270.230.270.42

0.95 1.23 1.49 2.49** 2.59*

0.58-2.150.73-1.100.95-1.551.47-2.081.12-2.36

Age -0.16 0.09 0.85 0.71-4.21

Impulsivity 0.86 0.17 2.40*** 1.68-3.31

But adding ‘impulsivity’

to the model made a difference

(∆ -2 log likelihood: 24.5 (1) p<0.0001)

*** p<0.0001 **p<0.01 *p<0.05

ISA and other alcohol-related problems: Differences between victims and non-victims

Fighting Vandalism Drink driving Regret sex

40.3

33.5

22

71.1

25.720.6

13.1

73.1

12.4 11.2 11.9

18.5

Victims,% Victims adj. % Non-victims, %

ISA and other alcohol-related problems: Differences between victims and non-victims

Fighting Vandalism Drink driving Regret sex

40.3

33.5

22

71.1

25.720.6

13.1

73.1

12.4 11.2 11.9

18.5

Victims,% Victims adj. % Non-victims, %

↓ Adjusted for

- frequency of intoxication,- sympt. of severe drunkenness- age

ISA and other alcohol-related problems: Differences between victims and non-victims

Fighting Vandalism Drink driving Regret sex

40.3

33.5

22

71.1

25.720.6

13.1

73.1

12.4 11.2 11.9

18.5

Victims,% Victims adj. % Non-victims, %

*** Different from non-victims; p>0.0001

Illegal drug use Police contact

33.5

21.121.4

10.711.7

7.5

Victims, % Victims, adjusted % Non-victims, %

Illegal drug use and police contact (delinquency)Differences between victims and non-victims of ISA

*** Different from non-victims; p>0.0001

Concluding remarks

• ISA victimization is not a marginal phenomenon among teenage girls in Norway

• Due to their increased tendency to get severely drunk, the youngest teenagers have an elevated risk

• Impulsivity is related to ISA victimization, as is involvement in alcohol-related problem behaviours.

• Illegal drug use is more prevalent among victims than non-victims of ISA, does not reflect differences in alcohol use

• Cause and effect?