Date of Graduation

Spring 2012

Degree

Master of Science in Nursing

Department

Nursing

Committee Chair

Kathryn Hope

Abstract

Sexual violence is a serious problem on college campuses across the United States. Identifying the health behaviors that put these college women at risk is important. This descriptive correlational study addressed the following research questions: (a) what is the impact of health behaviors, health indicators, and perception of personal safety and violence on sexual violence in college women, and (b) what is the impact of demographic characteristics on the incidence of sexual violence in college women? A secondary data analysis was conducted using the cross sectional data collected by The American College Health Association in the fall 2009 and spring 2009 data collections. The survey was designed to assess the health habits, behaviors and perceptions of college students. The target sample for this research study was female undergraduate college students who attended a four-year public or private institution (N=27,561). Descriptive statistics and discriminant function analysis were used to analyze the data. Study findings include: alcohol was the most used substance (62.9%) in the last 30 days, alcohol use was a strong predictor in the occurrence of sexual violence, as were physical, emotional, and verbal victimization. Results of this study should be used to identify the health behaviors and demographic characteristics that lead to the increased threat of sexual violence, so that education on health promotion and prevention can take precedence on college campuses.

Keywords

sexual violence, health behaviors, dating/relationship violence, substance use, college women

Subject Categories

Nursing

Copyright

© Cortni Marie Stratton

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