HERE ARE THE FACTS (http://www.wcasa.org)

• Both adult males and children are victims of sexual assault. Assaults can and do happen anywhere: homes, schools, prisons, public places, etc.
  
  
• 92,700 men are forcibly raped each year in the United States. (Tjaden, P. and Thoennes, N. Prevalence, Incidence and Consequences of Violence Against Women: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey. U.S. Department of Justice, Centers for Disease Control. November, 1998.)
  
  
• 11% of total sexual assault victims are male, 89% are female. (1999 National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000)
  
  
• A greater percentage of juvenile sexual assault victims were male (18%) than were adult sexual assault victims (4%). Sexual Assault of Young Children as Reported to Law Enforcement: Victim, Incident and Offender Characteristics. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000.)
  
  
• The year in a male’s life when he is most likely to be a victim of sexual assault is the age of 4. (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000.)
  
  
• 61% of male sexual abusers are male, 28% are female, and 11% reported being assaulted by both males and females. (Gartner, R. Betrayed as Boys: Psychodynamic Treatment of Sexually Abused Men. Guilford Press, 1999.)
  
  
• Boys are less likely than girls to report sexual abuse because of the fear of retribution, the social stigma against homosexual behavior, the desire to appear self-reliant, and the concern about loss of independence following disclosure. (Holmes, W., Slap, G. Sexual Abuse of Boys: Definition, Prevalence, Correlates, Sequelae, and Management. The Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 280. 1998.)
  
  
• Up to 1/2 of the female perpetrators were adolescent aged babysitters. (JAMA, 1998.)

• Female perpetrators used coercion, rather than force in 91% of the cases, and 26% promised special favors to boys for participation in sexual acts. (JAMA, 1998)
  
  
• 77% of sexual assaults against males take place in a residence. (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000.)
  
  
• One in four victims of sexual assault under the age of 12 are boys. (Juvenile Offenders and Victims 1999 National Report, Office of Juvenile Delinquency Prevention, 1999.)
  
  
• 48% of males were raped by strangers, compared with 28% of females. (Criminal Victimization in 1999: changes 1998-1999, with trends 1993-1999. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. August, 2000.)
  
  
• A rapist’s motivation is primarily to humiliate, hurt and destroy, not to release a normal sex drive. Hence, the majority of rapes of males are perpetrated by caucasian, heterosexual males, who often commit their crime with one or more cohorts. (Scarce, Michael. Male on Male Rape: The Hidden Toll of Stigma and Shame. Plenum Press. New York, New York. 1997.)
  
  
• Many rapes and sexual assaults are perpetrated by other heterosexual men, in all-male environments, often as part of an initiation. Incidences of this have been documented in military organizations, fraternal organizations, athletic organizations, prisons etc. (Scarce, 1997.)
  
  
• The organization Stop Prison Rape conservatively estimates that 360,000 men are sexually assaulted in prisons in the United States each year. For at least 2/3 of these inmates the rapes are not isolated events, but a repeated pattern (often as gang rapes). (Scarce, 1997)
  
  
• States of intense pain, anxiety, panic, or fear may cause spontaneous erection and ejaculation in some men, which may cause heterosexual victims to question their sexual orientation. (Scarce, 1997.)

FACTS FOR WISCONSIN:

• In 1998, 17% of all reported cases of sexual assault involved a male victim (Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance Statistical Analysis Center (OJA), 1999). The number of assaults reported for males may be especially low because survivors fear they will be met with both homophobic reactions and disbelief.
  
  
• Of the 967 reported sexual assaults of males in 1998, 63.1%of the perpetrators were male (Wisconsin OJA, 1999).
  
  
• From 1997 to 1998 the reported number of sexual assaults of males increased by about 2%. (Wisconsin OJA, 1997; 1999.)
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What are some possible effects of sexual assault on a male survivor?

Psychological

• Sense of self and concept of "reality" are disrupted.
• Profound anxiety, depression, fearfulness.
• Concern about sexual orientation.
• Development of phobias related to the assault setting.
• Fear of the worst happening and having a sense of a shortened future.
• Withdrawal from interpersonal contact and a heightened sense of alienation.
• Stress-induced reactions (problems sleeping, increased startle response, being unable to relax).
• Psychological outcomes can be severe for men because men are socialized to believe that they are immune to sexual assault and because societal reactions to these assaults can be more isolating.

Heterosexual Male Survivors

• May experience a fear that the assault will make them gay.
• May feel that they are “less of a man.”

Homosexual Male Survivors

• May feel the crime is “punishment” for their sexual orientation.
• May worry that the assault affected their sexual orientation.
• May fear they were targeted because they are gay. This fear may lead to withdrawal from the community.
• May develop self-loathing related to their sexual orientation.

Relationships / Intimacy

• Relationships may be disrupted by the assault.
• Relationships may be disrupted by others’ reactions to the assault, such as a lack of belief/support.
• Relationships may be disrupted by the survivor’s reaction to or coping with the assault.

Emotional

• Anger about the assault, leading to outward- and inward-focused hostility.
• Avoidance of emotions or emotional situations, stemming from the overwhelming feelings that come with surviving a sexual assault.