Sexual Violence Victimization against Men with Disabilities

Prior research has shown a high prevalence of violence against women with disabilities. However, no previous population-based studies have examined sexual violence victimization against men with disabilities. The purpose of this study is to document the prevalence of lifetime and past year sexual violence victimization among a representative sample of men with and without disabilities in Massachusetts and to compare the prevalence of sexual violence victimization against men with disabilities and women with and without disabilities to that of men without disabilities. Data from the Massachusetts Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2005-2009 were analyzed in 2010 using domain analysis and multivariate logistic regression. Approximately 21.1% of Massachusetts men and 21.0% of women reported a disability. The prevalence of lifetime sexual violence victimization was 13.9% (95%CI, 10.7-17.1) among men with disabilities, 3.7% (95%CI, 2.9-4.5) among men without disabilities, 26.6% (95%CI, 23.4-29.7) among women with disabilities, and 12.4% (95%CI, 11.2-13.6) among women without disabilities. Similarly, men with disabilities were more likely than men without disabilities to report lifetime completed and attempted rape and past year sexual violence victimization. Multivariate analyses controlling for socio-demographic characteristics indicated that men with disabilities were more than 4 times more likely to report lifetime and past year sexual violence victimization than men without disabilities. Men with disabilities are at a heightened risk for lifetime and current sexual violence victimization. Public health violence prevention and response efforts need to be inclusive and attentive to men with disabilities