This study addresses questions that have not previously been explored systematically in the literature. These are the psychological characteristics of the woman who chooses to prosecute her assailant and what factors, if any, that make her different from the women who decides not to prosecute after being sexually assaulted. The 77 subjects were drawn from a larger project assessing the efficacy of various treatment approaches for rape victims. Psychological assessment was carried out by trained counselors in two separate sessions within 2 weeks after a subject was referred to the project. Assessment instruments included a rape situation interview, the Beck Depression Inventory, the Janis-Field Feelings of Inadequacy Scale, the West-Frank Social Support Index, and the Social Adjustment Scale-II. The study found that women who want to prosecute are more likely to have somewhat higher self-esteem scores initially than those women who do not want to; by 1-year followup, this trend reaches significance. Additional findings are detailed. Four tables, 1 note, and 17 references are included.