Mental Health Issues Of Victims
Thirty-one percent of all rape victims develop Posttraumatic Stress
Disorder (PTSD) during their lifetimes.
Rape victims are 6.2 times more likely to develop PTSD than women
who have never been victims of crime. (National
Violence Against Women Prevention Research Center. nd. The Mental
Health Impact of Rape. Charleston, SC: Medical University of
South Carolina.)
Research indicates that thirty percent of all rape victims have
experienced one major depressive episode in their lifetimes after
the rape. Only 10 percent of women who have never experienced a
violent crime have had a depressive episode. (Ibid.)
Rape victims are four times more likely to have contemplated suicide
after the rape than non-crime victims and 13 times more likely
than non-crime victims to have attempted suicide. (Ibid.)
An investigation into the suicides of women within one year of
their giving birth found that there was a known or suspected history
of intimate partner violence in two out of the five cases. (Walton-Moss,
B. and Campbell, J. January 2002. "Intimate Partner Violence:
Implications for Nursing." Issues in Nursing. Vol.7
[1].)
Thirty percent of female stalking victims and 20 percent of male
stalking victims seek psychological counseling as a result of their
victimization. They are significantly more likely to fear for their
personal safety than people who have never been stalked. (National
Institute of Justice. 1998. Stalking in America: Findings From
the National Violence Against Women Survey. Washington, DC:
U.S. Department of Justice.)
Three in 10 college women who have been stalked believe that they
are psychologically and emotionally injured by the victimization. (National
Institute of Justice. 2000. The Sexual Victimization of College
Women. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)
Sixty percent of recovered gunshot patients interviewed eight
months after leaving the hospital reported that their physical
health was "somewhat" or "much worse" than
it had been prior to the victimization. Their emotional health
was also affected: 39 percent reported problems with intrusive
thoughts about being shot and 42 percent reported serious avoidance
behaviors. (Greenspan, A. and Kellerman, A.
October, 2002. "Physical and Psychological Outcomes 8 Months
after Serious Gunshot Injury." The Journal of Trauma.
53 [4].)
Eighty percent of recovered gunshot patients interviewed eight
months after leaving the hospital reported symptoms of Posttraumatic
Stress Disorder (PTSD). (Ibid.)
Twenty percent of adults interviewed who lived in south Manhattan
within several blocks of the World Trade Center during the events
of September 11th reported symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Of those adults interviewed living in northern Manhattan during
the same period, 7.5 percent reported symptoms of PTSD and 9.7
reported symptoms of depression. (Galea, S.,
Ahern, S., Resnick, H., et. al. March 2002. "Psychological
Sequelae of the September 11 Terrorist Attacks in New York City." New
England Journal of Medicine. 346. [13].)
A survey of persons directly exposed to the Oklahoma City Bombing
found troubled interpersonal relationships among 17 percent of
the non-injured persons and 42 percent among persons whose injuries
required hospitalization. (Shariat,S., Mallonee,
S., Kruger, et. al. 1999. "A prospective study of long-term
health outcomes among Oklahoma City bombing survivors." Journal
of the Oklahoma State Medical Association. 92.)
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| National Crime Victims' Rights
Week: Fulfill the Promise |
April 6–12, 2003 |
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