An examination of sexual coercion experiences among Latinx female college students

ABSTRACT

The current study examined sexual coercion among Latinx female college students in New York City. It identified frequently reported sexual coercion tactics and disclosure behaviours, delineating these experiences by race and cultural values. Latinx women (N = 158) from several public colleges were surveyed, and 49.4% (n = 78) experienced sexual coercion – with most reporting helplessness tactics (39.2%; n = 62). No differences were found among race, although this sample of Black Latinx students endorsed coercion more often than non-Black students. Most participants sought informal support, and specifically disclosed to a female friend (82.9%, n = 34). Lastly, attitudes toward familism and religiosity did not affect disclosure in this sample. These findings highlight the nuances of young Latinx women’s sexual experiences and have implications for sexual violence education for Latinx youth. It also has implications for college mental health professionals working with Latinx students with histories of sexual coercion.

PRACTICE IMPACT STATEMENT

Due to the nature of negative sexual experiences experienced among youth, sexual education curriculum and prevention training in educational institutions must emphasise the importance of sexual consent and identifying appropriate and inappropriate sexual advances. Curriculum must be tailored towards the demographics and respective potential cultural contexts of school district populations. College mental health professionals should be properly trained on how sexual coercion manifests in college-age relationships in addition to current training on identifying sexual harassment, sexual assault, and alcohol/drug induced rape.

KEYWORDS:

• Sexual coercion
• Latinx
• cultural values
• disclosure
• interpersonal violence

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Professor Silvia Mazzula and Professor Kevin Nadal for comments and guidance on the manuscript. We also thank Khushi Gena and Ella Johnson for their technical assistance. Lastly, we would like to thank Dr. Raghavan’s lab members, Dr. Ernest Lee, and the Ronald E. McNair Program of John Jay College for Criminal Justice for their support in the development of this project.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Contact sexual violence, also referred to as unwanted sexual contact, refers to the touching of a person without their consent, whether they refuse to consent or are unable to grant consent (Basile et al., 2014). This may also include unwanted penetration.

2 Studies that do not specify the nationalities represented in their samples will be described as “Latinx.”

3 Other racial groups were not included due to insufficient sample size.