NCJ Number
187743
Journal
Violence and Victims Volume: 16 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2001 Pages: 79-89
Date Published
February 2001
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This prospective study examines the epidemiology of physical attack and rape among a sample of crack-cocaine-using women.
Abstract
The sample included 171 not-in-treatment, crack-cocaine-using women. Since initiating crack use, 62 percent of the women reported suffering a physical attack. The annual rate of victimization by physical attack was 45 percent. Overall, more than half of the victims sought medical care subsequent to an attack. The prevalence of rape since initiation of crack use was 32 percent, and the annual rate was 11 percent. Among those women having been raped since they initiated crack use, 83 percent were high on crack when the crime occurred, as were an estimated 57 percent of the perpetrators. Logistic regression analyses showed that duration of crack use, arrest for prostitution, and some college education were predictors of having experienced a physical attack. Duration of crack use and a history of prostitution were predictors of suffering a rape. The study recommends that drug use treatment programs must be sensitive to high levels of violence victimization experienced by crack-cocaine-using women. Screening women for victimization, and treating the resultant problems, may help make drug abuse treatment more effective. Table, references