NCJ Number
77280
Date Published
1979
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This survey determined the services that California agencies provide to victims of sexual assault and identified the population served and the problems facing the agencies.
Abstract
Among the 77 agencies that responded (for a 59.7 percent response rate) were 43 rape crisis centers, 23 domestic violence centers, 5 centers for sexually abused children, and 6 other service organizations whose primary function was other than providing assistance to sexual assault victims. During fiscal year 1978-79, a majority of the agencies provided referral services as opposed to direct services or community education. A total of 45 agencies indicated their most important service offered to victims and the community to be a 24-hour hotline, while counseling and face-to-face crisis intervention were cited as services of secondary importance. The third most important service offered was community education. However, most individuals served by the various agencies benefited from lectures, workshops, pamphlets, and other community education activities. The rape crisis centers served 108,885 persons: 81.9 percent through information and group services and the remainder through individualized services. The domestic violence centers served equal numbers of persons under their information and group services component and their individualized service component. The ethnic distribution of the victims served generally reflected the ethnic distribution of the communities in which they were located, although a majority of victims in all communities did not report these crimes to the police. Most of the agencies indicated that the level of funding was their major problem. Other problems identified included a lack of support for victims from law enforcement, hospitals, and the judicial system. An inability to reach and serve minority groups and a lack of services in rural counties wre also noted. Data tables and graphs are included.