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Sexual assault in the US military: A comparison of risk in deployed and non‐deployed locations among Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom active component and Reserve/National Guard servicewomen
Author(s) -
Sadler Anne G.,
Booth Brenda M.,
Torner James C.,
Mengeling Michelle A.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.22767
Subject(s) - national guard , medicine , demographics , military personnel , guard (computer science) , software deployment , demography , poison control , environmental health , engineering , law , computer science , political science , software engineering , public administration , sociology , programming language
Background To determine whether sexual assault in the military (SAIM) among active component and Reserve/National Guard servicewomen is more likely to occur in deployed or non‐deployed locations; and which location poses greater risk for SAIM when time spent in‐location is considered. Methods A total of 1337 Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom era servicewomen completed telephone interviews eliciting socio‐demographics, military and sexual assault histories, including attempted and completed sexual assault. Results Half of the sample had been deployed (58%). Overall 16% ( N = 245) experienced SAIM; a higher proportion while not deployed (15%; n = 208) than while deployed (4%; n = 52). However, the incidence of SAIM per 100 person‐years was higher in deployed than in non‐deployed locations: 3.5 vs 2.4. Active component and Reserve/National Guard had similar deployment lengths, but Reserve/National Guard had higher SAIM incidence rates/100 person‐years (2.8 vs 4.0). Conclusions A higher proportion of servicewomen experienced SAIM while not deployed; however, adjusting for time in each location, servicewomen were at greater risk during deployment.