Mental Disorders, Often Suffered by Victims of Sexual Violence

Women who have been victims of sexual violence or other acts of violence are more at risk of developing mental disorders and have a tendency to commit suicide than women in general.

Linkages between the effects of violence on mental disorders was discovered by a team of Australian researchers who analyzed a survey of 4415 women aged 16-85 years conducted in 2007 by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

They examined four types of violence are common, physical violence by a partner, rape, assault and reconnaissance, with the rate of mental disorders such as anxiety, depression, and addiction medicine.

“Women who experience two types of violence in her life at risk for mental disorders 69 percent, while experiencing three types of violence risk is up to 89.4 percent,” says Susan Rees, chief researcher.

The tendency to suicide was found in 1.6 percent of women who had never experienced sexual violence on victims of violence but the figure rose 6 percent, and in those who underwent more than three types of violent tendencies up to 34 percent.

Rees, senior research fields of psychiatry at the University of New South Wales, said the analysis does include the most comprehensive research because it is based on national data so that relevant for use by other countries.

The research data also showed 15 percent of women in Australia had experienced sexual abuse and 6 percent claimed to have raped that has led to mental disorders. “Gender-based violence is a violation against women’s rights,” said Rees.