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Adolescent sexual violence (SV), which includes non-contact verbal sexual harassment (SH) and forced sexual contact (FSC), is a significant public health problem with long-term impacts on health and well-being. Understanding how sports participation is linked to SV can inform prevention efforts; however, the current literature is unclear about the nature of this association. Using data from 20 high schools, we investigate whether athletes in certain sports are at higher risk of SH and FSC perpetration than either other athletes or sports non-participants, and whether the risk is moderated by gender, dismissiveness of SV, or substance use intentions. We also utilize social network data to explore the role of relationships with peers and trusted adults to attenuate SH and FSC perpetration. Second, we incorporate characteristics of friends to further examine the role and composition of peer groups in the association between sports participation and perpetration of SH and FSC. Findings revealed a bivariate association between sport contact level and SH perpetration, but not FSC, and the association disappeared after adjusting for other covariates. Most prominently, dismissiveness of SV, intentions to use substances, and prior perpetration had the strongest association with perpetration regardless of sport contact level. Results also provided some support for the influence of peers and trusted adults in the sports context. Notably, the percentage of friends who perpetrated FSC and the percentage of friends who play a low-contact sport were positively associated with FSC perpetration, and the percentage of friends who play a high-contact sport was positively associated with SH perpetration. The paper concludes with a discussion of the sports context as an important venue for comprehensive prevention efforts, including a focus on changing norms around adolescent SV and substance use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bias-based aggression at school in the form of homophobic name-calling is quite prevalent among early adolescents. Homophobic name-calling is associated with low academic performance, higher risky sexual behaviors, and substance abuse, among other adverse outcomes. This longitudinal study examined risk and protective factors across multiple domains of the social ecology (individual, peer, family, school and community) and levels of analysis (within- and between-person) associated with homophobic name-calling perpetration and victimization. Students from four middle schools in the U.S. Midwest (N = 1,655; X ¯ age = 12.75; range = 10–16 years) were surveyed four times (Spring/Fall 2008, Spring/Fall 2009). For homophobic name-calling perpetration, significant risk factors included impulsivity, social dominance, traditional masculinity, family violence, and neighborhood violence; while empathy, peer support, school belonging, and adult support were significant protective factors. For homophobic name-calling victimization, significant risk factors included empathy (between-person), impulsivity, traditional masculinity, family violence, and neighborhood violence, while empathy (within-person), parental monitoring, peer support, school belonging, and adult support were significant protective factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sexual violence (SV) among adolescents continues to be a major public health concern with numerous consequences. Research, predominantly with male collegiate samples, has suggested an association between sports participation and SV perpetration, and has included other important risk factors such as substance use and attitudes. However, more research is needed in this area among adolescents. The current study uses latent class analysis (LCA) to examine data- driven classes of high school student athletes (N = 665) engaged in three risk factor areas for SV: sport contact level, likelihood of substance use, and attitudes dismissive of SV. Once classes were enumerated and fit separately for male and female samples, pairwise comparisons were conducted on scores on two forms of SV (perpetration of sexual harassment and unwanted sexual contact) as a function of class membership. A 5-class solution was retained for both males and females. In the female sample, regarding SV—harassment, those most likely to perpetrate sexual harassment were those characterized by high likelihood of use of cigarettes, marijuana, alcohol, vape products, and those who played any type of sport. Too few females endorsed perpetration of unwanted sexual contact for pairwise comparisons to be conducted. For males, the classes most likely to perpetrate both forms of SV were those who were likely to endorse high likelihood to use of cigarettes, marijuana, alcohol, vape products, endorse attitudes dismissive of SV, and play any type of sport but especially high contact sports. These findings implicate high school athletic spaces as important venues for sexual violence prevention efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are consistently high rates of sexual victimization and substance misuse among youth in the United States. Although there is a known relation between sexual victimization and substance use, there is a gap in the research regarding the magnitude and temporality of these associations. This study examined whether latent classes of sexual victimization and help-seeking attitudes longitudinally predict intentions of future substance misuse 7–10 months later. Students from nine Colorado high schools (N = 533; M = age 16 years) completed surveys across two consecutive school semesters. Latent class analysis was used to identify classes of students who experienced at least one form of sexual victimization (e.g., sexual harassment, unwanted sexual contact) according to 13 sexual victimization items, and level of positive attitudes regarding help-seeking for sexual victimization. Classes were compared on demographic characteristics and for distal outcomes of likelihood of future substance misuse (cigarettes, alcohol, cannabis, prescription drugs, and electronic vaping products) using latent class regression, controlling for previous intentions to use. At Time 1, four classes of sexual victimization were identified with two main classes for comparison: low odds of experiencing sexual victimization (60.1% of sample) and high odds of endorsing all forms of sexual victimization (7.7% of sample). The high sexual victimization class had higher proportions of male and transgender students, compared to other classes. At Time 2 (7–10 months later), students in the high sexual victimization class reported a significantly greater likelihood of future cigarette (p =.017) and prescription drug misuse (p =.007) when compared to the low sexual victimization class. There was no evidence that having higher positive attitudes towards help-seeking resulted in lower intentions to use substances in the future. These findings highlight that addressing sexual violence in prevention programming may have crossover effects of reducing substance misuse and other forms of violence among youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]