A new analysis by the American Association of University Women shows that 91% of colleges reported zero sexual assaults in 2014, a finding which may suggest how infrequently campus sexual assaults are properly reported.
American colleges and universities are required to disclose reported crimes, including sexual assaults, under the Clery Act, but in 2014 the vast majority of campuses reported zero rapes on campus. Incidence of dating violence, domestic violence, and assault were reported on only 9-11% of campuses, the report said.
“What these zeros really tell us is that students don’t feel comfortable coming forward with formal reports at these schools,” says Lisa M. Maatz, vice president of government relations at AAUW, in a statement. “Why? Perhaps the school doesn’t have good services or processes in place or is not perceived as being supportive when students do come forward.”
The low reporting rates are also at odds with other data on the prevalence of sexual assault on college campuses. According to a major survey by the Association of American Universities in September, over 26% of female college seniors reported that they’d had unwanted sexual contact due to incapacitation or force while in college, and about half said that experience involved penetration.
- Meet TIME’s Newest Class of Next Generation Leaders
- After Visiting Both Ends of the Earth, I Realized How Much Trouble We’re In
- Google Is Making It Easier to Remove Personal Info From Search
- Oil Companies Posted Huge Profits. Here’s Where The Cash Will Go (Hint: Not Climate)
- Column: We Asked Hundreds of Americans About Abortion. Their Feelings Were Complicated
- A Short History of the Rise, Fall, and Rise Again of the Marcos Family
- Long-Lasting Birth Control Is Already Hard to Get. Advocates Worry It May Only Get Worse
- Who Should Be on the 2022 TIME100? Vote Now
