Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. We examined whether the effect of HED on first year college sexual victimization severity was mediated via hookups, that is, casual sexual encounters between individuals not in a relationship. We also tested the hypothesis that greater sexual limit-setting would attenuate the positive effect of hookups on sexual victimization.
The effect of HED frequency on sexual victimization was completely mediated via hookups. There was a significant indirect path from HED to victimization via alcohol-involved hookups; the path through sober hookups was not significant. We found some support for the hypothesis that sexual limit-setting reduced the impact of hookups on sexual victimization severity. Findings suggest the importance of targeting sexual behavior, which frequently occurs in conjunction with drinking, as a way of preventing college sexual victimization.
Keywords: Sexual victimization, alcohol, heavy episodic drinking, sexual behavior, college. Using a sample of first year college women, we hypothesized and tested an indirect effects model in which the effects of HED on sexual victimization are proposed to be mediated via hookups.
We have adopted such a definition. There are both direct and indirect mechanisms that may account for the association between HED and sexual victimization.
First, women who drink to the point of incapacitation or unconsciousness are vulnerable to incapacitated rape, i. The settings in which alcohol is consumed may also contribute to victimization, since intoxication increases sexual vulnerability only when it occurs in the presence of a potential perpetrator. A recent meta-analysis concluded that, among college students and young adults, alcohol use is positively associated with casual sex Claxton et al.
