Data on the Prevalence of Sexual Violence

One in every three women experiences sexual violence in her lifetime.

According to data from the World Health Organization, about 35% of women worldwide experience physical sexual violence at some point in their lives.(1)

According to estimates by the Israeli Ministry of National Security, one in three women will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime—with 84,000 women assaulted each year. This means that an estimated 230 sexual assaults occur daily in Israel. According to the National Violence Index published by the ministry in 2014,(2) the rate of sexual violence offenses in Israel is 10% higher than the average rate in OECD countries.

In a 2009 study conducted by Dr. Abigail Moor on a sample of Israeli women and girls ages 16 to 28, it was found that 33% of respondents had experienced physical sexual assault in their lifetime.(3)

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One in every five women is raped.

Different studies worldwide indicate that between 20% and 25% of women are raped or experience attempted rape in their lifetime.(4,5)

According to Moor’s research, conducted on Israeli respondents, about 21% of girls and women in Israel have been raped.(3)

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One in every five minors experiences sexual abuse.

In a large-scale Israeli study carried out in 2013 as part of the “Triana” project, it was found that 18.3% of teenage girls and boys had been sexually assaulted before the age of 16.

According to the study, the rate of sexual abuse increases with age:

• 14% of sixth-grade students reported sexual abuse.
• 20% of eighth-grade students reported sexual abuse.
• 24% of tenth-grade students reported sexual abuse.

Among all children who experienced sexual abuse, almost half (46.5%) stated that the abuse occurred more than once, and most noted that it continued over the past year.(6)

In an earlier 1994 study, which examined rates of childhood abuse based on reports by adult women, it was found that 31% of women had experienced sexual abuse in childhood.(7)

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Up to one in seven girls experiences incest.

According to one prominent research estimate, one in seven children was sexually abused within the family.(8,9)

Other estimates from around the world suggest that 20%–30% of women were abused in childhood, with at least half of them abused by family members.(10,11)

According to the Triana project study, about one-third (29.7%) of the sexual abuses among Jewish boys and girls under the age of 16 took place within the family. As for the Arab population, it was found that two-thirds of the boys and girls who reported sexual abuse were abused within the family.(6)

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Up to age 12, the rate of sexual abuse of boys is identical to that of girls.

Various studies worldwide have shown that the rate of sexual abuse among boys before age 12 is the same as among girls of the same age group.

According to the Triana project study, even at later ages—up to 16—the rate of abuse among boys is only one and a half percent lower than the rate among girls.(6)

Additionally, about 20% of sexual offense complaints filed with the police concern the abuse of children, adolescents, and men.(12)

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Only six percent of sexual assaults are reported to the authorities.

This is according to the 2014 National Violence Index of the Ministry of National Security.(2)

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More than 85% of all sexual assaults are committed by someone known to the victim.

According to the Rape Crisis Centers’ data, which matches other worldwide research, over 85% of sexual assaults are committed by someone known to the survivor, including family members, friends, acquaintances, employers, colleagues, and those in positions of authority, among others.(12)

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Sources

1. World Health Organization, “Global and regional estimates of violence against women”, 2013
2. המשרד לביטחון לאומי, מדד האלימות הלאומי 2014
3. ד”ר אביגיל מור, ממדי החשיפה לאלימות מינית בקרב נשים בישראל ומאפייניה: הערכה ראשונית, סוגיות חברתיות בישראל, 7, 2009
4. World Health Organization, World report on violence and health, 2002, p:152
5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 2010 Report
6. פרופ’ רחל לב-ויזל, פרופ’ צבי איזיקוביץ’, התעללות, הזנחה ואלימות כלפי ילדים ובני נוער בישראל (מיזם טריאנה), 2013
7. שיין, מ’, בידרמן, א’, באראס, מ’, בנט, ל’, בישראת, ב’, בורקן… וקיטאי, א’, התעללות מינית בילדים- שכיחות התופעה בעברם של מבוגרים המבקרים אצל רופאי משפחה בישראל. בתוך ילדים כקרבנות התעללות מינית במשפחה- מבט נוסף על התופעה, שכיחותה ומאפייניה, עמ’ 88-74.
8. צביה זליגמן, מבוא לגילוי עריות: אין אמת, ואין חסד, ואין רחמים, הסוד ושברו: סוגיות בגילוי עריות, 2004, עמ’ 40-15.
9. Russell, D. E. H. The incidence and prevalence of intrafamilial and extrafamilial sexual abuse of female children. Child Abuse and Neglect, 7(2), 1983, pp. 133–146.
10. Casey, E. A., & Nurius, P. S. Trends in the prevalence and characteristics of sexual violence: A Cohort analysis. Violence and Victims, 21, 2006, pp 629–644.
11. Moor, A., & Silvern, L. Identifying pathways linking child abuse to psychological outcome: The mediating role of perceived parental failure of empathy. Journal of Emotional Abuse, 6, 2006, pp 91–112
12. איגוד מרכזי הסיוע לנפגעות ולנפגעי תקיפה מינית, הנזקים הסמויים מן העין: השלכות כלכליות ובריאותיות של פגיעה מינית, דו”ח שנתי לשנת 2017