Rape on game day: New study links college football culture to increase reports of rape
A new study finds that reports of sexual assaults from college-age victims jumps by more than 25 percent on game days for top US college football programs.
The study, conducted by Isaac Swensen of Montana State University, Jason Lindo of Texas A&M University, and Peter Siminski of Australia’s University of Wollongong, looked at the relationship between the party culture that surrounds college football games and sexual assaults reported to law enforcement on days games are played.
They found that, generally, reports of rape increased 28 percent on game days.
The study also noted a 61 percent increase in reports of sexual assault by strangers after home games, with rape reports also increasing after games against rivals and upset wins.
After an underdog home team beat a higher-ranked opponent on campus, reported rapes on average increased by 57 percent, the study found.
"By providing convincing evidence that spikes in the degree of partying at a university escalate the incidence of rape, our results suggest that efforts to avoid such spikes could serve to reduce the incidence of rape," the researchers wrote.
The authors believe Division 1 game days drive anywhere from 243 to 770 additional reports of rape at 128 schools.
The authors noted that their study is of reported incidents of rape. The crime is widely unreported, so exact numbers of incidents would likely be somewhat higher.
