A latent class analysis of technology-facilitated sexual violence: Associations to other victimizations, psychiatric symptoms, and gender

Background

Poly-victimization research has shown the cumulative detrimental effects of violence exposure on mental health. Latent Class Analysis (LCA) of victimization is a growing research field uncovering specific combinations of violence exposures particularly negative to mental health. Despite a growing concern of technology-facilitated violence (TFSV), it is scarcely included in LCA studies.

Objectives

Investigating victimization typologies that includes technology facilitated sexual violence.

Participants and setting

Cross-sectional survey data from a representative sample of Swedish young people in the age range of 16–23 (N = 3243, mean age = 18.20, SD = 0.61).

Methods

A Latent Class Analysis was conducted using the package PoLCA in R. A model with three classes was deemed to best fit the data.

Results

Class 1 (sexual polyvictimization, 10.1 %) had high probabilities of all forms of sexual violence including TFSV and the highest proportion of psychiatric diagnosis (45.2 %). This class consisted of mostly girls. Class 2 (child abuse polyvictimization,14.8 %) was characterized by high probabilities of physical and psychological child abuse and had an even gender distribution. 30.6 % of this class endorsed having a psychiatric diagnosis. Class 3 (75.1 %) was a low victimization/normative subgroup with an even gender distribution and a low (12.8 %) frequency of psychiatric diagnosis. Class 1 exhibited the highest levels of psychiatric symptoms.

Conclusions

Prevention efforts targeted against TFSV should consider the whole web of violence that some young people are situated in. Since TFSV seems to be connected to psychiatric symptoms and diagnosis, Child- and Adolescent Psychiatric services should pay more attention to this type of violence among their young patients.