Prohibited Sexual Behavior and Sexual Violence

Sexual Violence: Rape: Summary

There is no question that rape is a serious problem in all too many countries. However, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to get reliable figures about the extent of this problem. One reason for this is the inconsistent way in which rape is defined in different legislatures. (In the USA, even the individual states use different definitions.) Seen from a world-wide perspective, the picture is even more confusing because of the wide differences between the criminal codes of different countries. Moreover, many rapes are never reported while, on the other hand, false rape accusations are by no means rare. As a result, rape statistics have a reputation of being unreliable, and international comparisons are problematical. Nevertheless, looking at the accumulated statistics of a single country, one can at least discern some trends. On the whole, these trends are not discouraging.
In the USA, for example, there has been a slow, but steady decrease of rapes over the last 30 years (“rape” is here narrowly defined as “forced penetration”.)

Rape rates have been stable in recent years
Adjusted victimization rate per 1,000 persons age 12 and over

Line chart illustrating the rate of rape per 1,000 persons from 1973-2005
Rape is here defined as forced sexual intercourse including both psychological coercion as well as physical force. Forced sexual intercourse means penetration by the offender(s). The chart includes both completed and attempted rapes, male as well as female victims, and both heterosexual and homosexual rape.
Attempted rape includes verbal threats of rape. For details, click here.
Source: US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics.