Institutional Support and Sexual Assault: A Campus Comparison Study on the Relationship Between Victimization and Perceived Support

Sexual assaults are traumatic events disproportionately affecting young adults and college populations, with one in five American students experiencing sexual assault during their college years. Sexual assault affects feelings of institutional support post victimization; however, no study has investigated whether institution type affects the relationship between victimization and perceived support. Four-year institutions offer a more immersive college experience and as such might feel more supported by their institutions than their two-year college peers. Using multiple linear regression, we hypothesized that experiencing sexual assault would affect institutional support more at four-year campuses compared to two-year campuses. Controlling for relevant demographic factors, we found significant simple effects and an interaction in predicting campus climate perceptions. Students at the four-year campus and students who had experienced sexual reported less institutional support than their two-year peers. Opposing our hypothesis, two-year campus sexual assault survivors felt less supported than their four-year campus peers. Historically, two-year campuses have fewer support options such as health centers and campus police post assault. Future research should seek to replicate whether these findings represent other institutions and explore how to better support assault survivors on campuses with fewer resources.