Sexual misconduct victimization and reporting patterns revealed in large, diverse sample of US college students

Hayes et al. examined data collected from over 175,000 college students from 33 universities, in order to study how likely students are to experience sexual misconduct based on their gender identity and sexual orientation, and whether they report such incidents. The data came from the AAU Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Sexual Misconduct (2019 AAU), available from NACJD. It includes student self-reports about incidents of sexual misconduct victimization, as well as their knowledge of and use of campus resources to prevent and respond to it. According to Hayes et al., the 2019 AAU also provides “one of the largest samples of sexual and gender minority US college students.” Their analysis found that nearly half of all respondents experienced some form of sexual misconduct during their time in college, but the risk varied significantly by identity. Women, nonbinary students, and sexual minorities (gay, lesbian, bisexual, and those with multiple orientations) faced the highest rates of victimization, while cisgender men experienced lower rates. Despite high victimization rates, only 15 percent of survivors contacted campus resources and just 3 percent reported to police. Cisgender male survivors were much less likely to report than cisgender female survivors, while sexual minority students were more likely to seek help than heterosexual students. The findings highlighted the need for colleges to create more inclusive support systems that serve all students effectively.

June 19, 2025