3 - (SYM 131) The Psychosocial Consequences of Sexual Violence Stigma: A Scoping Review

Abstract Body
Over the past decade, scholars have explored whether the stigma associated with sexual violence (SV) represents a risk factor for psychopathology and related comorbidities following SV. We conducted a scoping review to summarize and evaluate the state of this burgeoning literature. We included studies from PubMed, APA PsycInfo, Embase, CINAHL Plus, Social Science Premium, and Web of Science that quantified stigma related to SV. Studies were screened and abstracted in accordance with the PRISMA-SCR guidelines for scoping reviews. Our final sample contained 63 studies. We address two key questions about SV stigma. First, is SV a stigmatized status? Articles (n=14) provided evidence for SV stigma among potential stigmatizers (e.g., medical providers) across a range of methods (e.g., vignettes) and outcomes (e.g., desire for social distance). Additional work (n=20) corroborates perceptions of SV stigma among targets (i.e., SV survivors). Second, what are the psychosocial consequences of SV stigma? We reviewed studies (n=29) demonstrating that SV stigma is correlated with a range of adverse psychosocial outcomes—including anxiety, depression, PTSD, problematic drinking, and somatic symptoms—among individuals experiencing multiple types of SV (e.g., childhood sexual abuse, sexual assault). Thus, emerging evidence suggests that SV stigma may be a critical, but understudied, determinant of risk and recovery following SV exposure. Given the association between SV stigma and a wide range of adverse mental health and psychosocial outcomes, we argue that SV stigma has the potential to serve as an effective pluripotent target for treatment interventions. We offer several recommendations to advance this line of work, with a focus on the ways in which existing CBT interventions might be successfully adapted to target SV stigma in this high-risk population.