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Co-Occurrence of Asexuality, PTSD, Sexual Trauma
Arch Sex Behav; ePub 2018 Feb 20; Parent, et al
Asexual identity was associated with greater likelihood of reported posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis and reported sexual trauma within the past 12 months, a recent study found. Secondary data analysis was undertaken of a cross-sectional survey of 33,385 US college students (12,148 male, 21,237 female), including 228 self-identified asexual individuals (31 male, 197 female), who completed the 2015–2016 Healthy Minds Study. Measures included assessment of self-report of prior professional diagnosis of PTSD and self-report of prior sexual trauma in the past year. They found:
- Among non-asexual participants, 1.9% self-reported a diagnosis of PTSD and 2.4% reported a history of sexual trauma in the past 12 months.
- Among the group identified as asexual, 6.6% self-reported a diagnosis of PTSD, and 3.5% reported a history of sexual assault in the past 12 months.
- Individuals who identified as asexual were more likely to report a diagnosis of PTSD and sexual trauma within the past 12 months, compared to non-asexual individuals.
Parent MC, Ferriter KP. The co-occurrence of asexuality and self-reported post-traumatic stress disorder diagnosis and sexual trauma within the past 12 months among U.S. college students. [Published online ahead of print February, 20, 2018]. Arch Sex Behav. doi:10.1007/s10508-018-1171-1.