Sexual and Intimate Partner Violence Data Sources

Description

This survey is conducted once every three years (since 1989) with students from specific grades in participating schools, alternative learning centers, and juvenile detention facilities. The survey asks questions about activities, experiences, and behaviors across a wide range of topics including sexual violence, intimate partner violence, sexual exploitation, and protective factors. In 2019, 81% of public-school districts participated, this is roughly 170,000 students. The survey includes demographics such as race, ethnicity, Tribe, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, economic hardship, and disability. The data can be analyzed at the state, county, district, or school levels.

Survey Questions

Questions asked on the most recent (2022) survey related to sexual and intimate partner violence

• During the last 30 days, how often have other students at school made sexual jokes, comments, or gestures towards you?
• Have you ever been in a casual or serious relationship where your partner ever physically hurt you on purpose (shoved, kicked, slapped, punched, pulled hair, strangled, injured you with an object or weapon, etc.)?
• Have you ever been in a casual or serious relationship where your partner ever verbally hurt or controlled you (called you names, told you what you could wear or eat, told you who you could see or talk to, threatened you, blamed you for their behavior, etc.)?
• Have you ever been in a casual or serious relationship where your partner ever pressured, tricked, or forced you to do something sexual, or did something sexual to you against your wishes?
• Has anyone who was NOT a relative/family member ever pressured, tricked, or forced you to do something sexual or done something sexual to you against your wishes?
• Has any relative/family member ever pressured, tricked, or forced you to do something sexual or done something sexual to you?
• Have you ever traded sex or sexual activity to receive money, food, drugs, alcohol, a place to stay, or anything else?
• Have your parents or other adults in your home ever slapped, hit, kicked, punched, or beat each other up?
• This survey also asks about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

Strengths and Limitations

Strengths

• This anonymous self-report survey produces a higher prevalence for sexual and intimate partner violence than hospital treatment counts and law enforcement counts. This is because: many victims do not seek hospital treatment or report to law enforcement; the survey captures types of sexual and intimate partner violence that are not illegal as well as types that would not lead to hospital treatment; and the survey captures sexual exploitation victimization, which is a form of sexual violence that has not commonly been tracked.
• Youth in alternative learning centers (ALCs) participate.
• Youth in juvenile justice facilities participate.

Limitations

• The survey asks questions about experiences that are sensitive in nature, which may result in underreporting even though the survey is anonymous.
• The survey does not ask about all forms of sexual and intimate partner violence. Therefore, the survey is an undercount of the issue.
• Not all schools participate in the survey. In 2019, over 81% of regular public school districts chose to participate in the survey.
• Students not enrolled in or absent from participating schools, alternative learning centers, and juvenile detention facilities do not have the opportunity to participate.
• Analyses are limited by small sample sizes in certain geographic or demographic subgroups.

More information

• Visit the Minnesota Department of Education’s Minnesota Student Survey site to learn more about the survey, generate your own online interactive reports of survey findings, and request the data set.
• Visit the Minnesota Department of Health’s Minnesota Student Survey site to access reports and request the data set.
• Visit the Minnesota Department of Human Services’ Minnesota Student Survey page for reports on substance use, mental health, and gambling.
• Visit the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s youth and juvenile justice reports page for reports on youth in the juvenile justice system.
• Visit Substance Use in Minnesota to generate online interactive reports about substance use as well as risk and resilience factors.

Description

Boynton Health conducts this annual survey to give participating postsecondary institutions a comprehensive look at the health of their students. The survey asks questions about activities, experiences, and behaviors across a wide range of topics including sexual violence and intimate partner violence.

Survey Questions

Questions asked on the 2021 survey related to sexual and intimate partner violence

• Have you experienced actual or attempted sexual intercourse without your consent or against your will, in the past 12 months and within your lifetime? (Where sexual intercourse is defined as oral, vaginal, or anal penetration.)
• Have you experienced actual or attempted sexual touching without your consent or against your will, in the past 12 months and within your lifetime? (Where sexual touching is defined as touching of the breasts, buttocks, or genitals.)
• Have you been slapped, kicked, or pushed by your significant other or spouse/partner, in the past 12 months and within your lifetime?
• Have you been hurt by threats, "put-downs", or yelling from your significant other or spouse/partner, in the past 12 months and within your lifetime?
• You reported experiencing sexual intercourse/sexual touching against your will, did you tell anyone about the incident?
• Who did you tell about the sexual assault incident?
• You reported experiencing being hit, slapped, verbal threatened verbal put-down, etc., did you tell anyone about the incident?
• Who did you tell about the domestic violence incident?
• The survey asks a question about the impacts of various experiences, including sexual assault, on academic performance in the past 12 months.
• The 2021 survey included a series of questions about sexual harassment.
• This survey also asks about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

Strengths and Limitations

Strengths

• Self-report surveys are likely to provide a more accurate count of victimization than surveillance systems that require a third party to report (like hospital treatment and law enforcement).
• This survey captures victimization experiences both within the previous 12 months and throughout one’s lifetime.
• Some survey years have asked extensive sexual harassment questions.
• The survey is conducted semi-annually since 2007.

Limitations

• The survey asks questions about experiences that are sensitive in nature, which may result in underreporting even though the survey is anonymous.
• The survey does not ask about all forms of sexual and intimate partner violence. Therefore, the survey is an undercount of the issue.
• Not all colleges participate in the survey.

More information

Visit the University of Minnesota’s College Student Health Survey site.

Description

The Minnesota Homeless Study, conducted every three years, is a point-in-time study to better understand the prevalence of homelessness in Minnesota, as well as the circumstances of those experiencing homelessness. The study is conducted through face-to-face interviews.

Questions

• Questions asked in the most recent (2018) study related to sexual and intimate partner violence
• Have you ever been physically or sexually attacked or assaulted while you have been homeless?
• As a child, were you ever sexually mistreated?
• Have you ever stayed in an abusive situation because you did not have other housing options?
• During any time in the last 12 months, have you been in a personal relationship with someone who hit you, slapped you, pushed you around, or threatened to do so?
• Have you ever been sexual with someone only for the purpose of getting shelter, clothing, food, or other things?
• Has anyone ever encouraged you to make money by dancing, stripping, posing for nude photos, working for an escort service, or otherwise exchanging sex for money?
• For those who have been approached to work in the sex industry, at what age were you first approached?

Strengths and Limitations

Strengths

• Self-report surveys are likely to provide a more accurate count of victimization than surveillance systems that require a third party to report (like hospital treatment and law enforcement).
• This survey focuses on the homeless population who experience a disproportionate burden of sexual and intimate partner violence victimization.

Limitations

• The interview asks questions about experiences that are sensitive in nature, which may result in underreporting.
• The interview does not ask about all forms of sexual and intimate partner violence. Therefore, the study is an undercount of the issue.

More information

Visit Wilder Research's Minnesota Homeless Study site.

Description

The purpose of the Minnesota Injury Data Access System (MIDAS) is to enable easier access to hospital treatment discharge data and death certificate data regarding injury and violence, including sexual and intimate partner violence.

Strengths and Limitations

Strengths

• Hospital treatment discharge data: This data is available from MDH on an annual and sometimes quarterly basis and is therefore a more timely source of data. This data is useful to help assess and strengthen the hospital treatment and coding of sexual and intimate partner violence.
• Death certificate data: This source provides data on fatal interpersonal violence.

Limitations

• Hospital treatment discharge data: Many people do not seek hospital treatment after violence victimization, and people who do seek hospital treatment after violence victimization may not feel safe to reveal that their injury was caused by another person. Also, providers might not understand the different relevant codes or code these visits accurately. These factors are all required in order to be included in this dataset. Therefore, this dataset will be an undercount of total sexual and intimate partner violence victimization.
• Death certificate data: There may be cases where the underlying cause of death does not fall within the case definition for deaths due to interpersonal violence, but in fact are attributable to interpersonal violence. Does not include those who were murdered but are still missing, which has a strong connection to intimate partner violence, human trafficking, and sexual violence victimization.

More information

Visit the Minnesota Department of Health’s Minnesota Injury Data Access System.

Description

Minnesota gathers and tracks information regarding violent deaths, including intimate partner homicides through the Minnesota Violent Death Reporting System (MNVDRS). The system uses death certificates and death investigation reports from medical examiners, coroners, and law enforcement to figure out the circumstances leading to the death.

More information

Visit the Minnesota Department of Health’s MNVDRS dashboard.

Description

Violence Free Minnesota tracks the stories and numbers of intimate partner homicides in Minnesota and prepares reports annually. A 30-year retrospective report was also made available for 1989-2018.

More information

Visit Violence Free Minnesota’s Homicide Reports page.

Description

The Minnesota Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relative's Office is advocating for a comprehensive tracking system that uses multiple data sources to provide clear information on missing and murdered Indigenous women. Details can be found in the Task Force Report (PDF), and the data sources listed in the report are included below.

More information

Visit the Sovereign Bodies Institute for the Database of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and two spirit people.

Visit the National Institute of Justice for the NamUs Database.

Visit the Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension’s Missing and Unidentified Persons Clearinghouse.

Visit the Federal Bureau of Investigation:

• National Incident-Based Reporting System
• National Crime Information Center

Visit the Department of Justice’s Tribal Access Program site.

Description

The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) is an ongoing survey that collects the most current and comprehensive national- and state-level data on intimate partner violence, sexual violence and stalking victimization in the United States

More information

Visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) to learn more about this survey, to access the national and state data reports.

Visit the Minnesota Department of Education’s site for Discipline Data. (Disciplinary incidents- counts by incident type; see table columns for As-Assault and Ha-Harassment, which include but are not limited to sexual assault and sexual harassment, respectively)

Visit the Office of Higher Education site for Sexual Assault Data Reports.

Visit the Department of Human Services site for Annual Child Maltreatment Reports and Child Maltreatment Dashboard.

Visit the Department of Human Services site for Vulnerable Adult Protection Dashboard.

Visit the Minnesota Department of Health site for Annual Reports on Maltreatment of Vulnerable Adults and Minors Served by Minnesota Licensed Providers.

Visit the Minnesota Department of Health site for Safe Harbor Evaluation Reports.

Comprehensive data from victim services programs is not yet readily accessible at the state level. Check with your local victim advocacy programs to ask about numbers of victims served locally. Local programs are listed on these websites:

• Minnesota Indian Women’s Sexual Assault Coalition
• Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault
• Violence Free Minnesota
• Minnesota Children’s Alliance
• Department of Public Safety
• Day One Services

Visit the Federal Bureau of Investigation site for national, state, and local crime report data using the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).

Visit the Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension’s site for Annual Uniform Crime Reports.

Visit the Department of Public Safety site for Arrest Dashboards, Probation Supervision Dashboard, State Prison Dashboard, Ethnic and Racial Disparities in Juvenile Justice System Dashboard.

Visit the Minnesota Judicial Branch site for Court Case Filing Dashboard.

Visit the Department of Corrections site for Prison Rape Elimination Act Information.

Contact your local institutions, organizations, and governments to request any additional local systems and survey data specific to your area. For example, some county governments gather county-specific data.

• Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Task Force: A Report to the Minnesota Legislature (PDF)
• Missing and Murdered African American Women Task Force: Final Report
• Working Group on Violence Against Asian Women and Children- A Report on Violence Against Asian Women and Children in Minnesota (PDF)
• Comprehensive Plan for Prevention of Abuse and Neglect of People with Disabilities (PDF)
• University of Minnesota Healthy Youth Development Prevention Research Center- Annual Adolescent Sexual Health Reports
• Women’s Foundation of Minnesota- Status of Women and Girls in Minnesota Reports
• Native American Women & Incarceration in Minnesota (PDF)
• 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey: Minnesota State Report (PDF)
• Department of Public Safety- Minnesota Crime Victimization Survey Reports
• Visit the Human Trafficking Articles, Reports, and Publications page for reports on sexual exploitation and human trafficking, including the Garden of Truth and Shattered Hearts reports on the sexual exploitation of American Indian women and girls in Minnesota.