Correlates of sexual assault in a sample of male African American crack cocaine users.(Survey)

ABSTRACT

Although numerous studies have reported an association between substance use and sexual assault, little is known about the impact of sexual assault on male African American crack cocaine users. This study found that from a sample of 137 respondents from Houston, Texas, one-third reported having been sexually assaulted at least once during their lifetime. Respondents who reported sexual assault were using cocaine more often and were more likely to be physically dependent on drugs and to report greater numbers of physical health problems due to their drug use. However, no differences were identified in respect of reported mental health problems, or problems with family, friends or the workplace associated with drug use. The findings suggest further research as to the impact of sexual assault on male crack cocaine users is warranted and that clinical staff working with male substance users require some awareness of the impacts of sexual assault.

KEY WORDS

sexual assault, sexually assulted males, African-American, crack cocaine use, sociology

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There is surprisingly little known about the impact of sexual assault on male African American crack cocaine users. However, previous research which has identified relationships between sexual assault, substance misuse and HIV risk practices more generally, suggest that this may be substantial. Ethnicity may also have an impact both in respect of interpreting the meaning of sexual assault (Duncan and Williams 1998) and willingness to disclose incidents of sexual assault (Dailey and Claus 2001). The impact of sexual assault may be further differentiated according to gender with male substance users being more likely to engage in sexual risk behaviours (Morrill et al. 2001).

Many studies focusing on the relationship between sexual assault, substance use and HIV risk, have had all female samples (eg Bedimo et al. 1997, Bond and Semaan 1996), despite experiences of sexual assault being not uncommon among males (Coxall et al. 2000). Furthermore, there may also be differences between African Americans and white Americans, at least for females, in respect of sexual assault. While one study has reported higher rates of childhood sexual assault among females in a drug treatment centre who were African American than for white women (Teets 1995), elsewhere it has been reported that African-American female prisoners in Texas were significantly less likely to report sexual assault than white Americans 'while growing up' (Mullings et al. 2000). Moreover, while it is known that women with a history of sexual assault were more likely to smoke crack cocaine and to have injected drugs and to have engaged in a range of sexual risk behaviours (Mullings et al. 2000), little is known about the impact of sexual assault on male African American crack cocaine users. This paper will explore the relationship between sexual assault and the mental health, crack cocaine use, drug dependence and sexual behaviours of a sample of 137 African American male crack cocaine users from Houston, Texas.