Purpose-After a sexual assault (SA), victims often disclose their SA to an informal support provider (SP) to receive social support; however, many survivors do not disclose or wait months or years to tell anyone. While research exists on disclosure, social reactions of informal SPs to disclosure, and how those reactions affect the victim both positively and negatively, little research exists on reasons for and impact of adult SA survivors' nondisclosure to informal social network members.Method-This qualitative interview study examined 42 ethnically diverse women who had disclosed SA to an informal SP (e.g., friend, family, significant other). For this study, nondisclosure of SA mentioned by survivors was examined.Results-Various reasons for not telling people in their lives and/or delaying doing so were uncovered including fear of negative social reactions, lack of perceived available support and fear of burdening others, family and social norms expectations, and anticipated problematic gendered responses by both men (e.g., violence) and women (e.g., overwhelmed) SPs.Conclusions-Implications for future SA disclosure research and supporting survivors in their choice to selectively/not disclose are discussed.

Qualitative interview data from 45 matched pairs of survivors disclosing sexual assaults and their primary informal support providers (e.g., friend, family member, significant other) were used to explore survivor and support provider perspectives on changes in sexuality postassault and how those close to them have been affected as a result. Changes in sexuality included loss of interest in sex, increase or change in sexual partners, engaging in sex work, and increased sexual behavior. Support providers generally regarded promiscuity as a risky sexual behavior. If the support provider was the survivor's sexual partner, he or she discussed exercising caution when navigating sexual intimacy with the survivor. Not all sexual encounters with romantic partners were positive; some survivors discussed being triggered (i.e., with post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD] flashbacks) or experiencing the dissolution of their relationships due to the sexual impacts of their assault. Counseling implications are discussed in the context of improving survivors' sexual experiences in general and in romantic relationships postassault. Implications can also be applied to prevention, scholarship on sex work, and sexuality research.

Ample research exists on sexual assault survivors' formal help-seeking behaviors and its impacts on recovery; however, little research exists on how informal support providers (ISPs; e.g., friends, family, partners) feel about survivor formal help-seeking and/or how these behaviors impact the survivor-ISP relationship. This qualitative, semistructured interview, cross-sectional study examined 28 matched dyadic pairs of survivors and their ISPs discussing formal help-seeking post assault. The majority of survivors sought therapy post assault, and survivors and ISPs discussed the positive impacts of counseling on survivor recovery, but also encountered barriers that delayed/interrupted their care. Some survivors chose not to seek help post assault, which usually negatively impacted their ISPs. This study provides implications for clinical practice around supporting both survivors and their ISP in the formal help-seeking process.

Higher education is not immune to the epidemic of sexual harassment in the United States, particularly sexual harassment of graduate workers. This is due largely to power differentials of status and income, as academia relies on low-wage work. While the literature shows sexual harassment is prevalent across disciplines, current work to address the problem does not account for graduate worker precarity. The graduate labor movement, which addresses precarity, is beginning to tackle sexual harassment. We review how the labor and anti-gender-based violence movements in higher education should come together to prevent sexual harassment, presenting recommendations for structural changes to academia.

It is well established in the literature that individuals who engage in sex work are more likely to experience sexual trauma/violence, but little research has examined experiences of sexual assault survivors who exchange sex from the survivor’s perspective. Sexual assault survivors and their informal support providers (SPs; e.g., family, friends, romantic partners) were interviewed separately about disclosure, social reactions, and help-seeking following assault. Sixteen survivors mentioned experiences exchanging sex, which comprise the sample for the current study as well as comments from twelve SPs. Qualitative analysis revealed several themes including violence experienced engaging in sex work, navigating stigma and the identity of both sexual assault survivor and sex worker, and how survivors’ social supports impact their recovery. Survivors endorsed their sex worker identities at varying levels, and others used their identity as a sexual assault survivor to explain why they engaged in sex work. Social work implications regarding service provision and advocacy work are discussed.