Detecting the Scope of Rape

This article focuses on rape prevalence research and examines the relationship between measurement methods and level of rape detection. After a brief overview of empirical data, the relative threat to the validity of prevalence estimates posed by fabrication versus nondisclosure is weighed. Then various methodological choices and their relationship to the magnitude of prevalence estimates are examined. Addressed are the definitions underlying the studies, the questions used to elicit reports of rape, the context in which rape questioning occurred, the confidentiality of the responses, the method of data collection, and the sample integrity. The conclusions include 10 recommendations for the design of future studies of rape prevalence.