Women’s Experiences of Impairment and Incapacitation During Alcohol/Drug-Related Sexual Assaults: Toward a Survivor-Informed Approach to Measurement

Abstract

Researchers have categorized level of impact of drinking during alcohol/substance facilitated sexual assaults as unimpaired (perceived no effect of drinking), impaired (conscious, but impacted by substance use), or incapacitated (unconscious due to substance use). However, researchers have not always agreed on what constitutes these categories, and no qualitative research has been done to date to explore those discrepancies. Such work is needed in order to listen to survivors’ voices, using their perspectives and experiences to develop trauma-informed practices specific to survivors of alcohol-involved assaults. The current study sought to shed light on impaired/incapacitated sexual assault experiences presenting 141 qualitative written responses of women who were drinking and/or using substances at the time of their assault. Results showed that while some responses aligned with previous researcher-defined quantitative impaired/incapacitated categories, most responses coded could be considered both impaired and incapacitated, or neither of these categories. Implications for further research, particularly qualitative work, are discussed specifically challenging previous research on impaired/incapacitated sexual assault experiences.