Most women in their 20s have experienced sexual violence, ‘shocking’ Australian data shows

The Anrows data also found women who had experienced sexual violence during childhood were twice as likely to have reported recent sexual violence. Photograph: Kittiphan Teerawattanakul/Getty Images/EyeEm

“Shocking” evidence shows most women in their 20s have experienced sexual violence, according to Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (Anrows).

Sexual violence is defined as “sexual actions without consent, which may include coercion, physical force, rape, sexual assault with implements, being forced to watch or engage in pornography, enforced prostitution or being made to have sex with other people”.