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Article: Rape and Sexual Assault
- Article from:
- Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health: Infancy throughAdolescence
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Thomson Gale. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Rape and sexual assault
Definition
Rape and sexual assault are crimes that involve the use of threats,
fear
tactics, and/or physical violence to force a child or adolescent to submit to sexual intercourse or to engage in other sexual activity (e.g., oral sex, anal sex).
Description
Rape and sexual assault are violent crimes, and children and adolescents constitute a large number of the victims of these crimes. Rape and sexual assault are defined according to the degree of sexual interaction. Rape and sexual assault can involve contact between the penis and vagina or penis and anus that involves penetration; contact between the mouth and genitals or anus; penetration of the vagina ...