Prevalence of Sexual Violence

Sexual assault is a difficult crime on which to collect empirical data due to the complex nature of sexually violent crimes. Most Canadian statistics are based on police-reported and self-reported data. However, accurate statistics can be difficult to obtain for various reasons. Due to the culture of shame and stigma surrounding sexual violence, many survivors choose to never formally report their experiences. Additionally, due to the problematic narratives which frame sexual violence according to a specific and limited definition, many survivors do not identify their experiences as being sexually violent initially, or at all. Survivors may also find the experience of formal reporting traumatic and retriggering due to the nature of institutional perceptions of sexual violence. Evidence suggests that fear of repercussions, fear of judgment, a lack of faith in the justice system, self-blame and feelings of responsibility, and fear of having to testify in a formal setting such as a courtroom act as significant deterrents to formal reporting for survivors of violence.

Statistics Canada has two main sources of information when it comes to sexual violence statistics. One is the Incident-based Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Survey which is for police-reported data, while the General Social Survey (GSS) on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization) is for self-reported data. Though additional research has been conducted within a Canadian context in pockets, Statistics Canada has the largest data pool available on sexual violence research.