Preliminary Results from a National-Level Drugging Study Using Mturk

• In Event: Drugging Victimization and Perpetration: Various Approaches and Findings

Abstract

In recent years, the phenomenon of drugging--administering a drug or alcohol to someone without their consent--has been examined using quantitative, qualitative and mixed methodologies. Knowledge about drugging victimization and perpetration has rapidly expanded as a result of estimating prevalence rates, identifying correlates, and testing hypotheses. The consistency of results across studies has challenged the earlier view among some scholars that drugging is an urban legend or cautionary tale. Results also have established that drugging can occur outside the scope of sexual assault victimization and that there are a range of offenders’ motivations. However, this area of research has been hindered by an exclusive use of convenience samples, resulting in a wealth of information about drugging among college students but a dearth in terms of the general adult population. The current study uses the crowdsourcing platform Mturk to examine drugging in a sample of young adults aged 18-30, and is one of the first to move beyond college student samples. The study also examines measures of risky lifestyles and routine activities as correlates of drugging victimization. Preliminary results from this survey will be presented alongside a discussion of some of the methodological hurdles experienced and how the research team overcame them.

Authors

• Nicole Lasky, Northeastern State University

• Bonnie S. Fisher, University of Cincinnati

• Suzanne Swan, University of South Carolina