Article Sidebar

Submitted
November 22, 2024
Published
August 30, 2025
Download
Download PDF
Statistic
Read Counter : 54

Main Article Content

Abstract

Electronic and print media have reported increased incidences of rape among different age groups. Never-married young females appear to be the main targets of this social menace. What predisposing factors make never-married young females a significant target in the growing epidemic of rape in Nigeria? This study seeks to provide an answer. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among young women randomly selected across Nigeria. Descriptive statistical tools and logistic regression were used to analyze the survey data using SPSS 26. The data were obtained from a subsample of 751 never-married females (10 years and older) surveyed in a larger study conducted in mid-2022. The findings suggest that the national incidence of rape among the study population is 19.2%. The rural-urban differences revealed that rape incidence among never-married females is higher in urban communities than in rural communities. Ethnicity, substance use, and childhood family background were significantly associated with rape incidence (p<0.05). Therefore, advocacy will likely be impactful if exhilarated child protection laws and aggressive campaigns against substance use, especially among young females are considered in its design and implementation.

Keywords

Rape never-married young female Nigeria

Article Details

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Olabusoye Olu Olupooye, Alausa Waheed, Sakiru O. Raji, Adijat Olubukola Olateju, Ibrahim Rotimi Aliu, Onipede Wusu, Afolasade Airat Sulaiman, Olufunsho Omobitan

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Author Biographies

Olabusoye Olu Olupooye, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Olabusoye Olu Olupooye is a lecturer in the Department of Sociology at Lagos State University, Ojo. She holds a PhD in Sociology (2023) from Lagos State University, specializing in Population Health, and a Master’s degree in Sociology (2017) from the University of Lagos. Her research interests include Maternal and Child Health, Sexual and Reproductive Health Behavior, and Medical Demography. She has extensive experience in both quantitative and qualitative research techniques.

Alausa Waheed, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Alausa Waheed holds a PhD in Public Health with a specialization in Industrial-Organizational Psychology and a Master’s in Public Health with a focus on health management, both from the University of Lagos. His research centers on how social and psychological factors influence people’s health and health services. He is currently a senior lecturer in the Psychology Department at Lagos State University, Ojo.

Sakiru O. Raji, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Sakiru O. Raji is a lecturer at the Department of Sociology, Lagos State University, Nigeria. He holds a PhD in Sociology with specialization in Medical Sociology (Sociology of Health and Well-being) from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. His research interests include Public and Community Health, Migration and Diversity, Social Exclusion and Discrimination, Development and Governance.

Adijat Olubukola Olateju, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Adijat Olubukola Olateju holds a PhD in Development Economics from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) with specialisation in microeconomics, environmental economics, health economics, and applied econometrics.  Her research interests are in the areas of microfinance, microenterprises, small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs), entrepreneurship development, poverty, vulnerability, livelihood, safety–net, women empowerment, sustainable development, green human resources management (Green HRM), and green economy.

Ibrahim Rotimi Aliu, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Ibrahim Rotimi Aliu is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and Planning at Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos. He holds a PhD in Geography from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. His expertise focuses on housing and urban studies. His research interests include housing development and policy, rural-urban polarization, poverty and social deprivation, urban services and management, urban spatiality, and regional planning. 

Onipede Wusu, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Onipede Wusu holds a PhD in Sociology with specialization in demography from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. His research interests include gender, sexual and reproductive health behaviour, internal migration, and socioeconomic development. He is vast in quantitative and qualitative research techniques. Onipede is a Professor of Sociology and Demography at the Lagos State University, Ojo.

Afolasade Airat Sulaiman, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Afolasade Airat Sulaiman is a Professor of counseling psychology in the Department of Educational Foundations & Counseling Psychology. Her research focuses on preventive counseling for adolescents, persons with disabilities, and young adults, emphasizing sexuality, marriage education, and personal adjustment. She earned her degrees from Lagos State University and the University of Durban-Westville, South Africa. 

Olufunsho Omobitan, Lagos State University, Nigeria

Olufunsho Omobitan holds a PhD in Economics with specialisation in Development Economics from the University of Vienna, Austria. His research interests include Poverty and inequality, Economic Crimes, Public Sector Finance, and Socio-Economic Development. He is versatile in quantitative techniques. Omobitan is a Professor of Economics at Lagos State University, Ojo. 

How to Cite
Olupooye, O. O., Alausa, W. M.-L., Raji, S. O., Olateju, A. O., Aliu, I. R., Wusu, O., … Omobitain, O. A. (2025). Predictors of Rape among Never-Married Young Females in Rural and Urban Communities in Nigeria. Pan-African Journal of Education and Social Sciences, 6(2), 149–158. https://doi.org/10.56893/pajes2025v06i02.11
Download Citation
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS)
BibTeX

References

  1. Adamu, M. (2020, June 06). Nigeria recorded 717 rape incidents in five months. Punch online. https://www.msn.com/en-xl/africa/other/nigeria-recorded-717-rape-incidents-in-five-months-ig/ar-BB15xwTG.
  2. Adeleke, N. A., Adebimpe, N. O., Farinloye, E. O., & Olowookere, A. S. (2019). Rural and urban prevalence of sexual assault against women in African population. Bangladesh Journal of Medical Science, 18 (3), 628-635. https://doi.org/10.3329/bjms.v18i3.41639
  3. Agbo, M. C. (2019). Child rape in Nigeria: Implications for the education of the child. Children and Teenagers, 2(1), 13 – 31. https://doi.org/10.22158/ct.v2n1p13
  4. Ajah, L. O., Ajah, M.I., Ajah, B.O., Onwe, E.O., Ozumba, B.C., Iyoke, C.A., Nwankwo, T.O., & Ezeanya, O.C.P. (2022). A 20-year’ retrospective study of rape in Ebonyi State, South-East Nigeria. Heliyon, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e08894
  5. Ajayi, A. I., Mudefi, E. & Owolabi, E.O. (2021). Prevalence and correlates of sexual violence among adolescent girls and young women: Findings from a cross-sectional study in a South African University. BMC Women’s Health 21, 299. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-021-01445-8
  6. Akinlusi, F.M., Rabiu K.A., Olawepo T.A., Adewunmi AA., Ottun T.A. & Akinola O.I. (2014). Sexual assault in Lagos, Nigeria: a five-year retrospective review. http://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6874-14-115.
  7. Alkan, Ö., & Tekmanli, H. H. (2021). Determination of the factors affecting sexual violence against women in Turkey: a population-based analysis. BMC Women's Health, 21, 188. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-021-01333-1
  8. Amole, T. G., Abdullahi, H., Abdullahi, N.T., Abubakar, A.S., Ajayi, A.O.& Tsiga-Ahmed, F.I. (2021). Prevalence, pattern and predictors of sexual abuse among young female hawkers in Kano metropolis, Nigeria. Nigerian Postgraduate Medical Journal, 28(1), 33-38. https://doi.org/10.4103/npmj.npmj_295_20
  9. Aruna, J. O. (2018). Trends in child sexual molestation, rape and incest: A view from Southwest Nigeria. Humanities and Social Sciences Letters, 6(4), 137-148. https://doi.org/10.18488/journal.73.2018.64.137.148
  10. Bahlieda, R. (2015). Chapter 1: THE LEGACY OF PATRIARCHY. Counterpoints, 488, 15–67. http://www.jstor.org/stable/45136330
  11. Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2010). National crime victimization survey. http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/glance/tables/viortrdtab.cfm.
  12. Folayan, M. O., Odetoyinbo, M., Harrison, A., & Brwon, B. (2014). Rape in Nigeria: A silent epidemic among adolescents with implications for HIV infection. Global Health Action, 7, 1, 2558. http://www.dx.10.3402/gha.v7.2558
  13. Gezahegn, K., Semagn,S. Shaka. M.F. (2021). Prevalence of sexual violence and its associated factors among housemaids attending evening schools in urban settings of Gedeo zone, Southern Ethiopia: A school based cross sectional study. PLOS ONE 16(10): e0258953. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0258953
  14. Gottfredson, M., & Hirschi, T. (1990). A general theory of crime. Stanford Idoko, C. A., Nwobodo, E. D., & Idoko, C. I. (2020). Trends in rape cases in a Nigerian State African Health Sciences, 20(2), 668-675. https://doi.org/10.4314/ahs.v20i2.17
  15. Kunnuji, M.O.N, & Esiet, A. (2015). Prevalence and Correlates of Sexual abuse among female out-of school adolescents in Iwaya Community, Lagos State, Nigeria. African Journal of Reproductive Health,19 (1),82-90 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26103698/
  16. McPaul, B. A. (2015). Feminist framework plus: Knitting feminist theories of rape etiology into a comprehensive model. Trauma, Violence and Abuse; 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838015584367
  17. Musingafi, M.C.C., Mafumbate, R., & Khumalo, T.F. (2021). Philosophizing Experiences and Vision of the Female Body, Mind, and Soul: Historical Context and Contemporary Theory. IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-4090-9
  18. National Population Commission (NPC) and ICF International. (2019). Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey 2018. Abuja, Nigeria and Rockville Maryland, USA, NPC and ICF International.
  19. Ogunwale, A. O., Oshiname, F.O., & Ajagunwa, F.O. (2019). A review of the conceptual issues, social epidemiology, prevention and control efforts relating to rape in Nigeria. African Journal of Reproductive Health, 23(1),108-123. https://doi.org/10.29063/ajrh2019/2314.13
  20. Polaschek, D. L.L.& Ward, T. (2002). The implicit theories of potential rapists: What our questionnaires tell us. Aggression and Violent Behavior,7(4), 385-406. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1359-1789(01)00063-5.
  21. Selengia, V., Thi Thuy, H. N., & Mushi, D. (2020). Prevalence and patterns of child sexual abuse in selected countries of Asia and Africa: A review of literature. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 8(9), 146-160. https://doi.org/10.4236/jss.2020.89010
  22. Shaw, J. (2017). Gender and Violence: Feminist Theories, Deadly Economics and Damahing Discourse. E-International Relations. https://www.e-ir.info/2017/11/03/gender-and-violence-feminisit-theories-deadly-economices-and-damaging-discourse/
  23. Sulaiman, A. A. (2015). Exploring the pattern of sexual harassment in Lagos state higher institutions: A structural model. Malaysian Journal of Education, 40(1), 13-19. https://doi.org/10.17576/JPEN-2015-4001-03
  24. Sulaiman, A.A., Tahir, B.M., Olupooye, O., Wusu, O., Olateju, A.O., Aliu, I.R., Raji, S.O., Moa-Liberty, A.W., & Omobitan, O.A. (2024). Rape incidence among children and teenagers in rural and urban communities in Nigeria. INSPIRA, Indonesian Journal of Psychological Research,5(2), 183-198. https://doi.org/10.32505/inspira.v5i2.9479
  25. World Health Organization. (2022). Violence Info: Sexual Violence. https://apps.who.int/violence-info/sexual-violence.
  26. Wusu, O. (2015). Predictors and implications of intimate partner violence against married female youths in Nigeria. Journal of Family Violence, 30(1), 63-74. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-014-9654-x