Sexual Violence Against Women Across Contexts: Prevention, Education, and Intervention

Dear Colleagues,

Sexual violence against women remains a persistent global issue, affecting individuals across all regions, cultures, and socioeconomic backgrounds and, according to UN Women, approximately 736 million women worldwide—nearly one in three—have experienced physical or sexual violence at least once in their lives, most often by an intimate partner. These dates do not include sexual harassment or technology-facilitated violence, which have seen a significant rise in recent years.

This Special Issue seeks to explore the diverse manifestations of sexual violence against women in various contexts—domestic, institutional, public, and digital spaces—highlighting the structural, cultural, and interpersonal dynamics that sustain it. These manifestations include sexual assault, sexual harassment in the workplace or educational institutions, street harassment, sexual violence in conflict and humanitarian settings, and technology-facilitated abuse such as non-consensual image sharing, cyberstalking, and online sexual coercion. We invite contributions that analyze these forms of violence from interdisciplinary perspectives—from gender studies, public health, psychology, law, education, sociology, anthropology and social work—and propose innovative strategies for prevention, awareness, education, and intervention. Submissions may include empirical research, theoretical reviews, intervention evaluations, and case studies that address both local and global dimensions of the issue. This Special Issue aims to foster critical dialogue and collaboration among researchers, practitioners, educators, and policymakers committed to ending sexual violence against women in all its forms.

Prof. Dr. Yolanda Rodríguez Castro
Dr. Rosana Martínez-Román
Guest Editors

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