The concept behind the word, action, and idea of ​​rape is a scary thought. Rape is defined as a type of sexual violence, usually involving sexual intercourse, that is initiated by one or more people against another person without that person's consent (Kelland, 2011). Rape is a demoralizing crime that can leave lasting negative psychological effects on the victim. This article will discuss the different types of rape, the causes and effects of rape, and the harm that rape can cause to its victims. When most people hear the word "rape," they automatically think that the perpetrator is a stranger forcing himself on another and doing unwanted sexual things to the victim. However, the most common form of rape is called acquaintance rape or date rape. Acquaintance rape is defined as forced or manipulated sexual contact by someone you have met and had interactions with a few times (Sarmiento, 2010). According to the American Rape Statistics, approximately 28% of victims are raped by their partners, 35% by acquaintances, and 5% by other relatives (APR, 2011). Jean Hughes, who has conducted extensive research on acquaintance rape, found that nearly 60% of all reported rapes fall under the label of acquaintance rape. (Hughes and Sandler, 1990). There are many cases of date and acquaintance rape within the college environment. Dr. Stephen Lawyer and his colleagues conducted research on 134 undergraduate women; they wanted to understand what percentage of these women had been raped by force or with the use of drugs. They concluded that nearly 26.9%, 93 participants said they had been sexually assaulted at some point in their lives since the age of 14. Of this 26.9%, 5.4%, 17 participants reported a total of 28 forcible assaults... middle of paper......women graduates. Journal of American College Health, 58(5), 453-460. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.Franklin, CA (2010). Physically coerced, alcohol-induced, and verbally coerced sexual victimization: Assessment of risk factors among college women. Journal of Criminal Justice, 38(2), 149-159. Masser, B., Lee, K., & McKimmie, B. (2010). Bad woman, bad victim? Disentangling the effects of victim stereotypicality, gender stereotypicality, and benevolent sexism on the guilt of acquaintance rape victims. Sex Roles, 62(7/8), 494-504. Finn, J., & Hughes, P. (2008). Evaluation of the RAINN national online sexual assault hotline. Journal of Technology in Human Services, 26(2/4), 203-222Zurbriggen, E. L. (2009). UNDERSTANDING AND PREVENTING TEEN VIOLENCE: THE IMPORTANCE OF DEVELOPMENTAL, SOCIOCULTURAL AND GENDER PERSPECTIVES. Women's Psychology Quarterly, 33(1), 30-33