Political Science ETDs

Publication Date

Spring 5-16-2026

Abstract

I assess how the interaction between leader preferences, regime type, and agent personal motives impacts patterns of sexual violence. I ask, “Why do some government security forces perpetrate sexual violence while others do not?” and “How does the interaction between leader motives and institutions impact victimization patterns?” I found that police corruption was correlated with sexual violence by government security forces, but military corruption was not. My findings indicate the importance of moving beyond a conflict scope and distinguishing between different types of state security actors. In addition, I use natural language processing methods to collect disaggregated allegation data to analyze sub-national patterns of victimization. For example, I found that President Aquino targeted leftists and human rights activists for sexual violence; under President Duterte, police sexual exploited victims connected to antidrug operations. My research indicates that leaders can determine the use and targets of sexual violence.

Degree Name

Political Science

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Political Science

First Committee Member (Chair)

Christopher K. Butler

Second Committee Member

Kathy Powers

Third Committee Member

Mark Peceny

Fourth Committee Member

Sergio Ascencio

Language

English

Keywords

Repression, Human Rights, Police, Military, Sexual Violence, Rape

Document Type

Dissertation

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