Varsity Athlete Status and Psychological Violence Victimization Among U.S. College Students: Composite and Component-Specific Analyses

Background: Psychological violence among college students includes conceptually distinct experiences such as verbal threats, bullying, cyberbullying, hazing, microaggressions, and discrimination. Varsity athletic participation may shape exposure to these harms, but broad composite measures may obscure differences across specific forms of victimization. Aims: To examine associations between varsity student-athlete status and both composite and component-specific psychological violence victimization among U.S. college students. Methods: This pooled cross-sectional study analyzed American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment III data collected from Fall 2019 through Spring 2023 (N = 412,981). The primary outcome indicated whether respondents reported any of six psychological violence experiences during the previous 12 months. Logistic regression models adjusted for gender identity, sexual orientation, degree level, White race selection, and survey period. Secondary models examined each component separately, with Benjamini-Hochberg correction for multiple testing. A complete-item sensitivity analysis was also conducted. Results: Overall, 29.7% of respondents reported at least one form of psychological violence. Varsity student-athletes had modestly lower adjusted odds of the composite outcome than non-varsity students (adjusted odds ratio = 0.92, 95% confidence interval [0.88, 0.95]). However, varsity status was associated with higher adjusted odds of bullying (1.26 [1.19, 1.33]), cyberbullying (1.14 [1.05, 1.24]), and hazing (2.23 [2.01, 2.48]), and lower adjusted odds of verbal threats (0.94 [0.90, 0.99]), microaggressions (0.82 [0.79, 0.87]), and discrimination (0.87 [0.82, 0.92]). All component-specific associations remained statistically significant after false discovery rate correction. The complete-item sensitivity analysis produced a nearly identical composite estimate. Conclusion: The composite outcome masked substantial heterogeneity across psychological violence components. Disaggregated surveillance is needed to identify elevated risks that broad composite measures may conceal and to support both campus-wide prevention and targeted safeguards within collegiate athletics.