After more than 80 years, the FBI’s definition of rape is getting an update — it will now include sexual assaults against men and sexual assaults involving objects.

The new definition will address rape of a person of any gender, rape using objects and oral penetration of a sex organ. The definition also stipulates that a person can be mentally or physically incapable of consenting to sexual activity.

The current definition — first proposed in 1927 and adopted in 1929 — for national data collecting purposes defines rape as the “carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.”

Government officials said this change was not prompted by recent sexual abuse charges brought against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. Sandusky is charged with 52 counts of child sexual abuse involving males.

“While the new definition includes committed assaults that are against boys and men, that’s only one component,” White House Adviser on Violence Against Women Lynn Rosenthal said.

FBI Director Robert Muller endorsed the change on December 21, 2011. Assistant Director of the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services Division David Cuthbertson said based on the new definition, the Uniform Crime Report service does expect to see an increase in the number of rapes reported nationally.

Cuthbertson said he expects it to take a few years before the FBI will be able to fully see the impact of the new definition.

The Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women Director Susan Carbon said the old definition led to inaccurate national statistics, which was a major reason why the change needed to be made.

“The definition was outdated, and it was narrow,” Carbon said.

She also said people who were “victims” of the types of rape that were excluded from the previous definition, were pained that the crime committed against them was not recognized on a national level.

With the change, Carbon said rape will now be reported more accurately nationwide.