Are Survivors of Sexual Assault Blamed More Than Victims of Other Crimes?

2021 ◽  
pp. 088626052110374
Author(s):  
Catherine M. Reich ◽  
Grace A. Pegel ◽  
Alixandra B. Johnson

Although victim blaming in the context of sexual assault is often emphasized, little research has compared rates of victim blaming following sexual assault relative to other forms of victimization. This research investigated whether there is a crime-specific bias toward blaming victims of sexual assault. Victim blaming was assessed via different methods from the observer perspective in vignette-based studies, as well as survivors’ accounts of social reactions they received. In Study 1, participants were asked to rate how much the survivor was to blame in three vignettes, each with a different randomized crime outcome: rape, physical assault, or theft. Study 2 assessed blame for a vignette that either ended in rape or theft, via a causal attribution statement. Study 3 asked interpersonal trauma survivors who had experienced at least two forms of victimization (i.e., sexual assault, physical assault, or theft) to report the social reactions they received following disclosure of each of these crimes. Across all three studies, victim blaming occurred following multiple forms of victimization and there was no evidence of a particular bias toward blaming survivors of sexual assault more so than other crimes. However, results of Study 3 highlight that, following sexual assault, survivors receive more silencing and stigmatizing reactions than they experienced after other crimes. Interpersonal traumas (i.e., sexual or physical assault) also resulted in more egocentric responses compared to theft. Altogether, there does not appear to be a crime-specific bias for victim blaming; however, crime-specific bias is apparent for some other, potentially understudied, social reactions. Implications of these findings highlight the value of victim blaming education and prevention efforts through trauma-informed services and outreach following victimization. Furthermore, service providers and advocates might especially seek to recognize and prevent silencing and stigmatizing reactions following sexual assault disclosures.

Author(s):  
Amie R. Newins ◽  
Laura C. Wilson

Although services and support have the potential to be helpful, a survivor’s trajectory toward recovery is contingent on the social reactions they receive. Given that fear of negative social reactions is the primary reason that sexual assault survivors delay disclosing or fail to disclose their victimization to others, we review numerous correlates of when and why survivors disclose their assault, typical social reactions survivors receive, the psychosocial impact of social reactions on survivors, and recommendations for ways providers can provide services that are more survivor-centered. Because nondisclosure limits the resources, services, and support available to survivors, it is important to understand what contributes to survivors’ decisions regarding if and when they tell others about their victimization. Furthermore, given the link between negative reactions and psychosocial difficulties, it is important to minimize the potential for a survivor to receive a harmful response from a provider.


2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 1096-1115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E. Ullman ◽  
Mark Relyea ◽  
Rannveig Sigurvinsdottir ◽  
Sidney Bennett

Social reactions to disclosures of sexual assault have significant effects on women’s postassault recovery. However, being the most widely used measure of these reactions, the 48-item Social Reactions Questionnaire (SRQ; Ullman, 2000) is too long for some research and evaluation efforts. Thus, we developed a 16-item short version, the Social Reactions Questionnaire-Shortened (SRQ-S). Three preexisting college and community samples of women survivors (N = 1,012; 1,084; and 344) were used to determine which SRQ items were most related to psychological symptoms and could form reliable subscales. The brief version was then administered in a college and community sample of 447 women survivors. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) and supporting psychometrics showed the SRQ-S reliably measures three general scales of the SRQ (Turning Against, Unsupportive Acknowledgment, Positive Reactions) as well as eight 2-item subscales (e.g., Blame). The SRQ-S provides researchers and interventionists with a brief alternative measure to the original SRQ.


2021 ◽  
Vol Publish Ahead of Print ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen Chalmers ◽  
Nicole Dussault ◽  
Ramya Parameswaran

1996 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 505-526 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E. Ullman

The present study investigated the impact of social reactions of others to sexual-assault victims on disclosure of their victimization. A convenience sample of adult sexual-assault victims ( N = 155) completed a mail survey in which they reported information about their sexual assaults and postassault experiences. As expected, all negative social reactions were strongly associated with increased psychological symptoms, whereas most positive social reactions were unrelated to adjustment. The only social reactions related to better adjustment were being believed and being listened to by others. Victims experiencing negative social reactions also reported poorer adjustment even when other variables known to affect psychological recovery were controlled. Avoidance coping mediated the association of negative social reactions with adjustment. Implications of these findings for research and treatment of sexual-assault survivors are discussed.


MedEdPORTAL ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Gore ◽  
Melissa Prusky ◽  
Chloe J. E. Solomon ◽  
Kaitlynn Tracy ◽  
Joshua Longcoy ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-31
Author(s):  
Nicole Nicotera ◽  
Margaret Megan Connolly

Abstract This study examined a Trauma-Informed Yoga (TIY) intervention created specifically for sexual assault survivors and delivered in a community-based group setting. Much of the existing research on this type of intervention has been conducted in clinical trials as opposed to community-based venues. As sexual assault is a common type of trauma and results more commonly in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the current study aimed to shed light on the potential benefits of a trauma-sensitive yoga and mindfulness intervention for survivors of sexual assault in the natural setting of a community-based organization. The intervention was developed and implemented by licensed mental health providers and registered yoga teachers and modeled on the evidence-based work of the Trauma Center at the Justice Research Institute. The study employed a traditional quantitative one-sample, pre- and posttest design. Survey items were drawn from two existing measures: (1) Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire and (2) Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale. The majority of the sample (n = 37) identified as White (67.6%), followed by Latina (13.5%), African American (8.1%), multiracial (5.4%), and other (2.7%). The mean age of participants was 29 years (standard deviation 8 years, range 18–56 years). All participants identified as female. Findings demonstrated statistically significant changes in participants’ emotion regulation and skilled awareness, both of which have the potential to reduce PTSD symptomatology. The present discussion considers the results in light of previous research and presents study limitations.


2021 ◽  
pp. 107780122098835
Author(s):  
Rachel J. Voth Schrag ◽  
Leila G. Wood ◽  
Karin Wachter ◽  
Shanti Kulkarni

Gaps in knowledge related to occupational stress among the intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual assault (SA) workforce remain. This study examined associations between key risk factors for occupational stress and compassion fatigue among a sample of IPV/SA service providers in the Southwestern United States ( N = 520). Results of the hierarchical regression analysis identified microaggressions, age, recent life stress, direct practice, and workload as factors associated with compassion fatigue. The findings point to the importance of incorporating trauma-informed organizational approaches to address microaggressions, reduce workload, and support staff experiencing recent stress and providing direct services.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 399-416
Author(s):  
Anne P. DePrince ◽  
Naomi Wright ◽  
Kerry L. Gagnon ◽  
Tejaswinhi Srinivas ◽  
Jennifer Labus

Following sexual assault, little is known about how the social reactions women receive from informal supports and community-based providers relate to decisions to report to law enforcement. Among 213 diverse women who had disclosed a recent sexual assault to a community-based provider, 56% reported to law enforcement. Law enforcement reporting was associated with more positive (tangible aid) and less negative (distraction, being treated differently) reactions from informal supports and more tangible aid and less emotional support from community-based providers. Tangible aid from community-based providers predicted law enforcement reporting over the subsequent 9 months among women who had not initially reported.


2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (23-24) ◽  
pp. 4765-4793
Author(s):  
Rebecca Campbell ◽  
Rachael Goodman-Williams ◽  
McKenzie Javorka

The practice of ethics in social science research is a reflexive process of self-review to define a profession’s collective responsibility in the face of changing norms and expectations. In recent years, we have seen transformative changes in how society thinks about supporting sexual assault survivors, and how the scientific community thinks about our obligations to society. Decades of research on trauma and its impact has raised awareness about the needs of victimized individuals, giving rise to the trauma-informed practice movement, which emphasizes that service providers must center survivors’ well-being in all interactions, decisions, and program practices. The field of sexual assault research helped give rise to this movement and provides empirical support for its guiding tenets, and in this article, we explore how to bring these ideas full circle to begin articulating trauma-informed principles for research. A trauma-informed perspective on research challenges scientists to go beyond the requirements of the Belmont Report (1979) and institutional review boards' (IRB) regulations to develop research procedures that fully support survivors’ choice, control, and empowerment. Such reflection on participants’ rights is particularly important given the open science movement sweeping academia, which calls on scientists to share their data publicly to promote transparency, replication, and new discoveries. Disseminating data could pose significant safety, privacy, and confidentiality risks for victims of sexual assault, so we need to evaluate what open science means within a trauma-informed framework. In this article, we examine three key stages of the research process—participant recruitment, data collection, and dissemination—and consider how trauma-informed principles could help, but also could complicate, research practices. We explore these tensions and offer potential solutions so that research on sexual trauma embodies trauma-informed practice.


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