The "social" nature of sexual assault.

Abstract

The experience of rape crisis counsellors suggest that victims of rape are often victimized again, after the assault, by social, medical and legal processes. Because of this, women who are sexually assaulted are frequently reluctant to receive medical attention, report the crime to the police, or even tell close friends and relatives, and they may experience some degree of self-blame and guilt over the assault. This paper reports descriptive information about the social victimization process and the psychological experiences of 231 consecutive cases of rape reported to a Sexual Assault Service. Until the "social" nature of victimization is acknowledged and better understood, primary intervention strategies of social action (directed at others) will be difficult to implement and social services will continue to be victim-centered and victim-blaming. The implications for psychological research and service of this "social" aspect of social problems is discussed.One of the common misconceptions about sexual assaults is the belief that the majority of "genuine" cases involves either harm or threat of harm by an assailant who is unknown to the victim when, in fact, most assaults are by a person known to the victim, take place in the victim's own home, and do not include physical injury (Renner & Wackett, 1987).There is widespread cultural support for a variety of beliefs and attitudes about sex roles and the relationship between men and women (Herman, 1984) that assume that when there is not actual harm or threat of harm, and when the assailant is known to the victim, that unwanted sex seldom happens, and when it does happen, is not rape (Burt, 1980; Williams & Holmes, 1981). For example, Seligmann (1984) reported that in a 1981 survey of teenagers that 54% of the boys and 42% of the girls believed forced This research was supported by the Ministry of the Solicitor General under the Solicitor General Fund for Independent Research. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent the views of the Solicitor General nor the Government of Canada.Requests for reprints may be forwarded to Dr.

A systematic literature review of “rape victims” versus “rape survivors”: Implications for theory, research, and practice

“…Thus, we would expect differences in the conceptualizations of women who have been raped and differences in emphases on oppression versus resistance would hold implications regarding how rape-related research in general may relate to a social status hierarchy in which women who have been raped are subordinated and marginalized. Notably, the inequality-maintaining roles of the social sciences as a whole and of psychology as an academic and practiced discipline have been previously critiqued by others (e.g., Harding, 1991;Kitzinger, 1996;Nissim-Sabat, 2009;Renner et al, 1988).…”

“…Unfortunately, the potentially severe trauma of rape (e.g., Burgess & Holmstrom, 1974) may not end with the crime itself. Rather, rape trauma may extend through social victimization (also known as revictimization or secondary victimization; e.g., Campbell, 1998;Campbell & Raja, 1999;Madigan & Gamble, 1991;Renner, Wackett, & Ganderton, 1988;Russell, 1984;Williams, 1984), in which medical personnel, law enforcement agents, judicial representatives, and general community members may express negative attitudes, centering on attributions of blame, toward the woman who has been raped (e.g., Burt, 1980;Madigan & Gamble, 1991). Rape trauma may also extend more generally through rape culture, a social atmosphere in which rape is condoned, normalized, excused, and encouraged by socially normative attitudes and practices (e.g., Sanday, 1981;Sanday, 2003;Strain, Hockett, & Saucier, 2015).…”

Risk perception for acquaintance sexual aggression

“…However, from a social-relational point of view, there are a number of risks or potential negative outcomes that a woman may be simultaneously grappling with. Findings indicate, for example, that concerns about rejection by a man one has feelings for, embarrassment from the public attention that vigorous resistance would draw, being judged by others in negative terms (e.g., as "a bad girl" or "asking for it"), or incurring stigmatization of others with whom one is affiliated, play roles in women's decisions about how to respond to threat of acquaintance sexual aggression (see Cook, 1995;Norris et al, 1996;Renner, Wackett, & Ganderton, 1988).…”

Why Women Don't Report Sexual Assault to the Police: The Influence of Psychosocial Variables and Traumatic Injury

“…The legal definition includes a wide range of victimizations that include acts of unwanted sexual contact between the offender and victim, as well as threats and attempts to commit sexual assault (4). However, social definitions of sexual assault are diverse, and one's personal conception of rape can inhibit reporting (5,6). Reporting can also be hindered by the perceived outcomes of dealing with the police and criminal justice system, impaired cognitive processing, and the victim/ offender relationship (2,(7)(8)(9).…”