Social Reactions and Women's Decisions to Report Sexual Assault to Law Enforcement

Barriers to Reporting Sexual Violence: A Qualitative Analysis of #WhyIDidntReport

The present study conducted thematic analyses of tweets including #WhyIDidntReport (N = 500) to examine barriers to reporting sexual victimization. Barriers to reporting were identified across individual, interpersonal, and sociocultural levels of the social ecology. Common barriers to reporting included labeling of the experience, age, fear, privacy concerns, self-blame, betrayal/shock, the relation/power of the perpetrator, negative reactions to disclosure, and the belief-or personal experience-that reporting would not result in justice and societal norms.

"I Was Worried I Wouldn't Be Believed": Sexual Assault Victims' Perceptions of the Police in the Decision to Not Report

Most sexual assault victims make the conscious decision to not report to the police. Concerns about the police appear to be prominent in victims' decision-making, but we do not know specifically what these concerns entail, and therefore cannot address them. A qualitative inquiry is needed to understand perceptions of the police in reporting decisions, from the voices of victims themselves. Participants (N = 175) responded to an open-ended survey question about their decision to not report to the police following sexual victimization. Analyses revealed that police perceptions shaped the decision to not report for 36% (n = 63) of participants. Nonreporting decisions related to the police fell into two themes: concerns of police treatment and previous/vicarious negative experiences with the police. We include recommendations for police and a call for alternative reporting options.