Barriers to Reporting Sexual Assault for Women and Men: Perspectives of College Students

Abstract

The authors asked college students to rate the importance of a list of barriers to reporting rape and sexual assault among male and female victims. The authors' findings indicate that barriers prevalent 30 years ago, prior to efforts by the rape reform movement, continue to be considered important among college men and women. The barriers rated as the most important were (1) shame, guilt, embarrassment, not wanting friends and family to know; (2) concerns about confidentiality; and (3) fear of not being believed. Both genders perceived a fear of being judged as gay as an important barrier for male victims of sexual assault or rape and fear of retaliation by the perpetrator to be an important barrier for female victims.

Rape Myth Acceptance Among College Students in the United States, Japan, and India

“…As the majority of perpetrators are usually known to the victim, men and women who experience sexual assault may have difficulties in reporting the assault to others (Orchowski, Meyer, & Gidycz, 2009). Those who experience sexual assault may also fear of not being believed (Sable, Danis, Mauzy, & Gallagher, 2006). Non-help seeking for intimate partner violence (IPV) is a problem in Japan and India (Kamimura, Bybee, & Yoshihama, 2014;Kamimura, Ganta, Myers, & Thomas, 2014;Kamimura, Yoshihama, & Bybee, 2013), while the information about sexual violence and help seeking is limited in these countries.…”

Violence Against Women Through the Lens of Objectification Theory

“…Moreover, body shame has been linked to more severe clinical outcomes including disordered eating (Calogero, 2009;Tylka & Hill, 2004), depression (Grabe, Hyde, & Lindberg, 2007;Szymanski & Henning, 2007), sexual dysfunction (Calogero & Thompson, 2009;Sanchez & Kiefer, 2007), and substance abuse (Carr & Szymanski, 2011). In addition, shame has been linked to experiences of both SV and IPV (Rhatigan, Shorey, & Nathanson, 2011;Sable, Danis, Mauzy, & Gallagher, 2006;Spangaro, Zwi, & Poulos, 2011;Walker, 1984Walker, , 2000Walker, , 2009. More specifically, research has demonstrated that traumatic experiences such as SV and IPV frequently provoke self-focused emotions like shame (Wilson, Drozdek, & Turkovic, 2006).…”

What If a Resident or Medical Student Is Raped? Hospitals' and Academic Medical Centers' Title IX Obligations

“…There are multiple barriers that keep victims of sexual harassment, particularly sexual assault, from reporting, including shame, poor treatment by the criminal justice system, and fear of not being believed [22]. Residents and students assaulted by coworkers may face additional barriers, such as fear of retaliation from attending physicians and concerns that their privacy will be breached by their treatment team.…”