Image-Based Abuse: A Threat to Privacy, Safety, and Speech

Abstract

The 2017 Nationwide Online Study of Nonconsensual Porn Victimization and Perpetration was conducted by the Research Team at Cyber Civil Rights Initiative (CCRI) from November 2016 through March 2017 on Facebook. Three thousand forty-four adult participants were recruited for an online survey using Facebook ads shown to men and women in each of the fifty states proportional to their representation in the U.S. population.Previous research 1,2 has used narrow definitions of nonconsensual pornography (NCP), limiting it, for example, to that committed in intimate relationships or with the explicit intent to harm. The current study endeavored to use a more inclusive definition, as well as a nationwide sample. Specifically participants were asked "Has anyone ever shared a sexually-explicit image or video of you without your consent? By 'sexually explicit' we mean images or videos of full or partial nudity, or of sexual acts (such as penetration/intercourse, oral sex, masturbation, and the use of sexual toys). Sharing could include distributing or uploading images or videos via email, text message, social media, apps, websites, DVDs, or printed photos. This does NOT include commercially-distributed pornography." Also, complementing past research, the present study is the first-ever nationwide study to examine self-reports of victimization as well as perpetration, along with motives for perpetration, methods of perpetration, deterrents to perpetration, and health outcomes for victims.