Exploring factors affecting attitudes towards rape survivors: the role of sexuality and religiosity
| Date | 13 May 2019 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFP-01-2019-0004 |
| Pages | 139-144 |
| Published date | 13 May 2019 |
| Author | Beth Rimmer,Philip Birch |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care |
Exploring factors affecting attitudes
towards rape survivors: the role of
sexuality and religiosity
Beth Rimmer and Philip Birch
Abstract
Purpose –Contemporaneously, the crime of rape has experienced an increase in reporting. The majority of
rape survivors continue to experience, however, extensive victimisation due to biased attitudes held by many
people and organisations within the general population. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach –In a quantitative study with a sample of 176 participants, this research
aimed to explore sexuality and religiosity as factors that affect attitudes towards survivors of rape.
Findings –Results indicated that negative attitudes towards rape survivors could be predicted by rape myth
acceptance. While the sexuality of the victim affected attitudes towards rape survivors and negative attitudes
towards survivors were also found to be predicted by high religiosity scores, analyses concluded that both
males and females perceived gay male victims with more negative attitudes in comparison to lesbian rape
survivors. Male participants demonstrated, overall, more negative attitudes towards rape survivors than their
female counterparts. In sum, sexuality and religiosity were concluded to be crucial factors in explaining
blame attributions.
Practical implications –This study indicates: (1) the effect of social correlates other than gender on rape
myths; (2) the effect sexuali ty has on the perception of rape myths ; and (3) the effect religiosity ha s
on the perception of rape my ths. This study also reveal s implications for the repo rting, prosecution and
conviction of rape cases that may be subject to bias and discrimination due to victim characteristics other
than gender.
Originality/value –Attitudes towards rape survivors based on social correlates other than gender have
received little attention within existing literature and research. This paper adds to this discussion by
considering the affects of sexuality and religiosity which have implications for the reporting of such a crime.
Keywords Religiosity, Rape, Victimisation, Sexuality, Rape myth, Victim blaming
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
There were 23,851 reported rape cases in England and Wales between 2015 and 2016, nearly
all of them women (HMIC, 2016). However, the act of rape is one of the most under-reported
crimes (Kelly, 2002), with leading experts suggesting that the number would be ten times than
that given figure if every rape were reported (Sheldon and Parent, 2002). However, the impact of
victim blaming is considered a barrier to improving the reporting and subsequent prosecution
and conviction of rape cases.
The phenomenon of victim blaming has been extensively featured in existing criminological and
psychological literature (e.g. Koss et al., 1987), with the characteristics of rape survivors being
identified as a keyreason that leads some members of the general public to view victims as being
responsible for their own victimisation(Grubb and Turner, 2012), while the phenomenon of victim
blaming can alsocontribute to the concept of rape mythology (Du Mont et al., 2003).Rape myths
are false or stereotypical beliefs about the culpability of survivors, the innocence of rapists and the
illegitimacy of rapeas a severe crime (Chapleau and Oswald, 2010);more specifically, rape myths
Received 26 January 2019
Revised 2 March 2019
4 March 2019
Accepted 4 March 2019
Beth Rimmer is based at the
School of Psychology,
University of Central
Lancashire, Preston, UK.
Philip Birch is based at the
Centre for Law and Justice,
Charles Sturt University, Port
Macquarie, Australia.
DOI 10.1108/JFP-01-2019-0004 VOL. 21 NO. 2 2019, pp. 139-144, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2050-8794
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JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PRACTICE
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