Courtney E. Ahrens

Being Silenced: The Impact of Negative Social Reactions on the Disclosure of Rape

Rape survivors who speak out about their assault experiences are often punished for doing so when they are subjected to negative reactions from support providers. These negative reactions may thereby serve a silencing function, leading some rape survivors to stop talking about their experiences to anyone at all. The current study sought to examine this worst case scenario. Focusing on the qualitative narratives of eight rape survivors who initially disclosed the assault but then stopped disclosing for a significant period of time, this study sought to provide an in-depth description of how negative reactions silenced these survivors. Three routes to silence were identified: 1) negative reactions from professionals led survivors to question whether future disclosures would be effective; 2) negative reactions from friends and family reinforced feelings of self-blame; and 3) negative reactions from either source reinforced uncertainty about whether their experiences qualified as rape. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

Deciding Whom to Tell: Expectations and Outcomes of Rape Survivors' First Disclosures

In this study, 102 female rape survivors were interviewed regarding their first post-assault disclosure. Qualitative analysis revealed that nearly 75% of first disclosures were to informal support providers and over one third of the disclosures were not initiated by the survivors themselves. Over half of the survivors received positive reactions and less than one third felt the disclosure had a detrimental impact on their recovery. Loglinear analysis suggested that survivors who actively sought help from informal support providers were more likely to receive positive than negative reactions. In contrast, survivors who actively sought help from formal support providers were more likely to receive negative than positive reactions. When disclosure to formal support providers was initiated by the formal support providers themselves, however, survivors received exclusively positive reactions. Implications for future research are discussed.

Social reactions to rape victims: Healing and hurtful effects on psychological and physical health outcomes.

In this study, 102 rape survivors were interviewed about the social reactions they received from family and friends post-rape. Results supported Ullman’s (1996b) conclusion that the overall contribution of positive social reaction (e.g., providing support, listening, believing) on victims’ recovery is negligible, but that negative social reactions (e.g., blaming) hinder recovery. In contrast to Ullman’s (1996b) work, this research also examined whether rape victims have similar perceptions as to what constitutes a “positive” and “negative” social reaction. Results indicated that victims often agree as to what reactions are healing (positive), but that they do not agree as to what is hurtful (negative). By taking victims’ perceptions into account, this study was able to compare the relative contributions of social reactions that were considered healing, social reactions that were considered hurtful, and the absence of social reactions. Results indicated that survivors who had someone believe their account of what happened or were allowed to talk about the assault—and considered these reactions to be healing—had fewer emotional and physical health problems than victims who considered these reactions hurtful, or victims who did not experience these reactions at all. Implications for future research on social reactions are discussed.

“What Has It Been Like for You to Talk With Me Today?”: The Impact of Participating in Interview Research on Rape Survivors:

The purpose of this project was to conduct a qualitative study of how participating in in-depth interviews impacted rape survivors. These interviews contained both open-ended, free response section and closed-ended, standardized assessments. The implementation of the interviews was informed by principles of feminist interviewing, which emphasized reducing hierarchy between the interviewer and interviewee, providing information and resources, and creating an emotionally supportive and compassionate setting. Narrative data were analyzed from rape survivors (N = 92) regarding how they were affected by participating in these interviews. Results suggested that the overwhelming majority of survivors found the interview to be a helpful, supportive, and insightful experience. Additional analyses revealed that the feminist interviewing principles were noticed and appreciated by the participants and contributed to their overall positive participation outcomes.

To tell or not to tell: the impact of disclosure on sexual assault survivors' recovery.

There is a growing body of research examining the disclosure of sexual assault. But the focus on time to first disclosure does not capture the whole picture. Survivors also differ in how long they continue to disclose, to whom they disclose, and the types of reactions received during disclosure. To provide a more comprehensive view of disclosure, this study sought to identify patterns of disclosure among a sample of 103 female sexual assault survivors recruited from the community. This study also sought to identify characteristics of each disclosure pattern, differences in how each disclosure pattern tends to unfold (e.g., who is told and how they react), and differences in how these disclosure patterns are related to physical and mental health outcomes. Results revealed four distinct disclosure patterns: nondisclosers, slow starters, crisis disclosers, and ongoing disclosers. Assault characteristics and rape acknowledgment distinguished nondisclosers and slow starters from the other two disclosure groups. Slow starters were also less likely to disclose to police and medical personnel and received negative reactions less frequently while nondisclosers experienced more symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress than other groups. Implications of these findings for future research and practice are discussed.

Rehearsing for Real Life: The Impact of the InterACT Sexual Assault Prevention Program on Self-Reported Likelihood of Engaging in Bystander Interventions:

The interACT Sexual Assault Prevention Program is an interactive, skill-building performance based on the pedagogy of Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed. A longitudinal evaluation of this program compared pretest, posttest, and 3-month follow-up data from 509 university student participants. Results suggested that the interACT performance was successful in increasing participants’ beliefs about the effectiveness of bystander interventions and the self-rated likelihood that participants would engage in bystander interventions in the future. Differences in both overall ratings and rates of change were noted. Implications of these results for research and practice are discussed.

Enhancing Latinas’ Participation in Research on Sexual Assault: Cultural Considerations in the Design and Implementation of Research in the Latino Community

To provide a more complete picture of the prevalence, impact, and treatment of sexual assault among Latinas, researchers must begin to develop and employ culturally competent recruitment and data-collection procedures that can facilitate participation and disclosure. In this article, we sought to synthesize recommendations from research with Latino populations, community-based and participatory action research, and research on sexual assault to provide a list of suggestions for conducting culturally competent research about sexual assault with Latino populations. Innovative examples from our own focus group study with Latinas are provided throughout.

The relationship between adult sexual assault and prostitution: an exploratory analysis.

Previous research has established a link between childhood sexual abuse and engaging in prostitution as an adult. The purpose of this study was to extend this literature by exploring whether being raped as an adult is associated with exchanging sex for money. Interviews with 102 rape survivors in a major metropolitan area revealed that 23.5% had engaged in prostitution post-rape. Those who had exchanged sex for money were more likely to be women of color, to have a high school education or less, to be unemployed, and to have children to support, than those who had not engaged in prostitution post-assault. The prostitution subsample also had significantly higher levels of psychological distress, physical health symptomatology, and substance use. Survivors were asked whether and how the rape was associated with engaging in prostitution: most (75%) stated that they felt it was related to the assault. The most commonly cited reason for engaging in prostitution by these survivors was that they were trying to regain some control over their lives and their bodies; exchanging sex for money was seen as one way to control men’s access to them. Implications for future research on victimization and prostitution are discussed.