Sexual violence survivors who
decide to report their assault interact with health care, law enforcement, and
legal and judicial professionals. Professionals' attitudes about sexual
violence and survivors play an important role in caring for survivors and in
the pursuit of justice. Despite evidence showing the relationship between
service provider beliefs and survivor outcomes, relatively little is known
about professionals' beliefs about sexual violence or their attitudes toward
sexual violence survivors.
Between June 2012 and December 2014, our study examined the beliefs and attitudes of 181 professionals from the health care, legal, and law enforcement sectors in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Rift Valley region of Kenya, areas with a high prevalence of sexual violence. To determine correlates of beliefs and attitudes about sexual violence and sexual violence survivors, multiple logistic regression models were adjusted for demographic and occupational characteristics.
Respondents who agreed that survivors got what they deserved (7%) or that survivors should feel ashamed (9%) were the minority, while those who would be willing to care for a family member with a history of sexual violence (94%) were the majority. Profession was significantly associated with beliefs and attitudes about sexual violence and survivors. Law enforcement professionals were more likely than health professionals and lawyers to indicate that survivors should feel ashamed.
Our findings suggest a need for interventions that adequately address potentially harmful beliefs and attitudes of some professionals serving sexual violence survivors.
Between June 2012 and December 2014, our study examined the beliefs and attitudes of 181 professionals from the health care, legal, and law enforcement sectors in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Rift Valley region of Kenya, areas with a high prevalence of sexual violence. To determine correlates of beliefs and attitudes about sexual violence and sexual violence survivors, multiple logistic regression models were adjusted for demographic and occupational characteristics.
Respondents who agreed that survivors got what they deserved (7%) or that survivors should feel ashamed (9%) were the minority, while those who would be willing to care for a family member with a history of sexual violence (94%) were the majority. Profession was significantly associated with beliefs and attitudes about sexual violence and survivors. Law enforcement professionals were more likely than health professionals and lawyers to indicate that survivors should feel ashamed.
Our findings suggest a need for interventions that adequately address potentially harmful beliefs and attitudes of some professionals serving sexual violence survivors.
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By:
- 1Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA Physicians for Human Rights, Boston, MA, USA hopemd@gwu.edu.
- 2George Washington University, USA.
- 3Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- 4RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA.
- 5Berkeley School of Law, Berkeley, CA, USA.
- 6Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA.
- 7Physicians for Human Rights, Boston, MA, USA.
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