Police officers’ perspectives on the secondary victimisation of rape and serious sexual assault victims.

Abstract

Secondary victimisation occurs when a victim of crime feels they have been subjected to inadequate, insensitive, or inappropriate treatment, attitudes, behaviour, responses, and practices by criminal justice and social agencies, which compound their original trauma. This study explored police officers’ perceptions of how victims of rape and serious sex offences may be subjected to secondary victimisation by the police. A total of 50 semi-structured interviews were conducted with police officers across four forces in England and Wales. The interview data were qualitatively analysed using reflective thematic analysis. Three main themes were identified relating to how victims may feel re-victimised by their experiences with the police: (1) during the initial reporting phase; (2) if/when they are subjected to distressing evidence gathering; and (3) when investigations are victim, rather than suspect, focused. However, there was awareness among officers of the need for change, and of new legislation and guidance aimed at reducing secondary victimisation. The different facets of secondary victimisation are discussed here and an updated definition proposed, which more clearly outlines the different ways in which secondary victimisation should or can be mitigated.