“I Don't Really Have Anywhere to Turn”: Justice-Seeking Behaviors of Image-Based Sexual Abuse Victims

• In Event: Gender-Based and Sexual Violence Victimization

Abstract

This study conducts a qualitative examination of image-based sexual abuse victims’ experiences with justice- and help-seeking behaviors in the aftermath of victimization. This study examines 53 qualitative survey responses from victims of IBSA by relying on reflexive thematic analysis. The primary research question asks: what factors shape the ways in which IBSA victims seek (or do not seek) help and justice after victimization? For those who were enabled to seek help, they were often motivated by both the severity of IBSA and the externalization of blame onto the perpetrator. They did so by reaching out to trusted friends, accessing mental health services, practicing digital harm reduction, or engaging with the criminal-legal system. The second major theme identifies the ways in which victims were deterred from seeking help or avoided certain types of support. Those who did not seek support often internalized blame for their victimization through acceptance of rape myths and victim-blaming beliefs. This study contributes to the literature by examining a diverse range of support-seeking behaviors (informal disclosure, digital harm reduction behaviors, criminal-legal engagement).

Author

• Albina Laskovtsov, Shepherd University