Title from title page of PDF (University of Missouri--St. Louis, viewed March 2, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 84-105).

Employing a mixed quantitative and qualitative methodology among undergraduate students at the University of Ottawa, this research has explored attributions about sexual assault and the role of perceived intoxication in the context of female and male victims of sexual assault. The use of qualitative methodology and the application of a feminist critique of attribution theory and its contemporary application to rape perception research have contributed to a better understanding of these judgements and the varied ways in which undergraduate students apply the core constructs of responsibility and blame to sexual assault, while simultaneously highlighting the limitations of typically positivistic research in this area. Analyses suggest that the judgements students make about the victims and perpetrators involved in sexual assault are varied and complex, and future research employing a similar methodology and theoretical lens among other populations, both within and outside post-secondary spheres, is warranted.

Violence against women (VAW) in India reflects encouraged patriarchal notions, societal despotism, and cultural subjugations. The Indian government is continuously striving to bring legal reforms that can deter perpetrators from inflicting violence on women. However, these changes are occurring only on the surface when in fact the issues are deep-seated. Therefore, this thesis addresses two main research questions: 1) What factors contribute to the increase in cases of VAW in India and how the legal system addresses these factors, and 2) What policies and schemes are employed to empower women and provide support services to women victims of violence, and what are the effects of these policies/schemes. To explore each of these questions, the thesis was divided into two parts. In part 1, a legal case analysis strategy was adopted to qualitatively analyze 26 High Court cases from Uttar Pradesh, India. Seven major themes emerged from the thematic analysis of these cases that highlight the reasons for the perpetration of violence, victim-blaming, barriers to report the crime, and legal systemic barriers. In part 2, a policy analysis framework was applied to review and analyze six major schemes and policies focused on VAW. All the schemes and policies were assessed, compared, and prioritized against different criteria which were constructed based on the research findings from part 1. Major results of this study suggest that the schemes and policies focused on VAW are structurally flawed and lack proper monitoring. In conclusion, efforts must be made to deter the act of perpetrating violence on women by implementing suitable community and family interventions, recognizing and eliminating factors that lead to revictimization, providing detailed guidelines to enhance services through local schemes and policies, and acknowledging patterns of patriarchal and cultural norms surrounding VAW.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of North Texas, Dec., 2009. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Central Florida, 2010. / Adviser: Jana Jasinski. Includes bibliographical references (p. 48-52).

Ce mémoire porte un regard sociologique pour comprendre globalement le phénomène du Revenge Porn chez les adolescentes/jeunes adultes de 16 à 25 ans se considérant victimes de cette pratique. Plus précisément, il s’intéresse, d’un point de vue phénoménologique, à leurs perceptions du phénomène du revenge porn. Notre analyse se base sur les histoires et les expériences vécues de quatre femmes se considérant comme victimes et une cinquième personne qui est la co-fondatrice de l’association stop fisha, établie en France, qui nous a parlé de son expérience et des divers cas auxquels elle devait faire face. Ce mémoire aborde divers aspects tels que les conséquences dans leurs vies de tous les jours, le victim blaming, la perception de la Justice dans ce genre d’affaires, le désir ou non de porter plainte et pour quelles raisons, la stigmatisation du nom peu flatteur du Revenge Porn qui laisserait sous-entendre de prime abord qu’elles ont fait quelque chose de mal auparavant, ainsi que des projets à mettre en place préventivement pour pouvoir lutter contre le Revenge Porn.

This study explores the intentions of the character Humbert Humbert in Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, as well as the outcome of his words. It also examines the intended as well as the unintended effects on the reader. Humbert’s attempt to lure in the reader by twisting the truth and deflecting blame is analyzed by using worldmaking and victim-blaming. Through worldmaking it is shown that the perception of the world differs almost as much between different readers as it does between Humbert and the reader. Despite the difference in reader experience, Humbert’s failure to convince any reader of his innocence is inevitable. He even, in part, fails to convince himself. His inability to accept blame slowly diminishes as he reexperiences his vile relationship with the innocent Dolores Haze.

Uppsatsens syfte var att undersöka hur intervjudeltagare verksamma inom för studien relevanta organisationer och myndigheter resonerade angående barriärer för polisanmälan som kvinnor kan uppleva vid våld i nära relation. Vidare var syftet att diskutera hur intervjudeltagarna såg på sin roll att öka anmälningsbenägenheten genom att underlätta för kvinnorna att överkomma dessa barriärer. Teorin utgick från normalisering, victim blaming och sekundär viktimisering samt det ideala offret. Metoden som användes var kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer. Uppsatsens resultat visade att deltagarna var medvetna om dessa barriärer och att de hade utvecklat förhållningssätt och strategier för att bemöta dessa, exempelvis genom att avnormalisera våldet. Vidare konstaterades att även om ingen av intervjudeltagarna ansåg att bidra till ökad anmälningsbenägenhet var deras huvuduppgift kan deras bemötande av barriärerna indirekt öka denna. / The aim of the study was to examine how the interviewees from different organizations and authorities relevant to our study reasoned on the barriers women might experience when it comes to reporting intimate partner abuse to the police. The aim was also to examine how the interviewees viewed their role in increasing the propensity to report by encouraging the women to overcome these barriers. Our theory was based on the theories of the normalization process, victim blaming and secondary victimization and the ideal victim. The method used was qualitative, semi-structured interviews. The results showed that the interviewees were aware of these barriers and that they had developed different approaches and strategies to meet these barriers, for example by de-normalizing the violence. Another finding was that although none of the interviewees regarded increasing the women’s propensity to report as their first priority, their work in helping the women to overcome the barriers indirectly can contribute to increase the propensity to report to the police.

Previous research indicates that survivors of sexual assault often blame themselves for the assault. Research has also shown that people blame the perpetrator in some situations and the survivor in other situations involving sexual assault. The purpose of this study was to discover if survivors of sexual assault who blame themselves tend to blame other survivors (survivor blame) in situations different from their own. Another purpose was to assess whether or not sexual assault survivors who do not blame themselves for their attack tend to blame other survivors. The participants' attributional style was also assessed in order to understand the relations between self-blame and survivor blame in situations involving sexual assault. Findings indicated that certain types of attributional style are related to self-blame in sexual assault survivors and blame toward sexual assault survivors depicted in vignettes. This indicates that attributional style may have important implications in the clinical setting to aid sexual assault survivors who experience self-blame, as well in educating society about sexual assault and the ultimate responsibility of perpetrators.

The current study sought to assess the impact of the race, gender, and ethnicity of rape victims on college students’ propensity to assign culpability to victims. Using a sample of college students (n=279) from a mid-sized Southeastern university, respondents were given a set of six different vignettes, varying only by victim characteristics. These vignettes featured alcohol-facilitated sexual assault between acquaintances, a common occurrence in college environments. Respondents were asked to evaluate the culpability of the victim through a blameworthiness scale. Through the incorporation of the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale, this study also measured the respondents’ propensity to assign blame to female rape victims and to alleviate male perpetrators of any responsibility. Results indicated that adherence to rape myth acceptance was a more significant predictor of blameworthiness than victim or respondent characteristics. This exploratory study was designed to add to the growing body of literature examining attitudes toward acquaintance rape.