The impact of rape myth education on jury decision-making: A systematic review

A systematic review of research exploring the impact of providing rape myth countering information to mock-jurors was conducted. The primary aim of the review was to inform the development of an educational intervention for jurors to reduce potential bias in their decision-making based on belief in prevalent rape myths. In total, the following 12 databases were searched: British Education Index, CINAHL, Child Development and Adolescent Studies, Criminal Justice Abstracts, Educational Administration Abstracts, ERIC, MEDLINE, PsycArticles, PsycInfo, PubMed, Scopus, and Social Care Online. The databases were filtered to return peer-reviewed publications, written in English, and published between 1980 and 2020. The search returned 5,093 potential articles. After duplicates were removed, the 2,676 remaining publications were screened. Only studies that presented rape myth countering information to participants within a mock-juror paradigm were included. Studies that did not compare an information condition to a no-information control condition were excluded, as were those which concerned male rape myths, given the focus on female rape myths beliefs in this review. Six studies were reviewed and were critically appraised in line with criteria based upon validity criteria utilized by Dinos et al. (2015). Some evidence emerged to suggest that the provision of judicial directions, expert witness testimony, and complainant statements regarding rape myths can impact upon jury decision-making, though findings were mixed overall. Study limitations regarding internal and external validity were frequently present. Recommendations regarding future research questions and methods are advanced, including that which can inform the development of an effective intervention for jurors.</p

Forty years of rape myth acceptance interventions: a systematic review of what works in naturalistic institutional settings and how this can be applied to educational guidance for jurors

A systematic review of research assessing rape myth acceptance (RMA) interventions within institutional settings was conducted. The aim of this review was to inform the development of an educational intervention for jurors in rape trials that addresses rape myths, given previous evidence that RMA can affect decision-making and verdicts (Dinos et al., 2015; Gravelin et al., 2019; Leverick, 2020). 12 databases were searched, filtered to return peer-reviewed journals, published from 1980 to 2020, written in English. After removing duplicates from the 5,093 search results returned, 2,676 studies were screened for inclusion. Research studies were included in the review if they assessed the impact of a naturalistic intervention on RMA within an institutional setting. Studies that did not compare an experimental condition to a control condition or did not randomly allocate participants to conditions were excluded. Studies were also excluded if they used a non-validated, or adapted, RMA measure. 20 Research studies were included within the review and were critically appraised according to an author-created critical appraisal tool. It was concluded that RMA interventions can have a short-term impact upon individuals' RMA. Intervention types that were effective in reducing RMA included those that presented RM information; those that contained an empathy component; and bystander programmes. With regards to duration and format, short interventions led to reductions in RMA, and most successful interventions were presented via videos. Implications for policy and practice, and recommendations for future research, are discussed

Childhood abuse and neglect, exposure to domestic violence, and sibling violence: Profiles and associations with sociodemographic variables and mental health indicators

Research indicates substantial overlap between child abuse and neglect (CAN), exposure to domestic violence and sibling abuse, with multiple victimisation experiences conferring greater risk for adverse mental health outcomes than does exposure to a single subtype. The application of latent class analysis (LCA) to child maltreatment has gained momentum, but it remains the case that few studies have incorporated a comprehensive range of subtypes, meaning that real-life patterns in victimisation experiences cannot be accurately modelled. Based on self-report data from an ethnically diverse sample (N = 2813) of 10–17 year olds in the United Kingdom, the current study used LCA to model constellations among nine types of maltreatment in the home (physical, emotional and sexual abuse; physical and emotional neglect; exposure to physical and verbal domestic violence, or a drug-related threat; and sibling violence). A four-class solution comprising of a low victimisation class (59.3% of participants), an emotional abuse and neglect class (19.0%), a high verbal domestic violence class (10.5%) and a maltreatment and domestic violence class (11.2%) provided the best fit for the data. Associations with sociodemographic variables were examined, revealing differences in the composition of the classes. Compared to the low victimisation class, participants in the verbal domestic violence class, emotional abuse and neglect class and especially the maltreatment and domestic violence class, reported higher symptoms of anxiety and depression and an increased likelihood of non-suicidal self-injury, suicide ideation and suicide attempt. The findings carry important implications for understanding patterns of child maltreatment, and the implications for preventative strategies and support services are discussed.</p

The prevalence, contexts, and impact of children's exposure to domestic violence in Jamaica

This study explored the prevalence of children’s exposure to adult perpetrated domestic violence (DV) in Jamaica and investigated the contextual factors of the affected families and the wellbeing of exposed children. The study was a cross-sectional survey of 7,182 children aged 9 to 17 years, drawn from 20 primary and secondary schools. The sample consisted of 60.8% of girls with 69% living in rural communities. The surveys were completed in classroom settings. The questions from the IPSCAN Child Abuse Screening Tool (ICAST-C; Runyan et al., 2015) were used to assess respondents’ lifetime experience of witnessing three forms of adult-perpetrated DV; shouting and screaming that frightened the child, physical violence (e.g., hitting, slapping), and serious violent threat (e.g., the use of weapons to threaten or harm). Findings indicated that 41.6% of the children had been exposed to at least one type of DV (22.5% had experienced one, 11.8% had experienced two and 7.3% had experienced three forms of violence). There was a statistically significant difference in the children’s sense of safety in their homes depending on whether they had been exposed to DV. Those exposed to DV had a lower sense of safety than those not exposed and the more forms of DV experienced the lower their sense of safety. Of those not exposed, 85.8% reported always feeling safe at home compared with 37.2% of those exposed to three forms of DV. Study limitations and implications of the findings are discussed.</p