New study highlights ongoing trauma for victim survivors of online-facilitated abuse

Patchwork support from statutory services, difficulty in reporting abusive content and challenges in removing harmful content are among the barriers female victims of online abuse face, a new study by the University of Suffolk has found.

The study, titled ‘This is going to be with me for the rest of my life’: perceived barriers to reporting technology-facilitated abuse, was carried out by the University’s Institute for Social Justice and Crime, and published in the journal Gender and Justice.

The study, by researchers Dr Katherine Allen and Dr Megan Hermolle, reported that victims have been left vulnerable to escalating abuse online, amidst a backdrop of mounting demand for support and challenges for support services in keeping pace with rapid technological change.

Examples of gender-based abuse facilitated online are the non-consensual production or dissemination of sexual images, cyberstalking, intrusive messaging or monitoring by former partners, coercive control online and misogynistic ‘e-bile’ directed at women.

Five individuals who were victim-survivors of technology-facilitated violence or abuse, and five professionals working among support services were interviewed for the study. Interviewees were all women aged 18+ and gave their views on barriers to disclosure and pathways to accessing safety and support.

The participants reported the variability of support from statutory services and the complexity of available reporting routes as a barrier, with some feeling they were “going nowhere”.

The research found that while there were examples of good practice for some, others could encounter “ineffective, uninformed and potentially even retraumatising practise”.

The report said that some sites “by providing a tolerant or even enthusiastic forum for non-consensual dissemination of intimate images and obstructing removal efforts, such sites become powerful actors in ongoing victimisation”.

Elsewhere, the study noted one participant had experienced intimate images shared without consent by a former partner continuing to remain online a decade later, explaining her feeling that “this is something that’s going to be with me for the rest of my life”.

The report authors also noted concerns by victims early on about not wanting to appear to be overreacting, or difficulties in demonstrating the abuse as a pattern of behaviour rather than isolated posts.

While the study interviews were conducted prior to the introduction of the Online Safety Act, the report authors said that the findings remain resonant since the introduction of that law.

Dr Katherine Allen, Senior Research Fellow in the University of Suffolk’s Institute for Social Justice and Crime, and report co-author, said: “The testimonies of both victim-survivors and practitioners in this research have outlined a stark landscape where continual harm and a lack of support in having online content removed or investigated has become the norm for women who have been victim to technology-facilitated abuse or violence.

“Rapid technological change, and the boundary-less, unpredictable and often hostile spaces online are leaving these victim-survivors vulnerable to continued abuse which can impact their ongoing wellbeing, mental health, financial situation and physical safety.

“Our study recommends further evidence gathering to highlight ongoing disparities in response to victim-survivors experiencing non-contact abuse, and further explore the specific challenges associated with the increased need for support.”

Dr Megan Hermolle, Lecturer in Forensic Psychology at Coventry University, added: “Participants particularly valued the support provided by services assisting victims of gender-based violence, describing how they felt heard, supported and believed when engaging with specialist services.

“Our findings highlight the significance of accessing the right support at the right time, and reflect the wider evidence base, which suggests a need for sustained investment in the specialist gender-based violence sector to meet rising demand and increasing complexity.”

The full research report is available to read online here.

For more information about the work of the Institute for Social Justice and Crime, head to the webpage here.