Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsExamplesCausesSelf-BlameConsequencesGetting Help
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Examples
Causes
Self-Blame
Consequences
Getting Help
At first glance, one might question why anyone would ever blame thevictim of a sexual assault. But if we’re being honest, we may admit that there have been times when we too might have put the responsibility on a victim, rather than the perpetrator.
Many victims of sexual assault even blame themselves.They’ve convinced themselves that somehow they did something wrong, or that they didn’t do enough to stop the assault.
It’s important to understand our tendency to blame the victim. Learning more about why it happens can help us stopblaming others or ourselves. We also provide a few victim blaming examples that can make it easier to spot when we might be engaging in these types of thoughts.
Victim Blaming Examples
The first step in stopping victim blaming is recognizing when it occurs. Examples of victim blaming may include thinking or saying things like:
There are many ways people either outright blame victims or subtly imply they must have provoked the predator (or not tried hard enough to make it stop).Victim blamingoccurs any time someone says or implies that a sexual assault was the victim’s fault.
Victim blaming is often seen in courtrooms, where defense attorneys insist that victims are at fault, and in the media as well.
Reasons Victim Blaming Occurs
Sometimes, people engage in victim blaming to help themselves feel better. They feel safer if they can imagine that the victim did something wrong. Then, they convince themselves that they may be able to protect themselves so that they won’t become a victim or that their loved ones are also less likely to be victimized.
We see this involving other crimes too, not just sexual assault. For example, if a neighbor’s house is burglarized, we might feel better if they learn that the victim had left the garage door unlocked or that they associated with some not-so-good people. This can help us to continue believing that the world is safe and we aren’t likely to become the victim of a random crime.
A Classic Study About Victim Blaming
There’s a classic psychological experiment from 1966 that explains victim blaming.In this large study, women were asked to watch another woman receive painful electric shocks. The woman was really an actress and not actually shocked, but the participants were told she was shocked when she got the answer wrong in amemorization test.
Initially, the participants were upset as they witnessed the victim’s suffering. Then, some participants were offered the chance to vote to stop the shocks when she got the answers wrong, instead, choosing to compensate her with money as a reward for the answers she got right. The rest of the participants were not given this opportunity and had to sit and watch the victim repeatedly get shocked without any way to fix the situation.
Afterward, all participants were asked to share their opinion of the victim. The results were striking: the group who gave her a reward saw the victim as a good person while those forced to watch the situation unfold were more likely to see her as a bad person who deserved to be shocked.
Blaming the victim reinforces the notion that “bad things happen to bad people.” It also serves as a form of self-protection. When an individual can say, “I’m not like that person, so bad things won’t happen to me,” they continue to see the world as a good place. It overlooks the fact that perpetrators are at fault for inflicting pain and committing crimes.
Why Victims Blame Themselves
Victims sometimes blame themselves for the same reason others blame them. In some cases, they too want to believe the world is fair. Blaming themselves may also help them feel safer in some ways.
Sometimes it’s easier to convince ourselves, “If I dress conservatively, this won’t happen to me ever again.” Or “If I didn’t drink so much, I would have been able to fend off my attacker.”
Suchtoxic self-blame, however, is unhealthy. And it can take a serious toll on an individual’s mental health and well-being.Sexual assault is never the victim’s fault. It’s always the perpetrator’s fault.
Consequences of Victim Blaming
Blaming the victim makes it more difficult for that person to come forward andreport a sexual assault. On a societal level, it means fewer crimes get reported and fewer predators get prosecuted.
Victim blaming also reinforces predator-like attitudes. It allows perpetrators to avoid being held accountable for their actions.
Victim blaming can lead to increased and unnecessary suffering for the victims. They may experience ridicule, while at the same time watching their predators avoid punishment instead of getting the justice they deserve.
This may increase unhelpful emotions likeshame and guiltas it delays their healing. It may also add to their toxic self-blame.
Getting Help for Sexual Assault
Fortunately, victim blaming has become more apparent in recent years, and some courtrooms and media outlets are changing the way they address victims. But we still have a long way to go before this ends.
In the meantime, survivors of sexual assault must know that what happened to them is not their fault. If other people blame them, or if they blame themselves, it can be helpful to get professional support.
Reach out to a therapist, anonline therapist, or a group likeRAINN(which stands for the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network). All of these can help provide support and guidance during sexual assault recovery.
How to Cope With Sexual Assault
4 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Kline NK, Berke DS, Rhodes CA, Steenkamp MM, Litz BT.Self-blame and PTSD following sexual assault: A longitudinal analysis.J Interpers Viol. 2021;36(5-6):NP3153-NP3186. doi:10.1177/0886260518770652Stevens H, Acic I, Taylor LD.Uncivil reactions to sexual assault online: linguistic features of news reports predict discourse incivility.Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Network. 2021;24(12):815-821. doi:10.1089/cyber.2021.0075Lerner MJ, Simmons CH.Observer’s reaction to the “innocent victim”: Compassion or rejection?J Personal Soc Psychol. 1966;4(2):203–210. doi:10.1037/h0023562Ullman SE, Peter-Hagene LC, Relyea M.Coping, emotional regulation, and self-blame as mediators of sexual abuse and psychological symptoms in adult sexual assault.J Child Sex Abuse. 2014;23(1):74-93. doi:10.1080/10538712.2014.864747
4 Sources
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Kline NK, Berke DS, Rhodes CA, Steenkamp MM, Litz BT.Self-blame and PTSD following sexual assault: A longitudinal analysis.J Interpers Viol. 2021;36(5-6):NP3153-NP3186. doi:10.1177/0886260518770652Stevens H, Acic I, Taylor LD.Uncivil reactions to sexual assault online: linguistic features of news reports predict discourse incivility.Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Network. 2021;24(12):815-821. doi:10.1089/cyber.2021.0075Lerner MJ, Simmons CH.Observer’s reaction to the “innocent victim”: Compassion or rejection?J Personal Soc Psychol. 1966;4(2):203–210. doi:10.1037/h0023562Ullman SE, Peter-Hagene LC, Relyea M.Coping, emotional regulation, and self-blame as mediators of sexual abuse and psychological symptoms in adult sexual assault.J Child Sex Abuse. 2014;23(1):74-93. doi:10.1080/10538712.2014.864747
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Kline NK, Berke DS, Rhodes CA, Steenkamp MM, Litz BT.Self-blame and PTSD following sexual assault: A longitudinal analysis.J Interpers Viol. 2021;36(5-6):NP3153-NP3186. doi:10.1177/0886260518770652Stevens H, Acic I, Taylor LD.Uncivil reactions to sexual assault online: linguistic features of news reports predict discourse incivility.Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Network. 2021;24(12):815-821. doi:10.1089/cyber.2021.0075Lerner MJ, Simmons CH.Observer’s reaction to the “innocent victim”: Compassion or rejection?J Personal Soc Psychol. 1966;4(2):203–210. doi:10.1037/h0023562Ullman SE, Peter-Hagene LC, Relyea M.Coping, emotional regulation, and self-blame as mediators of sexual abuse and psychological symptoms in adult sexual assault.J Child Sex Abuse. 2014;23(1):74-93. doi:10.1080/10538712.2014.864747
Kline NK, Berke DS, Rhodes CA, Steenkamp MM, Litz BT.Self-blame and PTSD following sexual assault: A longitudinal analysis.J Interpers Viol. 2021;36(5-6):NP3153-NP3186. doi:10.1177/0886260518770652
Stevens H, Acic I, Taylor LD.Uncivil reactions to sexual assault online: linguistic features of news reports predict discourse incivility.Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Network. 2021;24(12):815-821. doi:10.1089/cyber.2021.0075
Lerner MJ, Simmons CH.Observer’s reaction to the “innocent victim”: Compassion or rejection?J Personal Soc Psychol. 1966;4(2):203–210. doi:10.1037/h0023562
Ullman SE, Peter-Hagene LC, Relyea M.Coping, emotional regulation, and self-blame as mediators of sexual abuse and psychological symptoms in adult sexual assault.J Child Sex Abuse. 2014;23(1):74-93. doi:10.1080/10538712.2014.864747
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