#WhyIDidntReport: Exploring victim accounts of non-reporting

Following the controversy surrounding the 2018 appointment of Brett Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court, hundreds of thousands of victim/survivors of sexual violence took to social media to share their reasons for not reporting their experiences to the police. A sample of these tweets was collected and thematically analysed to identify the main reasons cited for the decision to not report. Results suggest that the decision to report is complex and influenced by multiple factors both within and beyond the criminal justice system including a vulnerable victim, varied types of fear, shame and blame. These findings are discussed in light of the existing literature on rape myths and the ideal victim.