Understanding trauma misperceptions among frontline police personnel: the role of training, rape myths and organizational context

Purpose In cases of sexual violence, the way police perceive a victim’s behavior, emotions and recollections can have important implications for criminal case processing. When a police officer doubts a victim, the likelihood of the perpetrator being arrested and referred for prosecution is reduced and victim-survivors are often retraumatized. Given this, scholars have begun to measure the antecedents of trauma misperceptions among police officers. Trauma misperceptions arise when a victim-survivor’s behavior contradicts what many believe a trauma response should be. The current study aims to better understand the predictors of trauma misperceptions among police. Design/methodology/approach This study draws on a survey of 675 frontline personnel from an Australian police organization to examine the correlates of police trauma misperceptions, including a range of individual factors (including rape myth acceptance) and police perceptions of their organization. Findings Multivariate analyses reveal that gender, prior sexual violence training, rape myth acceptance and perceptions of the organization all play a key role in shaping or preventing trauma misperceptions among frontline police personnel. Originality/value We extend prior research by including both individual predictors and organizational context. Our findings provide practical guidance as to how police organizations can best reduce trauma misperceptions among police officers.