Reporting assaults against juveniles to the police: Barriers and catalysts
Date
2003
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Publisher
Journal of Interpersonal Violence
Abstract
Description
Explores some of the factors that explain both the recognition of victimizations as crimes and their subsequent reporting to police. The study utilizes data from 157 parents or other primary caretakers (mean age 39 yrs) from a national sample of households in which a juvenile (aged 17 yrs or younger) was physically or sexually assaulted. Reporting crimes to the police is a two-stage process. Victims and families first recognize whether a crime has occurred and, if so, are influenced by a variety of considerations in deciding whether to report it. In the national sample of physical and sexual assaults against juveniles, recognition of the assault as a crime was more likely for episodes involving adolescent (vs. preadolescent) victims, adult and multiple offenders, physical injuries, female victims, and when families had prior experiences with police. Among families who recognized the episode as a crime, actual reporting to police was more likely when the perpetrator was an adult, the family had been advised to report, the family had prior experience with the police, the family believed the police would take the episode seriously, and when the child was believed still to be in danger from the perpetrator. Reporting was less likely for assaults that occurred at school.
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Keywords
Abuse-sexual, Child welfare -- statistics, Law enforcement, Physical abuse