Abstract

According to police records, many rape cases are closed because victims withdraw from the police investigation. However, little is known about the causes of victim withdrawal, and findings need to be replicated in other cultural contexts, as existing literature primarily stems from the US and UK. Based on a sample of rapes reported in a Danish police district, the present study was aimed at enhancing our understanding of the characteristics and causes of recorded victim withdrawal from the police investigation following rape using a mixed-methods approach. The objective of the study was twofold. The first objective was to investigate the impact of selected case characteristics on the likelihood of recorded victim withdrawal using a logistic regression analysis. Results showed that stranger assaults and cases with no verbal or physical victim resistance or no forensic examination were significantly associated with an increased likelihood of recorded victim withdrawal. The second objective was to qualitatively explore police documented reasons for victim withdrawal in files using content analysis. Results indicated that victims may withdraw from the investigation for several reasons, for instance due to psychological distress associated with participating in an investigation. The findings underline potential barriers for the cooperation between victims and police in the investigation of rapes and should be used for establishing initiatives toward reducing the risk of victim withdrawal in rape investigations.

摘要

根据警方记录，许多强奸案因受害者退出警方调查而结案。然而，人们对受害者退出的原因知之甚少，研究结果需要在其他文化背景下复制，因为现有文献主要来自美国和英国。基于丹麦警察区报告的强奸样本，本研究旨在加强我们对使用混合方法的强奸后记录的受害者退出警方调查的特征和原因的理解。研究的目的是双重的。第一个目标是使用逻辑回归分析调查选定案例特征对记录的受害者退出可能性的影响。结果表明，陌生人袭击和受害者没有口头或身体抵抗或没有法医检查的案件与记录的受害者退出的可能性增加显着相关。第二个目标是使用内容分析定性地探索警方记录在案的受害者撤离的原因。结果表明，受害者可能出于多种原因退出调查，例如由于参与调查相关的心理压力。调查结果强调了受害者与警方在强奸调查中合作的潜在障碍，应用于制定举措以降低受害者在强奸调查中退出的风险。