Underreporting has been a longstanding problem for criminal justice agencies, which masks the true scale of crime taking place and prevents victims from accessing justice and support. Using empirical evidence collected from more than 2,000 victims who came from different backgrounds and who had experienced different forms of crimes, this article proposes a new theoretical model to enhance our understanding of underreporting. This model highlights that victim decision making is influenced by structural, social, situational and individual barriers, which interact symbiotically to create layers of resistance to reporting. The article concludes by considering what steps academics, policymakers and practitioners can take to dismantle these barriers and to improve reporting rates.

中文翻译：

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阻力层：了解与犯罪报告相关的决策过程

漏报一直是刑事司法机构的一个长期问题，它掩盖了正在发生的犯罪的真实规模并阻止受害者获得正义和支持。本文利用从 2,000 多名来自不同背景、经历过不同形式犯罪的受害者那里收集的经验证据，提出了一种新的理论模型，以增强我们对漏报的理解。该模型强调，受害者决策受结构、社会、情境和个人障碍的影响，这些障碍相互作用共生以产生对报告的抵制。文章最后考虑了学者、政策制定者和从业者可以采取哪些步骤来消除这些障碍并提高报告率。