Heidi L Scherer Department of Sociology ampCriminal Justice Kennesaw State University CoauthorsJamie A Snyder University of West Florida Bonnie S Fisher University of Cincinnati ID: 617370
Download Presentation The PPT/PDF document "Perceptions of Leadership and the Willin..." is the property of its rightful owner. Permission is granted to download and print the materials on this web site for personal, non-commercial use only, and to display it on your personal computer provided you do not modify the materials and that you retain all copyright notices contained in the materials. By downloading content from our website, you accept the terms of this agreement.
Slide1
Perceptions of Leadership and the Willingness to Report Sexual Assault at the U.S. Military Academies
Heidi L. Scherer
Department of Sociology &Criminal Justice
Kennesaw State University
Coauthors:Jamie
A. Snyder, University of West Florida
Bonnie S. Fisher, University of Cincinnati Slide2
Literature Review
A notable proportion of cadets/midshipman report experiencing sexual victimization at the military academies (Snyder, Fisher, Scherer, and Daigle, 2012)
Unwanted sexual attention: 23%
Sexual harassment: 56%
Unwanted sexual contact: 16%
Sexual coercion: 8%
Rape: 4%Slide3
Literature Review
Estimated that less than 20% of cadets and midshipmen report sexual assaults to military authorities (DOD, 2012)
Military culture, perceptions of leadership, and organizational structure shape victimization and reporting
Victimization: male-dominated culture, informal code of silence, and power differentials (Pershing, 2003, DOD, 2012)
Reporting
: fear of reprisal/retaliation, lack of support from chain of command, and concern about peer response (GAO, 1995; Bastian et al., 1996)Slide4
Current StudyPast studies on the reporting of sexual assault in the military academies have been limited methodologically Small n’s, qualitative interviews, female-only samples, analyses restricted to descriptive statistics/bivariate relationships
Examines the willingness to report sexual assault to the military chain of command and how willingness is affected by: 1) prior sexual assault, 2) perceptions of leadership, and 3) academy climateMultivariate analysesSlide5
DataThe Service Academy 2005 Sexual Harassment and Assault Survey (SASA2005)Congressionally mandated survey to track sexual harassment and assaultAdministered at the Army, Naval, and Air Force Academies
Includes questions on academy climate, perceptions of leadership, and sexual victimizationN = 5,200 male (62%) and female (38%) cadets and midshipmenSlide6
Dependent VariableWillingness to Report Sexual Assault Respondents were asked: “Would you be willing to report a personal experience of sexual assault to officer/non-commission officer chain of command?”Slide7
Independent Variables Prior Sexual Victimization: RapeAcademy Climate: 1) Violation of Honor Code, 2) Get Away with SH, 3) Personal Loyalty Above Victims, 4) Confront Perpetrators, 5) Report Perpetrators of SA, 6) Sexual Assault Increasing Problem, and 7) Gender Equality
Perceptions of Leadership: 1) Commissioned Officers’ Morality and 2) Commissioned Officers’ Intolerance for Sexual AssaultControls: 1) Sex, 2) Academy, and 3) ClassSlide8
Willingness to Report
Type of Organization/Authority
%
Yes
(Full Sample)
% Yes
(Rape Victims)
Officer/NCO
Chain of Command
68
41
Cadet/Midshipman
Chain of Command
53
45
Academy Counseling
62
38
Military Police/Security Forces
52
32
Academy
Hotline/Helpline
58
36
Academy
Faculty
73
54
Academy Chaplain/Clergy
81
63
Parent/Family
Member/Friend
87
75Slide9
Results: Multivariate Binary Logistic Regression
Variable
AOR
Variable
AOR
Controls
Academy Climate
Female
0.54
*
Honor Code
1.49
*
Naval
0.61
*
Get Away with SH
0.72
*
Air
Force
0.73
*
Personal Loyalty
0.78
* Class of 20060.88 Confront Perpetrators1.42* Class of 20071.10 Report Rape Perpetrators 1.54* Class of 20081.46* Sexual Assault a Problem0.73*CO Leadership Gender Equality1.30* Morality1.39*Prior Sexual Victimization Intolerance for SA1.85* Rape0.43*
p
< .01** Slide10
DiscussionWillingness to report was significantly impacted by:The cadets’ and midshipmen’s perceptions of commanding officers’ morality and intolerance for sexual assaultThe climate at the academy
Perception of support = More likely to reportPerception of non-support = Less likely to reportPrior rape victimization Slide11
Policy ImplicationsMilitary leadership can increase reporting by setting the tone that sexual assault is not tolerated CO have discretion to charge; Only 13% of eligible court martial cases resulted in a conviction (DOD, 2013)
Increase bystander intervention awareness and acts among cadets and midshipmen (see Coker et al., 2011)Slide12
Questions?