title: Law enforcement officers' perception of rape and rape victims: a multimethod study.
abstract: In a study to assess law enforcement officers' perceptions of rape and rape victims, researchers asked 149 law enforcement officers to respond to surveys which included a definition of rape measure, an unfounded rape claims measure, and the Rape Myth Acceptance Scale-Revised (RMA-R) measure. Although most officers scored low on the RMA-R--indicating that they did not adhere to myths about rape--most officers also responded with incomplete definitions of rape and inaccurate estimates of the number of false rape claims. Multivariate analyses indicated that officers' open-ended responses did not predict their scores on the RMA-R scale. It is argued that the RMA-R alone does not accurately measure officers' understanding of rape. Officers need ongoing training on the legal elements of the crime, the necessity of sensitivity with victims, and research-based statistics on the prevalence of rape.
authors.forename: Annelise
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mennicke
authors.forename: Delaney
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Oehme
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kennedy
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010344:Patient Advocacy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000523:psychology; D016495:Police / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D011287:Prejudice; D011902:Rape / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000523:psychology; D012938:Social Perception; D013240:Stereotyping; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult