The nature and extent of sexual assault in the sky: Shining a light on a ‘black box’

Strikingly, federal data sources tracking the nature and extent of sexual assaults that occur aboard airlines are incomplete and typically not released to the public. In order to better understand this relatively hidden social phenomenon, we conducted a content analysis of media reports published ov...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Mancini, Christina (Author) ; Budd, Kristen M. (Author) ; Brown, Bailey M (Author) ; Hausserman, Sami (Author) ; Smith, Sydney (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2023
In: International review of victimology
Year: 2023, Volume: 29, Issue: 1, Pages: 128-145
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
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Keywords:
Travel
Media
Content Analysis
#MeToo
Sex crime
Description
Summary:Strikingly, federal data sources tracking the nature and extent of sexual assaults that occur aboard airlines are incomplete and typically not released to the public. In order to better understand this relatively hidden social phenomenon, we conducted a content analysis of media reports published over approximately a 20-year period (2000–2020). Within these media reports, we analyzed the incident characteristics of in-flight sexual assaults, reporting behaviors of victims, airline responses to victimization, and criminal justice processes such as adjudication. Findings reveal certain patterns in the coverage concerning victim and perpetrator characteristics, offense characteristics, flight information, and post-offense outcomes. In synthesizing study results, we apply tenets of routine activities theory (RAT) and the #MeToo perspective. We outline implications for future study and policy.
ISSN:2047-9433
DOI:10.1177/02697580221079996