Image Based Sexual Abuse (Ibsa): Perceptions Toward Victims and the Attribution of Blame

Victimization through image based sexual abuse (IBSA) has far-reaching consequences for its victims, exacerbated by societal perception and victim blaming. IBSA refers to the capturing, distributing and/or threatening with distribution of sexually explicit material of individuals without their consent (Powell et al. 2019). Existing research on victim blaming in IBSA primarily relies on self-reported data, with limited empirical exploration of how society perceives and attributes blame to victims. This study addresses this gap by examining societal perceptions and factors influencing blame attribution toward victims of IBSA. Using a vignette-based survey, this study presents scenarios of female victims of IBSA to participants, who were then prompted to reflect on these stories using the Perception on Victim Blame Scale-Revised (PVBS-R: Cramer et al., 2015; Rayburn et al., 2003). Participants also answered questions regarding their perceptions of the victim and the offender. The survey utilized an online panel company and involved 618 participants. The findings reveal that the public tends to attribute blame to victims of IBSA. Victim blaming was more prevalent when the interaction between the victim and offender occurred solely online, when the victim initiated image creation, and when the contact lasted a week. Furthermore, the study introduces a revised version of the PSVB-R called PSVB-R2, achieved by eliminating one item. The revision demonstrates increased internal reliability and overall scores in measuring victim blame perception. While further research is required to validate the revised scale, its methodological contribution is significant, highlighting the need for nuanced and multifaceted exploration of victim blame.