SEXUAL ASSAULT DETECTIVES’ JUSTIFICATIONS FOR AGGRESSIVE VICTIM INTERVIEWING METHODS: A QUALITATIVE STUDY By Shauna M. Davis Bachelor of Science in Human Services Counseling University of Nevada, Las Vegas 2007 Master of Public Administration University of Nevada, Las Vegas 2009 A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy in Public Affairs School of Environmental and Public Affairs Greenspun College of Urban Affairs The Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas May 2013 UMI Number: 3590132 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI 3590132 Published by ProQuest LLC (2013). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, MI 48106 - 1346 Copyright by Shauna M. Davis, 2013 All Rights Reserved THE GRADUATE COLLEGE We recommend the dissertation prepared under our supervision by Shauna M. Davis entitled Sexual Assault Detectives’ Justifications for Aggressive Victim Interviewing Methods: A Qualitative Study be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Public Affairs School of Environmental Affairs M. Alexis Kennedy, Ph.D., Committee Chair William Sousa, Ph.D., Committee Member Jessica Word, Ph.D., Committee Member Larry Ashley, Ed.S., Graduate College Representative Tom Piechota, Ph.D., Interim Vice President for Research & Dean of the Graduate College May 2013 ii ABSTRACT Sexual Assault Detectives’ Justifications for Aggressive Victim Interviewing Methods: A Qualitative Study by Shauna Davis Dr. M. Alexis Kennedy, Committee Chair Associate Professor of Criminal Justice University of Nevada, Las Vegas The crime of sexual assault is substantially underreported; yet, when victims do report, often times they are met with skepticism and blaming attitudes by law enforcement. Literature shows that sexual assault victims report being further traumatized by the harsh methods used by police and investigators. The effects of rape are aggravated when victims have a negative experience upon reporting, making this a serious concern. Efforts have been made to improve victim treatment but with little success. With reform efforts dating back to the 1970s, the question that must be asked is why is this still a problem? Most articles on this topic focus on the victims and their experiences; yet, there is a major gap in the literature when studying the detectives themselves and their experiences. The purpose of this study is to understand why some detectives are resistant to using a sensitive interviewing style with victims. In depth interviews of 20 sexual assault detectives and sergeants from a large metropolitan police department were conducted. Five main reasons for resisting sensitive interviewing styles were found. Theoretical and practical applications of the findings are also discussed including advice to prevent sexual assault and recommendations to improve victim treatment from law enforcement. iii Acknowledgements It’s a pleasure to thank my dissertation committee members, Drs. Alexis Kennedy, Bill Sousa, Jessica Word, and Larry Ashley. Thank you for your guidance and feedback throughout this process. I feel very blessed to have such a wonderful committee that has been so helpful. I am deeply grateful to my advisor and dissertation chair, Dr. Alexis Kennedy, for her kindness, wisdom, and guidance during this project. I admire the work and service that each and every one of you do and I hope to follow in your footsteps. I would especially like to thank Dean Bernick for his guidance and help through my graduate career. It is with your support that I have been able to make it this far and achieve my educational goals. This dissertation would not have been possible without the participating police department. Thank you for your willingness to participate and allowing me the opportunity to share a glimpse into your world. I have great respect for the work you do and admire those leaders that progressively seek to better the system. Finally, I am deeply indebted to my loving family and friends that spent countless hours listening to me talk about my research and helping me fine tune my work. I couldn’t have done it without your support and encouragement. Thank you, Thank you! iv Table of Contents CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW .............................................................................................1 CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ........................................................3 Problem ...................................................................................................................3 Effects .....................................................................................................................6 Victim Trauma ............................................................................................6 Case Disposition .......................................................................................10 Causes ...................................................................................................................18 Police Culture ............................................................................................19 Rape Myths ...............................................................................................22 Lack of Training .......................................................................................28 Reform ..................................................................................................................29 Feminist Movement ..................................................................................29 Training .....................................................................................................42 Police Literature ....................................................................................................47 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ................................................................................52 Research Questions ...............................................................................................53 Methods .................................................................................................................55 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................62 Theoretical Framework .........................................................................................65 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS ..............................................................................................68 Research Question #1 What types of investigating methods do sexual assault detectives use when interviewing victims? ...........................................................68 Non-Aggressive Investigating Style .........................................................72 The Most Aggressive Investigating Style .................................................79 Detecting Deception ..................................................................................84 Female Detectives ...................................................................................107 Research Question #2 Why do sexual assault detectives use aggressive interviewing methods and why are they resistant to using victim sensitive interviewing methods? ........................................................................................109 1. Aggression towards False Victims ......................................................110 2. Aggression as a Strategic Technique ..................................................113 3. Aggression as a Defense Mechanism .................................................114 4. Aggression as a Personality Trait .......................................................120 5. Aggression in Police Culture ..............................................................121 Testing Assumptions Underlying Aggressive Interviewing Methods ................125 Victim Cooperation .............................................................................................129 Prevention ...........................................................................................................131 Advice for Teens & Adults .....................................................................131 Advice for Possible “Simple” Offenders ................................................138 Advice for Parents to Protect their Children ...........................................141 CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION .......................................................................................148 Retraumatization .................................................................................................148 Justifications for Aggressive Methods ................................................................151 Theoretical Application ......................................................................................156 v Are Aggressive Interviewing Methods Justified? ...............................................165 Recommendations to Improve Victim Treatment ...............................................170 Detectives ................................................................................................171 Politicians ................................................................................................178 Victims ....................................................................................................180 Limitations & Future Research ...........................................................................183 Conclusion ..........................................................................................................187 APPENDIX A ................................................................................................................189 REFERENCES ..............................................................................................................193 CURRICULUM VITAE ...............................................................................................202 vi List of Figures Figure 1 Four types of lies ...............................................................................................85 Figure 2 Reasons & justifications for aggressive interviewing .....................................111 Figure 3 Assumptions held by detectives using aggressive interviewing methods .......127 Figure 4 Advice from detectives on how to prevent sexual assault ...............................132 Figure 5 Recommendations to improve victim treatment ..............................................182 vii CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW Since the 1970s there has been a push for law enforcement to abandon their aggressive investigating methods and to treat sexual assault victims more sensitively. With all the efforts to improve victim experience (e.g., advocates, research, news articles, court cases, training programs), there has been little change in how law enforcement responds to sexual assault victims. Research shows that their aggressive interviewing methods can cause further trauma to victims, and yet, many detectives are still resistant to changing their interviewing style. The detectives’ viewpoints on this issue have been underrepresented in the literature. For this reason, the purpose of this study is to understand the detectives’ experiences and why they may be resistant to being sensitive towards victims. The findings from this study will identify the challenges and barriers for improvement which can lead to more effective policy outcomes with the intent of improving victim experience. The first research question asks what types of investigating methods do sexual assault detectives use when interviewing victims. The second research question asks why detectives use aggressive methods and why they are resistant to using victim sensitive interviewing methods. It is important to understand why they are resistant because it is for these reasons that reform efforts have been unsuccessful. Research thus far has focused on the victims and their experiences but there is scarce research pertaining to the detectives’ experiences with victims. This dissertation seeks to give detectives a voice and to portray the challenges detectives face that the public is generally unaware of. Twenty sexual assault detectives and sergeants agreed to participate in the study. Intensive interviews were conducted with each participant to assess their beliefs about 1