Hostname: page-component-84b7d79bbc-7nlkj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-27T12:56:22.493Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Legal Subjectivity Among Youth Victims of Sexual Abuse

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 December 2018

Heather R. Hlavka
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

How do youth experience and understand the law? How is law regarded and communicated? Youth's legal subjectivity has received limited attention in the sociological and legal literatures, especially as it relates to crime‐reporting behaviors. Drawing on legal socialization theory and procedural justice, I show how youth, as legal subjects, described the law and how those descriptions differed by social location. Using a diverse sample, I examined narratives produced during forensic interviews following reports of sexual victimization. Rather than passive victims, youth act on, and within, institutions. In their own words, youth describe experiences with state systems that animated their understandings of law and criminal justice processes. They reveal how shared frameworks of understanding affected legal subjectivity, shaped their evaluations of the law, and influenced participation in state systems so that perhaps those most in need of legal remedy are those most unlikely to seek it.

Type
Articles
Information
Law & Social Inquiry , Volume 39 , Issue 1 , Winter 2014 , pp. 31 - 61
Copyright
Copyright © American Bar Foundation, 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Akers, Ronald 1985. Deviant Behavior: A Social Learning Approach, 3rd ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Co.Google Scholar
Alexander, Michelle 2010. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New York: New Press.Google Scholar
American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC). 2002. Investigative Interviewing in Cases of Alleged Child Abuse. Chicago: APSAC.Google Scholar
Anderson, Elijah 1999. Code of the Streets: Decency, Violence and the Moral Life of the Innercity. New York: Norton.Google Scholar
Arata, Catalina 1998. To Tell or Not to Tell: Current Functioning of Child Sexual Abuse Survivors Who Disclose Their Victimization. Child Maltreatment 3:63–71.Google Scholar
Avakame, Edem, Fyfe, James, and McCoy, Candace 1999. “Did You Call the Police? What Did They Do?” An Empirical Assessment of Black's Theory of Mobilization of Law. Justice Quarterly 16:765–792.Google Scholar
Balkin, J. M. 1993. Understanding Legal Understanding: The Legal Subject and the Problem of Legal Coherence. Yale Law Journal 103:105–176.Google Scholar
Bass, Sandra 2001. Policing Space, Policing Race: Social Control Imperatives and Police Discretionary Decisions. Social Justice 28:156–176.Google Scholar
Black, Donald 1973. The Mobilization of Law. Journal of Legal Studies 2:125–149.Google Scholar
Black, Donald 1976. The Behavior of Law. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Black, Donald, ed. 1984. Toward a General Theory of Social Control. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Bobo, , Lawrence, Johnson Devon 2004. A Taste for Punishment: Black and White Americans' Views on the Death Penalty and the War on Drugs. Du Bois Review 1:151–180.Google Scholar
Brank, Eve, Woolard, Jennifer, Brown, Veda, Fondacaro, Mark, Luescher, Jennifer, Chinn, Ramona, and Miller, Scott 2007. Will They Tell? Weapons Reporting by Middle‐school Youth. Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice 5:125–146.Google Scholar
Brick, Bradley, Taylor, Terrance, and Esbensen, Finn‐Aage 2009. Juvenile Attitudes Towards the Police: The Importance of Subcultural Involvement and Community Ties. Journal of Criminal Justice 37:488–495.Google Scholar
Browne, Angela 1991. The Victim's Experience: Pathways to Disclosure. Psychotherapy 28:150–156.Google Scholar
Browning, Sandra, Cullen, Francis, Cao, Liqun, Kopache, Renee, and Stevenson, Thomas J. 1994. Race and Getting Hassled by the Police. Police Studies 17:1–11.Google Scholar
Brunson, Rod, and Weitzer, Ronald 2011. Negotiating Unwelcome Police Encounters: The Intergenerational Transmission of Conduct Norms. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 40:425–456.Google Scholar
Bumiller, Kristin 1988. The Civil Rights Society: The Social Construction of Victims. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.Google Scholar
Campbell, Rebecca 1998. The Community Response to Rape: Victims' Experiences with the Legal, Medical, and Mental Health Systems. American Journal of Community Psychology 26:355–379.Google Scholar
Campbell, Rebecca, Ahrens, Courtney, Sefl, Tracy, Wasco, Sharon, and Barnes, Holly 2001. Social Reactions to Rape Victims: Healing and Hurtful Effects on Psychological and Physical Health Outcomes. Violence and Victims 16:287–302.Google Scholar
Cao, Linqun, Frank, James, and Cullen, Francis 1996. Race, Community Context and Confidence in the Police. American Journal of Police 15:3–22.Google Scholar
Carr, Patrick, Napolitano, Laura, and Keating, Jessica 2007. We Never Call the Cops and Here Is Why: A Qualitative Examination of Legal Cynicism in Three Philadelphia Neighborhoods. Criminology 45:445–480.Google Scholar
Catalano, Shannon, Smith, Erica, Snyder, Howard, and Rand, Michael 2009. Female Victims of Violence. NCJ 228356. US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics.Google Scholar
Cohn, Ellen, and White, Susan 1990. Legal Socialization: A Study of Norms and Rules. New York: Springer‐Verlag.Google Scholar
Corsaro, William 1997. The Sociology of Childhood. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge.Google Scholar
Cross, T. P., Jones, L. M., Walsh, W. A., Simone, M., Kolko, D. J., Szczepanski, J., Lippert, T., Davison, K., Cryns, A., Sosnowski, P., Shadoin, A., and Magnuson, S. 2008. Evaluating Children's Advocacy Centers' Response to Child Sexual Abuse. Juvenile Justice Bulletin 1–12.Google Scholar
Eastwood, Christine 2003. The Experiences of Child Complainants of Sexual Abuse in the Criminal Justice System. Australian Institute: Trends and Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice 250:1–6.Google Scholar
Ewick, Patricia, and Silbey, Susan 1998. The Common Place of Law. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Fagan, Jeffrey, and Davies, Garth 2000. Street Stops and Broken Windows: Terry, Race and Disorder in New York City. Fordam Urban Law Journal 28:457–504.Google Scholar
Fagan, Jeffrey, and Tyler, Tom 2005. Legal Socialization of Children and Adolescents. Social Justice Research 18:217–242.Google Scholar
Feldman‐Summers, Shirley, and Ashworth, Clark 1981. Factors Related to Intentions to Report a Rape. Journal of Social Issues 37:53–70.Google Scholar
Felson, Richard, and Paré, Paul‐Philippe 2005. The Reporting of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault by Nonstrangers to the Police. Journal of Marriage and Family 67:597–610.Google Scholar
Fine, Michelle, Freudenberg, Nick, Payne, Yasser, Perkins, Tiffany, Smith, Kersha, and Wanzer, Katya 2003. Anything Can Happen with the Police Around: Urban Youth Evaluate Strategies of Surveillance in Public Places. Journal of Social Issues 59:141–158.Google Scholar
Finkelhor, David 2008. Child Victimization: Violence, Crime, and Abuse in the Lives of Young People. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Finkelhor, David, and Wolak, Janis 2003. Reporting Assaults Against Juveniles to the Police: Barriers and Catalysts. Journal of Interpersonal Violence 19:103–128.Google Scholar
Finkelhor, David, Wolak, Janis, and Berliner, Lucy 2001. Police Reporting and Professional Help Seeking for Child Victims: A Review. Child Maltreatment 6:17–30.Google Scholar
Frank, Brandl, Cullen, Steven, and Stichman, Amy 1996. Reassessing the Impact of Race on Citizens' Attitudes Toward the Police: A Research Note. Justice Quarterly 13:321–334.Google Scholar
Gal, Tali 2011. Child Victims and Restorative Justice: A Needs‐Rights Model. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Gartner, Rosemary, and Macmillan, Ross 1995. The Effect of Victim‐Offender Relationship on Reporting Crimes of Violence Against Women. Canadian Journal of Criminology 37:393–430.Google Scholar
Gau, Jacinta, and Brunson, Rod 2009. Procedural Justice and Order Maintenance Policing: A Study of Inner‐City Young Men's Perceptions of Police Legitimacy. Justice Quarterly 27:255–279.Google Scholar
Glaser, Barney, and Strauss, Anselm 1967. The Discovery of Grounded Theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research. Chicago, IL: Aldine Transaction.Google Scholar
Gottfredson, Michael, and Gottfredson, Don 1988. Decision Making in Criminal Justice: Toward a Rational Exercise of Discretion. New York: Plenum Press.Google Scholar
Graham, Mekada, and Bruce, Emily 2006. Seen and Not Heard: Sociological Approaches to Childhood: Black Children, Agency and Implications for Child Welfare. Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare 33:51–67.Google Scholar
Greenberg, Martin, and Ruback, R. Barry 1992. After the Crime: Victim Decision Making. New York: Plenum.Google Scholar
Hagan, John, and Albonetti, Celesta 1982. Race, Class and the Perception of Criminal Injustice in America. American Journal of Sociology 88:329–355.Google Scholar
Hagan, John, Shedd, Carla, and Payne, Monique R. 2005. Race, Ethnicity, and Youth Perceptions of Criminal Injustice. American Sociological Review 70:381–407.Google Scholar
Hill‐Collins, Patricia 1991. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness and the Politics of Empowerment. New York: Routledge.Google Scholar
Hlavka, Heather 2010. Child Sexual Abuse and Embodiment. Sociological Studies of Children and Youth 13:131–165.Google Scholar
Hlavka, Heather, Olinger, Sara, and Lashley, Jodi 2010. The Use of Anatomical Dolls as a Demonstration Aid in Child Sexual Abuse Interviews: A Study of Forensic Interviewers' Perceptions. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse 19:519–553.Google Scholar
Hurst, Yolander, and Frank, James 2000. How Kids View Cops: The Nature of Juvenile Attitudes Toward the Police. Journal of Criminal Justice 28:189–202.Google Scholar
Hurst, Yolander, Frank, James, and Browning, Sandra Lee 2000. The Attitudes of Juveniles Toward the Police: A Comparison of Black and White Youth. Policing 23:37–53.Google Scholar
James, Allison, and Prout, Alan, eds. 1997. Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood. London: Falmer Press.Google Scholar
Jones‐Brown, Delores 1996. Race and Legal Socialization. PhD diss, Rutgers School of Criminal Justice, Newark, NJ.Google Scholar
Jones‐Brown, Delores 2000. Debunking the Myth of Officer Friendly: How African American Males Experience Community Policing. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice 16:209–229.Google Scholar
Jones‐Brown, Delores 2007. Forever the Symbolic Assailant: The More Things Change, the More They Remain the Same. Criminology and Public Policy 6:103–122.Google Scholar
Konradi, Amanda 1997. Too Little, Too Late: Prosecutors' Pre‐Court Preparation of Rape Survivors. Law & Social Inquiry 22:1–54.Google Scholar
Krislov, S., Boyum, K, Clark, J., Shaefer, R., and White, S. 1966. Compliance and the Law. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Lamb, Sharon, and Edgar‐Smith, Susan 1994. Aspects of Disclosure: Mediators of Outcome of Child Sexual Abuse. Journal of Interpersonal Violence 9:307–326.Google Scholar
Lee, Nick 2001. Children and Society: Growing Up in an Age of Uncertainty. New York: Open University Press.Google Scholar
Leiber, Michael, Nalla, Mahesh, and Farnworth, Margaret 1998. Explaining Juveniles' Attitudes Toward the Police. Justice Quarterly 15:151–174.Google Scholar
Martin, Patricia, and Powell, Marlene 1994. Accounting for the “Second Assault”: Legal Organizations' Framing of Rape Victims. Law & Social Inquiry 19:853–890.Google Scholar
Matza, David 1964. Delinquency and Drift. New York: John Wiley and Sons.Google Scholar
Monroe, Laura, Kinney, Linda, Weist, Mark, Dafeamekpor, Denise, Dantzler, Joyce, and Reynolds, Matthew 2005. The Experience of Sexual Assault: Findings from a Statewide Victim Needs Assessment. Journal of Interpersonal Violence 20:767–776.Google Scholar
Nielsen, Laura Beth 2000. Situating Legal Consciousness: Experiences and Attitudes of Ordinary Citizens About Law and Street Harassment. Law and Society Review 34:1055–1090.Google Scholar
Patton, Michael Quinn 1990. Qualitative Evaluation and Research Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Pipe, Margaret‐Ellen, Lamb, Michael, Orbach, Yael, and Cederborg, Ann‐Christin 2007. Child Sexual Abuse: Disclosure, Delay and Denial. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Piquero, Alex, Fagan, Jeffrey, Mulvey, Edward, Steinberg, Laurence, and Odgers, Candice 2005. Developmental Trajectories of Legal Socialization Among Serious Adolescent Offenders. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 96:267–289.Google Scholar
Roesler, Thomas, and Wind, Tiffany Weissmann 1994. Telling the Secret: Adult Women Describe Their Disclosures of Incest. Journal of Interpersonal Violence 9:327–338.Google Scholar
Rosenbaum, D. P., Schuck, A. M., Costello, S. K., Hawkins, D. F., and Ring, M. K. (2005). Attitudes Toward the Police: The Effects of Direct and Vicarious Experience. Police Quarterly 8:343–365 Google Scholar
Scaglion, Richard, and Condon, Richard 1980. Determinants of Attitudes Toward City Police. Criminology 17:485–494.Google Scholar
Slocum, Lee Ann, Brick, Bradley, and Esbensen, Finn‐Aage 2010. Neighborhoods Structural Characteristics, Individual‐Level Attitudes, and Youths' Crime Reporting Intentions. Criminology 48:1063–1110.Google Scholar
Smith, Daniel, Letourneau, Elizabeth, Saunders, Benjamin, Kilpatrick, Dean, Resnick, Heidi, and Best, Connie 2000. Delay in Disclosure of Childhood Rape: Results from a National Survey. Child Abuse and Neglect 24:273–287.Google Scholar
Snyder, Howard, and Sickmund, Melissa 2006. Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 2006 National Report. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice.Google Scholar
Solis, Carmen, Portillos, Edwardo, and Brunson, Rod 2009. Latino Youth's Experiences with and Perceptions of Involuntary Police Encounters. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 623:39–51.Google Scholar
Strauss, Anselm, and Corbin, Juliet 1998. Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Sutton, John 2001. Law/Society: Origins, Interactions, and Change. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press.Google Scholar
Tapp, June 1987. Legal Socialization Across Age, Culture, and Context: Psychological Consideration for Children and Adults in the Criminal and Legal Justice Systems. Unpublished paper.Google Scholar
Tapp, June, and Levine, Felice 1970. Persuasion to Virtue: A Preliminary Statement. Law and Society Review 4:566–582.Google Scholar
Tapp, June, and Levine, Felice 1977. Law, Justice, and Individual Society. New York: Holt.Google Scholar
Taylor, Terrance J., Turner, K. B., Esbensenm, Finn‐Aage, and Winfree, Thomas L. Jr. 2001. Coppin' an Attitude: Attitudinal Differences Among Juveniles Toward the Police. Journal of Criminal Justice 29:295–305.Google Scholar
Tyler, Tom 1990. Why People Obey the Law. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.Google Scholar
Tyler, Tom 1998. Beyond Self‐Interest: Why People Obey the Law and Accept Judicial Decisions. Responsive Community 8:44–52.Google Scholar
Tyler, Tom, and Huo, Yuen 2002. Trust in the Law. New York: Russell‐Sage.Google Scholar
Ullman, Sarah 1996. Social Reactions, Coping Strategies and Self‐Blame Attributions in Adjustment to Sexual Assault. Psychology of Women Quarterly 20:505–526.Google Scholar
Watkins, Adam 2005. Examining the Disparity Between Juvenile and Adult Victims in Notifying the Police: A Study of Mediating Variables. Journal of research in Crime and Delinquency 42:333–353.Google Scholar
Weitzer, Ronald, and Tuch, Steven 1999. Race, Class and Perceptions of Discrimination by the Police. Crime and Delinquency 45:494–507.Google Scholar
Weitzer, Ronald, and Tuch, Steven 2004. Race and Perceptions of Police Misconduct. Social Problems 51:305–325 Google Scholar
Western, Bruce 2006. Punishment and Inequality in America. New York: Russell Sage.Google Scholar
Whitcomb, Debra 1992. When the Victim Is a Child: Issues for Judges and Prosecutors. Report for the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice.Google Scholar
Woolard, Jennifer, Harvell, Samantha, and Graham, Sandra 2008. Anticipatory Injustice Among Adolescents: Age and Racial/ethnic Differences in Perceived Unfairness of the Justice System. Behavioral Sciences and the Law 26:207–226.Google Scholar
Wyatt, Gail 1992. The Sociocultural Context of African American and White American Women's Rape. Journal of Social Issues 48:77–91.Google Scholar
Wyatt, Gail, and Newcomb, Michael 1990. Internal and External Mediators of Women's Sexual Abuse in Childhood. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 58:758–767.Google Scholar