Environmental Scan – Part 6

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Part six: Key findings

9    Key findings

9.1    Victim/survivors’ access to services
9.2    Capacity of victim/survivor services
9.3    ‘What works’ to promote recovery and resilience
9.4    Criminal justice system – access and attrition
9.5    Concluding comment

Glossary of Maori terms
References

Part six: Key findings

9    Key findings

This environmental scan surveyed two groups of individuals and agencies that respond to adult victim/survivors of sexual violence.

• Community service providers: specialist sexual violence agencies (SSVAs) (n=27), women’s refuges (n=11), Victim Support offices (n=42), mental health counselling services (n=66), medical service providers (n=15), and other community agencies (n=18). These service providers respond to the needs of victim/survivors who do not access criminal justice services, as well as those who report their assault to police. The level of specialisation, the types of services offered, and the nature and extent of their interactions with victim/survivors varied considerably across survey respondents.

• Criminal justice groups: police (n=206), Doctors for Sexual Abuse (DSAC) regional liaison doctors (RLDs; regional co-ordinators of sexual assault doctors who perform forensic medical examinations) (n=10), court victim advisers (n=17) and Crown prosecutors (n=46).

    The aim of surveying these individuals and agencies was to identify their views on:

• the factors influencing victim/survivors’ access to the criminal justice system and non-criminal justice services
• victim services’ capacity to meet victim/survivors’ needs, including identifying gaps in services
• the views of victim services on ‘what works’ to promote recovery and resilience
• the impact of location on victim/survivors’ ability to disclose sexual violence, particularly in respect of the level of services available locally, and have their needs met
• the views of police and prosecutors on the attrition of recorded sexual violation offences and the impact of systemic, organisational and other contextual factors on investigating and prosecuting sexual violation offences.

This chapter summarises the key findings in relation to these research objectives in four sections:

• victim/survivors’ access to services, including their ability to disclose and impact of location (section 9.1)
• capacity of victim services: gaps, ways to improve (section 9.2)
• what works to promote recovery and resilience (section 9.3)
• criminal justice system: access and attrition (section 9.4).

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9.1    Victim/survivors’ access to services

9.1.1    Awareness of services
The environmental scan of community service providers highlighted the wide range of agencies that offer services to victim/survivors of sexual violence. Although service providers might exist, those needing their services can access them only if they are aware of the services.

Survey responses revealed that self-referral by the victim/survivor was the most common form of referral for all service providers except for Victim Support, where 85 percent came from police referrals. This reliance on self-referral points to the crucial importance of visibility and awareness of agencies and their services. It is concerning that service providers identified a distinct lack of information for victim/survivors about the services available. One way to improve access to service providers is to ensure they have sufficient resources to promote and advertise their services effectively. 

SSVAs, in particular, identified improving access as an important factor in improving service delivery. They also felt addressing public misunderstandings about sexual violation/rape was important. This was seen as a way to reduce the stigma associated with rape that acted as a barrier to victim/survivors accessing services recognised as specialising in sexual violence.

9.1.2    Barriers to accessing services
Survey respondents identified factors that, in their view, limited victim/survivors’ ability to access the services they needed. These included victim/survivors’ feelings of shame and self-blame, with many believing their actions had contributed to the sexual violation, and being influenced by common rape myths. Addressing public misunderstandings about sexual violation was seen as an important way to improve understanding and counter rape myths. Further, as survey respondents pointed out, it is only those who recognised, and could name, their experience as ‘rape’ that were likely to seek assistance.

The cost of services was another frequently mentioned barrier, particularly in relation to accessing emotional support services. Many Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) counsellors commented that they had to charge a surcharge because services were not fully covered by ACC funding. The costs of transport and childcare to enable victim/survivors to access services were also seen as prohibitive for some, particularly those in rural areas. Fully funding treatment services and providing the supports necessary to enable victim/survivors to get to services would ensure victim/survivors could access appropriate responses.

A significant barrier to accessing mental health counselling was the ineligibility for ACC funding for those now living in New Zealand but whose sexual violence occurred outside of New Zealand (e.g. Pacific peoples and other ethnic minority, migrant and refugee groups). 

9.1.3    Impact of location on access to services
A regional breakdown of perceived gaps in services suggested some regions around New Zealand are better resourced than others. For example, Canterbury was seen to be well resourced, but Bay of Plenty was seen to have insufficient services. The challenge is to increase the coverage of services to ensure victim/survivors in all regions can access services to meet their needs.

The particular types of services that were seen to be lacking in some areas included SSVAs and services for special groups (e.g. Māori and men). Access to 24-hour medical treatment and female doctors was also seen as insufficient in some areas. The greatest concern among survey respondents was the inadequacy of services to meet victim/survivors’ needs for emotional support. 

Survey respondents also suggested that victim/survivors in rural locations might have difficulty in accessing services, either because of a lack of services or because it was more difficult to ensure confidentiality. There was a risk of family members finding out when victim/survivors did not want them to know, or service providers being related or known to the victim/survivor or perpetrator. It is also important to recognise that rural areas require additional staff to compensate for the travel time required to cover wide geographical areas in order to see clients. 

9.1.4    Access to services for diverse groups of victim/survivors
Half the community service providers (52 percent) identified gaps in services in their own communities for victim/survivors who were migrants or refugees, and around one-third identified gaps in services for Pacific peoples, sex-workers, men and people with disabilities. For Māori victim/survivors the most pressing need was for more qualified/experienced Māori counsellors.

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9.2    Capacity of victim/survivor services

The perception gained from survey respondents was that, in general, coverage of community service providers offering a range of sexual violence services was reasonably good across New Zealand. Indeed, the majority of respondents thought there were sufficient services to enable victim/survivors to disclose to a formal agency if they wished to do so. What was less evident from the survey findings was the capacity of these services to deliver effective services. Survey respondents were asked what services they delivered, but they were not asked if they were sufficiently resourced (funding and staffing) to deliver the services offered.

9.2.1    Capacity limited by insufficient funding
Looking at survey responses a little closer it appeared that while services may exist, the level of service provided can be compromised because of insufficient funding. This could put those delivering the services under extreme pressure, as they attempted to stretch their resources to provide the support they knew victim/survivors needed. Increased funding was identified as a top priority by those most likely to deliver crisis intervention to victim/survivors of sexual violence (SSVAs and women’s refuges) and by those most likely to be responding to the effects of sexual violence (mental health counselling services). Many of the other ways that agencies could see to improve the quality of services were also funding-related (e.g. more staff, more qualified and experienced staff, improved training, and improved facilities and equipment). 

There were several references to the delays and waiting lists victim/survivors must face, particularly in relation to accessing counselling services. This again suggests that although services may exist, they may not be sufficiently resourced to meet the demand, or there may be insufficient qualified and experienced staff to deliver these services. 

Further research should focus on whether service providers are adequately funded to deliver services they offer effectively.

9.2.2    Capacity to meet the needs of diverse groups
Another concern that arose from respondents was the ability of service providers to deliver effective services to all groups of victim/survivors. Only a few services specialised in delivering services to specific groups, which means most minority groups of victim/survivors must rely on mainstream services. This is a concern, with many service providers having reservations about their ability to meet the needs of some groups of victim/survivors (e.g. ethnic minority groups, migrants, refugees, Pacific peoples, men, and people with disabilities). This suggests existing service providers need access to better training in order to work effectively with these groups and more efforts need to made to develop diversity in the workforce, recruiting staff from diverse groups and then giving them specialist training in sexual violence. 

It should be noted that not all victim/survivors preferred to deal with some similar to themselves, but it is important they have a choice, which is rare today.

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9.3    ‘What works’ to promote recovery and resilience

Respondents identified five groups of factors that work to promote recovery and resilience.

9.3.1    Specialist services
The effect of any incident of sexual violence can be highly traumatic, making it imperative that those working with victim/survivors understand the factors that influence a victim/survivors’ ability to recover and move on with their lives. As highlighted in this report, victim/survivors have high and complex needs. Individuals and agencies that are insufficiently qualified risk harming or further traumatising victim/survivors. 

SSVAs are the only agencies that focus solely on victim/survivors, so they work with the greatest volume of victim/survivors. This means SSVAs are most likely to have developed the greatest expertise in understanding the needs of this client group. Therefore, they are in the best position to provide crisis intervention, counselling, and follow-up work, all interventions identified as effective in promoting the recovery and well-being of victim/survivors. 

The implication here is that victim/survivors from all areas of New Zealand must have access to SSVAs; currently, some regions have no SSVAs. 

9.3.2    Effective counselling
Many respondents saw counselling as one of the more effective ways to assist in the recovery and well-being of victim/survivors. This means the delays in gaining approval to access ACC-funded assistance, the lack of specialised counsellors, and the waiting lists of those who are available are concerns. Māori victim/survivors are over-represented as victim/survivors of sexual violence, which means the lack of specialised Māori counsellors is particularly important to address. 

9.3.3    Good inter-agency collaboration
Good inter-agency collaboration was identified throughout the report as an important aspect in the delivery of effective services. This is essential to enable referrals to the most appropriate support and allow multi-agency responses to ensure best outcomes. Yet many respondents (70 percent) suggested they did not have formal agreements with other agencies to ensure effective referrals occurred. It is important to consider the barriers to good collaboration among agencies and what enables positive collaboration models to develop and be sustained. 

9.3.4    What works for diverse groups
The importance of providing for the needs for specific groups of victim/survivors has been reiterated throughout this report. For example, the most valuable approach to promoting recovery and resiliency for Māori was seen to be the supply of specialist support services that provide a whānau-based holistic approach to treatment. Recognising that what works for diverse groups may be different is an important starting point, what is needed now is a better understanding of how the needs of diverse groups might vary. 

9.3.5    Consistency of care
There is much agreement among what works to promote the recovery and resiliency of victim/survivors of sexual violence. This includes services that are immediately accessible and affordable, offer a choice of services, are widely advertised, and are staffed by individuals who are appropriately skilled, approachable, knowledgeable and non-judgemental. The challenge is how to achieve consistency of such services ensuring effective services with competent staff are accessible to all.

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9.4    Criminal justice system – access and attrition

An environmental scan of criminal justice system processes revealed a complex system, involving protracted processes that victim/survivors had to negotiate. 

At several points in the system, seeking justice was seen to be re-traumatising for victim/survivors, and many respondents raised concerns about the system’s ability to deliver justice for all victim/survivors. 

The majority of respondents were supportive of victim/survivors reporting sexual violation to the police, but a smaller proportion said they would advise a friend or family member to go through the criminal justice system (only 20 percent of DSAC RLDS, 38 percent of service providers, 39 percent of Crown prosecutors, and 59 percent of police). Of particular note were the number of respondents who said their advice would depend on the individual circumstances of the case (e.g.if there was no corroborating evidence and the case relied on disproving consent, the vulnerability of victim/survivor, and whether the victim/survivor had been under the influence of alcohol or other drugs at the time of the assault). Such replies suggested a clear recognition among respondents that some types of victim/survivors are less likely to receive justice.

9.4.1    Access to criminal justice system
Only one in ten victim/survivors chooses to report their assault to police. Community service providers identified the barriers to victim/survivors reporting as:

• shame and self-blame
• the fear of not being believed
• disbelief in the criminal justice system
• the fear of the consequence (retribution or reprisal by the perpetrator or public exposure)
• family or community pressure not to report.

It is important that police and other criminal justice professionals take into consideration these barriers when they respond to victim/survivors. However, the greatest difference will be made with interventions aimed at changing societal misunderstandings about the true nature of sexual violation. 

Some survey respondents had concerns whether all groups of victim/complainants had equal access to justice. A few suggestions were made about factors that might limit justice to certain groups of victim/survivors (e.g. Māori, Pacific, young victim/survivors, or victim/survivors with an intellectual disability). Factors included credibility issues, and jury members’ prejudices against certain groups. Family and community pressures on victim/survivors not to report or follow through with complaints was also noted in relation to Māori, Pacific peoples, other ethnic groups, migrants, and refugees.

9.4.2    Attrition of sexual violence cases
Clearly evident from this report was a continuing concern among survey respondents about the high rate of attrition of sexual violence cases that still exists in New Zealand (i.e. the high rate of reported cases that do not proceed from one phase of the criminal justice process to the next). Survey respondents identified factors that affected the reporting and successful prosecution of sexual violation offences. However, many of these factors appeared to confirm previously identified issues rather than offer new insights. 

Police survey respondents perceived victim/complainant withdrawal to be the most common factor contributing to attrition at all points during the police processing of a complaint, except ‘during investigation’ when a police decision to discontinue because of insufficient evidence was more common. Victim/complainant withdrawal, while less common, could also occur during court proceedings. Some of the reasons police gave to explain why a victim/complainant might withdraw their complaint were:

• fear of the legal process (including fear of cross-examination by the defence, fear of facing the accused, and lengthy delays because of a protracted court process)
• being in a relationship with the accused (partners or acquaintances), and not wanting them to be convicted or go to jail, fearing retribution, or reconciling with the accused
• coming under pressure from a third party to make the initial complaint, and then subsequently withdrawing
• being under the influence of alcohol and other drugs – the victim/complainant decided after sobering up not to continue or was concerned that their level of intoxication might have contributed to the situation
• reporting only to inform police – some victim/complainants just want the police to know what has happened (or want safety or medical assistance) but do not want to make a complaint.

The other main reason for an initial report of sexual violence not to proceed was if the evidential threshold was judged not to have been met (e.g. evidence of a false complaint, insufficient evidence, or lack of corroborating evidence). Other less common reasons included charges being dropped or amended after plea bargaining, the case being dropped because of concern about the welfare of the victim/complainant, and defendant absconding or dying. 

The final point of possible attrition is where, based on the evidence presented, the jury fails to find the accused guilty ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ and there is an acquittal. Police and Crown prosecutors pointed to several factors associated with sexual violation cases that made meeting the criminal standard of proof particularly difficult. These included:

• the nature of evidence, in particular the lack of corroborating evidence
• cross-examination tactics – the ability of the defence to discredit the victim/complainant as a reliable witness
• the rights of the accused – the inability of the prosecution to challenge an accused using their right to remain silent
• jury members’ lack of understanding about the nature of sexual violation (and issues of consent).

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Survey respondents made a range of suggestions for changes that might address these factors and increase the rate of conviction for sexual violence offences. 

It is clear some of the factors contributing to attrition identified above are difficult, if not impossible, to address (e.g. the defendant absconding or dying) and others it would be inappropriate to do so (e.g. clear evidence of a false complaint). Addressing other factors would require changes to criminal procedures (e.g. speeding up the trial process or altering what evidence is admissible and how it can be presented and cross-examined) or fundamental changes to the criminal justice system (e.g. judge-only trials, consideration of an inquisitorial system of justice, and specialist courts). 

Others factors (e.g. victim/complainant withdrawal) might be reduced by increasing victim/complainant access to specialised support services and/or continuing and expanding specialist training of police and other criminal justice professionals to ensure they respond consistently and appropriately to victim/survivors. Improvements to the environment and facilities for victim/survivors when reporting to police and during court hearings might also improve the experience for victim/survivors. 

While many of the above changes might reduce attrition, their effectiveness is likely to be limited because of entrenched attitudes and misunderstandings about the nature of sexual violation held by members of the criminal justice system (e.g. juries) and the public. Comments throughout this report have made it clear that the dominant stereotype of sexual violation/rape as an act committed by strangers is still pervasive. This greatly affects the ability of those whose sexual violation experience does not fit this stereotype to be able to access justice. Addressing this and countering other rape myths relies on more education of juries and wider society.

9.5    Concluding comment

The strength of this report has been the bringing together of information about the agencies, services and systems that victim/survivors may come in contact with. The roles and responsibilities of the various groups have been described, and many of the processes a victim/survivor must negotiate have been provided. Consequently, our understanding of the capacity of these groups to respond effectively to victim/survivors and the factors that affect their ability to do so has been enhanced. 

Findings have revealed a range of community service providers, with varying levels of specialisation that offer a variety of services and support to victim/survivors throughout New Zealand. However, just because services exist, it does not mean victim/survivors can access them or that the services have the capacity to meet the all the needs of victim/survivors. Questions were raised about the adequacy of existing services to meet, in particular, the needs of victim/survivors in more remote rural areas and from diverse groups. 

To improve service delivery it was clear that service providers required increased funding in order to employ a sufficient number of experienced and qualified staff, and ensure services were delivered in appropriate facilities. There was also a pressing need to increase qualified and experienced staff to work with Māori victim/survivors. Societal misunderstanding of the nature of sexual violence was also seen as a significant barrier to all victim/survivors being able to identify their experiences as sexual violation and to access appropriate support and justice. 

Many of the concerns and criticisms identified in relation to the treatment of victim/survivors within the criminal justice system were not new. Improvements in some areas were recognised (e.g. legislative reforms, increased specialisation and training within police), but there was a strong sense that more needed to be done before victim/survivors could be guaranteed a fair and just system. 

Key challenges are:

• deciding what needs to be done to ensure there is consistently good practice among all those who respond to victim/survivors
• gaining a better understanding of what is effective and fair practice for diverse groups of victim/survivors.

In relation to the criminal justice system, a further challenge to making changes will be to achieve the right balance between the needs of victim/survivors and the evidential needs of a justice system that has been designed to determine the accused’s criminal liability. 

The objectives and intended scope of this report were very broad. In attempting to present such a complete picture of all the agencies, services and systems that victim/survivors might come in contact with, there has been a trade-off in the inability to fully explore all the complexities of the information provided by survey respondents. Therefore, rather than providing all the definitive answers, this report provides a starting point for identifying issues that require more attention.

Disclaimer

This report was commissioned by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs. The views, opinions and conclusions expressed in the report are intended to inform and stimulate wider debate. They do not represent government policy.
 

Published in September 2009
by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs | Minitatanga Mō Ngā Wāhine
PO Box 10 049, Wellington, 6143, New Zealand
Phone: 0064 4 915 7112
Fax: 0064 4 916 1604
Email: mwa@mwa.govt.nz
Website: www.mwa.govt.nz

ISBN 978-0-478252-45-3 (Print)
ISBN 978-0-478252-46-0 (Digital)