Rape myths in practice: the everyday work of accounting for rape survivors

‘Rape mythologising’ has been found to be a reason why survivors of rape feel blamed, and might contribute to low rates of reporting or conviction. No research to date examines whether ‘rape mythologising’ occurs in the conversations of sexual health staff when discussing rape cases. Conversation Analysis was used to analyse a focus group conversation between five sexual healthcare clinic staff who routinely provided support to rape survivors, on the topic of three rape cases presented at the clinic. Three forms of conversation were noted in the focus group: (1) assessing ‘relatability’ in cases, (2) diagnostically reconstructing events and (3) apportioning blame to rapists. Implications for professional training are discussed. In all three, a tension was noted between drawing on rape myths and professional non-blaming discourses. This research demonstrates the need for further training of those who work with rape survivors.