Sexual Assault, Power, and the Psychology of Disclosure
- Kathy Morelli
- Feb 11
- 4 min read
Updated 2026 to reflect current research and trauma-informed practices.
For centuries, survivors of sexual assault weren’t able to speak out. The people in power in the dominant culture shamed victims into silence and, perversely, blamed them.
Women have gained more power
Today, women and other disenfranchised groups have gained access to stronger civil, financial and political rights and are speaking out. Over the past century, women have acquired an array of legally binding equal rights. Women have gained the right to vote, own property, obtain credit and access higher education. The balance of power shifted in society. The first female Supreme Court judge, Sandra Day O’Connor, was appointed in 1984. Currently, women hold influential positions in corporations and in politics.
This shift in the balance of power gives women a larger voice and influences society’s attitudes about sexual assault. However, representation and voices remain uneven and structural imbalances persist. Despite cultural change, many survivors still hesitate to speak out.
Silence around sexual assault is not merely personal—it is shaped by social context.
Sexual assault and power
Rape is a crime where, unlike robbery, the victim needs to prove that he or she was not a willing accomplice.
Dr. Courtney E. Ahrens has spent her professional life researching the topic of silence and sexual assault. Dr. Ahrens has consistently found that people who have been sexually assaulted are reluctant to speak out. They're constrained by existing social power structures that invalidate and intimidate.
Decades of research corroborates that existing power classes, in order to perpetuate their dominance, want victims to be silenced (Blazer, 1992; Koss, 1985; McAuslan, 1998 as cited in Ahrens, 2006).
Rape has long been known to be a crime of power and control and serves an active function of reinforcing women’s powerlessness and men’s power, as feminist scholars have long demonstrated (Brownmiller, 1975; MacKinnon, 1987; as cited in Ahrens, 2006).
How common is sexual assault?
According to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National network (RAINN) about 20% of the population experiences sexual assault in their lifetime. This includes the statistics from all age groups, both male and female. 1 in 6 women experience attempted or completed rape and 1 in 33 men experience attempted or completed rape.
With these statistics, chances are you might know someone who is being, or has been, sexually assaulted, even if you don't know their story.
The psychology of disclosure
One of the most important moments in a survivor’s recovery is their first disclosure.
Dr. Sarah Ullman and her colleague, Liana Peter-Hagen, Ph.D., found that how the receiver of the disclosure reacts impacted the victim’s path to recovery.
Supportive responses - those characterized by empathy, validation, and belief—are associated with:
enhanced mental heath recovery
use of coping strategies
mitigated post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms
A negative reaction:
was damaging to the person’s long term mental heath
hindered recovery
caused maladaptive coping
caused and exacerbated symptoms of PTSD
reinforced survivor self-blame
caused the survivor to question the validity of their experience
reinforced secondary layer of shame
Common harmful reactions
Even in today’s more supposedly enlightened society, numerous studies show that disclosure of sexual assault is often received negatively.
Negative reactions are received from both informal social networks and formal reporting networks, such as police and medical personnel.
Negative reactions take the form of:
blaming the victim
holding the victim responsible ("...you should have..."
doubt
discourage reporting
minimizing (“..at least it wasn’t worse...”)
outright disbelief
laughter or ridicule
religious or moral outrage
denying medical or psychological treatment .
These negative reactions often reflect and perpetuate societal power structures (Ahrens, 2006).
In some cases, perpetrators or institutions respond with denial, attack, or by reversing the roles of victim and offender — a manipulation pattern sometimes referred to as DARVO.
When trauma responses are reinforced by disbelief or blame, the long-term effects of PTSD can become more entrenched.
In light of all the negative reactions, it's not surprising that many victims choose not to disclose for years, if not decades.
What Helps
Positive responses on the individual level:
Responding with empathy, open-ended questions and non-judgmental words.
Asking if they would like to choose to report
Going with the person to report
Positive responses on the societal level:
continued education is essential
training first responders and medical personnel in trauma-informed care
challenging rape myths
increasing awareness of implicit bias
creating institutional processes that reduce re-traumatization
Cultural change is slow, but research consistently shows that supportive social environments improve recovery outcomes.
A closing reflection
Sexual assault is not only an individual trauma; it exists within social systems of power and belief.
When someone discloses sexual assault, the listener’s response has real psychological impact. Compassionate presence can support healing. Dismissive reactions can compound trauma.
If someone confides in you, your first response matters.
If you are navigating the aftermath of sexual trauma, you do not have to do so alone. Trauma-informed therapy can provide a safe space to process your experience at your own pace.
Kathy Morelli, LPC, offers integrative, trauma-informed therapy via a HIPAA-compliant platform and accepts most insurance plans.
You may contact Kathy through her Psychology Today profile.
Resources
Sources
Ahrens, C.E. (2006). Being Silenced: The Impact of Negative Social Reactions on the Disclosure of Rape. American Journal of Community Psychology, Vol 38, p. 263–274
Ullman, Se.E. & Liana Peter-Hagene (2014). Social Reactions to Sexual Assault Disclosure Coping, Perceived Control, and PTSD Symptoms in Sexual Assault Victims. Journal of Community Psychology, Vol 42(4), p. 495-508.
Comments