Institutional Betrayal on Both Ends: Perspectives from Sexual Violence Supporters and Student Survivors


Nell Perry, University of Victoria

Sexual assault is among the most common forms of violence perpetrated against women and gender-diverse people; in Canada, university campuses are among the most prevalent sites (MacKenzie 2019). Since 2016, campuses in Canada have become increasingly responsible for responding to and preventing sexual violence related to their campuses. Responses have come in the form of sexual violence policy and, at some post-secondary institutions, the establishment of designated sexual violence response offices and support staff (Shen 2017). Despite dedicated resources designed to support students through experiences of campus sexual violence, there are risks of institutional betrayal when students needs are not met. Institutional betrayal can occur when the trust and dependency between an individual and their institution is broken due to harm incurred by the individual as a result of (non) response by the institution (Marques 2020). Students’ experience of institutional betrayal can lead to further mental health consequences, such as exacerbated post-traumatic stress symptoms and negative perceptions of safety, that can often be similar in severity to the consequences of the experience of sexual violence (Bedera 2022; Cipriano et al. 2021). This research focuses on the experiences and institutional process of student survivors who seek institutional support for campus sexual violence at their post-secondary institution in British Columbia. I collected data through ten qualitative semi-structured interviews, five of which were with survivors who have been through the process of seeking support on campus, and five of which were with individuals in the role of supporting survivors on campus. The interview data is discussed in conversation with the policies from the post-secondary institutions to build a three-way analysis of the institutional support process. This research is guided by intersectional feminism to liberate participants from the erasure of their individual experience within the institutional process (Cho, Crenshaw, and McCall 2013). I further draw on an intersectional analysis to connect experiences of sexual violence to broader power structures and injustices. Mainly, I focus on Cho et al.s (2013) arguments that situate intersectionality as a crucial analytical tool for uncovering existing power inequalities and dynamics of overlapping identity categories. This s institutional framework centres how an individuals intersectionality- the ways overlapping exclusions on the basis of identities such as on the basis of gender, race, class, ability, sexual orientation, and other identity factors, shape how they engage with, and experience, institutional processes (Magnussen and Shankar 2019; Cho et al. 2013). This study’s findings support existing literature regarding the common experience of institutional betrayal. Survivors identified a range of experiences of the impacts of institutional betrayal. Some participants experienced institutional betrayal from a total lack of acknowledgement from their institution, while others felt grateful for any support they received from their institution despite their overall unmet needs. Findings also show that sexual violence support workers on campus experience institutional betrayal, even if they do not conceptualize it in this way. Some support workers identified experiencing frustration because of their responsibility to impose the institutionalized limits on campus responses. The experience of enforcing systems they see harm in furthers the negative impacts they experience from work. Understanding these different forms of institutional betrayal helps to uncover the principles of the institutional justice and response processes that do not work for survivors or their supporters. This presentation connects to the CSA theme of “Challenging Hate: Sustaining shared futures” by interrogating how policy and institutional responses constrain and prevent adequate and appropriate responses to sexual violence on campuses. Through reconceptualizing institutional betrayal through the perspectives of survivors and campus support providers, I reflect and offer solutions on what is collectively attainable, and what must be done to create sustainable, transparent and fair solutions for campus communities.

Non-presenting author: Tamara Humphrey, University of Victoria

This paper will be presented at the following session: