Hello! This survey is part of a doctoral research project being conducted at Glasgow Caledonian University to explore victim-survivors’ experiences with non-consensual taking, creating, sharing, threatening to share, & receiving intimate images in Scotland. With intimate we mean any nude, semi-nude, private, sexual, sexualised, or other images that may be experienced as an intrusion or violation.
This includes:
- Your image was taken without your consent (e.g. in a private or public space, filmed up your skirt or down your cleavage, when engaging in a consensual sexual act, during a sexual assault, you were pressured or coerced to take an image etc.)
- Your image was created without your consent (e.g. using Photoshop or AI software including ‘deepfakes’, screenshotting images without permission etc.)
- Your image was shared without your consent (e.g. uploaded online including websites and social media, sent on via messaging apps such as Whatsapp, shown to someone else, printed to be shared as physical copies etc.)
- Someone threatened to share your image (regardless of whether the image actually existed)
- You received or had to look at an unwanted image you did not consent to (e.g. unsolicited ‘dick pics’, unwanted pornographic material etc.)
These behaviours are often referred to as image-based abuse but you might have different language for what you experienced.
We would like to hear more about your experience of these behaviours, how it may have affected you, whether you spoke to someone about this, and whether or not you reported this to the police.
The survey is open to everyone in Scotland. You must be at least 16 years old and living in Scotland to take part. We particularly welcome the voices of diverse gender identities and sexualities.
The survey is anonymous, you are not required to provide any identifying information to take part. The answers provided will be used for research purposes only. The research team are the only people who will have access to your responses. If you wish to participate in other aspects of the research, for example an interview, or you wish to be kept informed about the findings of the research, you will be offered the opportunity to provide your email address at the end of the survey. Your email address will be stored separately from your other responses. After analysis, the survey findings will be used to inform the doctoral project, and may be reported in academic publications. You will not be identifiable. This project is fully GDPR compliant and received full ethical approval from the Glasgow School of Business and Society Ethics Committee at Glasgow Caledonian University.
The survey is expected to last about 10 minutes. After completing the survey and submitting your responses, it will not be possible to remove these from the collected data as we will be unable to identify your specific responses.
The questions are about your personal experiences with image-based abuse which some people may find upsetting. However, you do not need to answer anything that makes you feel uncomfortable. If you require support you may wish to contact the following:
- Your GP or Therapist/Counsellor
- Breathing Space (0800 83 85 87)
- LGBT Health (0300 123 2523)
- Rape Crisis Scotland (08088 01 03 02)
- Revenge Porn Helpline (0345 6000 459)
- Samaritans (0808 808 8000)
- Scottish Women’s Aid (0131 226 6606)
- Victim Support Scotland (0800 160 1985)
Details of these support services will be provided again at the end of the survey. If you have any questions about this survey before completing it, you can contact juliaresearch@gcu.ac.uk You can also find further information on the study website: juliaresearch.wix.com/website
