Citation

Agboola C, Kang'ethe S, Mohapi BJ. Acta Criminol. 2020; 33(2): 75-92.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Criminological Society of South Africa)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This women-to-women rape study in correctional centres used a qualitative approach with a case study as the specific design. In-depth interviews were used for data collection purposes in order to investigate the experiences of five former women prisoners who provided narratives of their perceptions pertaining to rape in correctional centres. The Rational Choice Theory was used to explain rape within correctional centres for women as a rational act that flourishes because of its advantages (as opposed to its disadvantages) for the perpetrators.

FINDINGS revealed the following environment surrounding women-to-women rape in correctional centres: rampant violent women-to-women rape among some offenders, enabling attitudes of staff in these correctional centres encouraging rape among the women inmates; and use of inanimate paraphernalia, which are shaped to depict phalluses to execute rape. The study suggests the need for more research in the domain to illuminate the obscured reality of the women-to-women phenomenon of rape to society, and to consider its "modus operandi", specifically taking into account the paraphernalia used to execute it with the hope of coming up with interventions to dissuade the quagmire.

Language: en