Rape Culture, Revictimization, and Social Representations: Images and Discourses on Sexual and Violent Crimes in the Digital Sphere in Mexico

Abstract

The digital sphere has become a space in which misogyny-laden discourses are constantly presented. In fact, in Mexico persists a rape culture that justifies violent acts against women and blames the victims of the crimes through social opinions. The present study proposed an approach based on the Theory of Social Representations. In this sense, this study aimed to analyze the discourses that emerge in the digital sphere when users give their opinion on five types of crimes against women: femicide, rape, enforced disappearance, abuse, and sexual harassment. The results revealed that there are four types of discourse (representations) framed within rape culture: disbelief of rape, blaming the victim, revictimization, and disempowering women. It is concluded that Mexican society maintains a representation that stereotypes and devalues the image of women, which allows us to understand the aggressions that women suffer in their daily lives.