Fear to Retaliation: The Most Frequent Reason for Not Helping Victims of Gender Violence

When faced with situations of gender-based violence, one becomes exposed to risk in giving support to the victim (van Reemst, Fischer & WC Zwirs, 2015; Hamby, Weber, Grych & Banyard, 2016; Liebst, Heinskou & Ejbye-Ernst, 2018). This form of violence, second order of sexual harassment (SOSH), occurs when people who support victims of gender-based violence experience violence themselves because of this positioning (Vidu et al., 2017; Flecha, 2021). There is little research on the subject. Through a quantitative study carried out with 1541 Spaniards over 18 years of age, we provide, for the first time, quantitative evidence of the incidence of SOSH in the responses of people who have been aware of a situation of gender-based violence. Our results show that SOSH is an important obstacle; 40% of people who did not offer help in the case of gender-based violence did not do so for reasons that correspond to SOSH. We concluded that the fear of suffering SOSH can condition people’s reactions in the environment, thereby limiting the possibility of female victims of violence receiving help.

International and Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Sciences 33 n recent years, several studies have highlighted the important role that people in the community can play in the comprehensive approach to gender-based violence (GBV). This is why the goals of programs that try to raise awareness among the general population have been extended (among other things) to helping identify cases of violence, or training people to accompany women in their recovery process. However, previous research (Flecha, 2021;Vidu et al., 2017) has revealed another form of violence: second-order sexual harassment (SOSH), which is directed against people who offer support to victims. This kind of violence aims to end such support, and hence continues to perpetuate the isolation and loneliness of women who are experiencing gender-based violence (Flecha, 2021). Although SOSH is a form of violence recognized by both professionals and civil society, there is little research on the subject, and no research offers quantitative data on the incidence of SOSH. The R+D+i research project "SOL.NET: Solidarity Networks with impact on the recovery processes of women victims of genderbased violence" (Melgar, 2019(Melgar, -2021 provides, for the first time, quantitative evidence on the incidence of SOSH in responses given by people who have been aware of a situation of gender-based violence. Knowing which reasons facilitate and which ones make it difficult to give support to victims is essential to extending solidarity networks that break the cycle of this isolation and thus contribute to overcoming gender-based violence. Melgar et al. (2021), taking previous research as a reference, defined recovery from gender-based violence as more than just surviving; it is a process that involves creating a life away from violence, which, for female victims, implies reflecting on the meaning they give to their experiences. Therefore, recovery from gender-based violence entails important changes in the meaning given to one's relationships and life, as well as the vision one has of oneself. Recovery involves reconstructing not only one's sense of self, but also one's environment. If we take, as a reference, the indicators established by Sinko and Saint Arnault (2019), we clearly see that connections with others will enhance the recovery of self-esteem, the interpretation of memories of violence, reconnecting with oneself, and the development of a positive worldview, which allows one to reconnect with the world. In short, the support of other professional or non-professional people is necessary to combat the I aftereffects of violence and to cope with post-traumatic symptoms and the demands of daily life.

Seeking Help for Gender-Based Violence
A very similar situation is found when a woman in a situation of genderbased violence is determined to put an end to a relationship. In general, there are three stages to this process: (1) defining the problem; (2) deciding to seek help; and (3) selecting a source of support (Liang, Goodman, Tummala-Narra & Weintraub, 2005). In the evolution of these stages, the response victims receive when seeking help plays a leading role. Responses can contribute to defining the problem, moving forward in one's attempt to end a relationship, and helping the victim move forward in her recovery-or quite the opposite. For example, women who receive supportive responses from the first people to whom they explain the violence they are experiencing show greater confidence and are more likely to seek help in the future (Waldrop & Resick, 2004). Conversely, a woman's fear that those she seeks help from will demand she end a relationship, or impose a definition or interpretation of what she is experiencing, becomes a significant barrier to her decision to seek aid (Fugate, Landis, Riordan, Naureckas & Engel, 2005). When the latter occurs, some of the patterns already experienced during a violent relationship are reproduced, thereby establishing a power dynamic with the woman (Lempert, 1997;Fanslow & Robinson, 2010).
As such, when faced with a situation of gender-based violence, one reason why a victim does not seek help and/or makes it difficult to get out of a relationship is a lack of social support. At the same time, there are other reasons for which the people around the victim can have a negative influence on her coping ability, such as adverse feelings towards oneself, guilt, or emotional ambivalence (Campbell, Rose, Kub & Nedd, 1998;Fanslow & Robinson, 2010;Fugate, Landis, Riordan, Naureckas & Engel, 2005;Gelles, 1976;Goodman, Dutton, Vankos & Weinfurt, 2005;LaViollete & Barnett, 2000;Melgar, Campdepadrós, Fuentes & Mut, 2021;Saint Arnault & O'Halloran, 2016).
Despite all this, gender-based violence is not invisible. Approximately 65%-90% of women report violent situations to people around them (Ansara & Hindi, 2010;European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2014;Fanslow & Robinson, 2010;Melgar 2019Melgar -2021. Given their search for help, it is worth exploring what responses they are receiving. Fanslow and Robinson (2010) found that more than 75% of respondents said they had explained their International and Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Sciences 35 situation to someone; however, more than 40% of women indicated that no one had helped them. These data are similar to those collected by a European survey administered to a sample of 42,000 women from 27 countries (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2014). Of the women who had suffered physical and/or sexual violence at the hands of their romantic partners, only 35% indicated that support from family and friends had helped them overcome the violence. This lack of support was also evident when they were asked about what kind of help they would have found useful. They responded that after the most serious incident of violence, what they would have wanted most of all was to have someone to talk to and receive support from (33% -54%), followed by protection (12%-25%) and other types of practical help (13%-21%).
In Spain, the latest macro-survey (Government Delegation against Gender Violence, 2019) collected information in this regard, but in the case of receiving or not receiving help, it only focuses on gender-based violence experienced with current or past partners. Therefore, it does not analyze other areas where gender-based violence also occurs. In turn, it centers the analysis on help by asking whether the people to whom victims explained their situation advised them to leave their relationship and, if they were advised to leave, whether they received emotional or material support. The results show that 36% of the people around the victims, upon learning of the violence they suffered at the hands of their current partner, advised them to leave the relationship. The same percentage, 36%, did not help the victims (who were advised to give their partner another opportunity, reproached for their attitudes, or reacted to with indifference). 26% of victims received other kinds of responses and 2% "don't know/no opinion". The share of victims who were advised to leave their relationship increased when the reaction refers to violence committed by one of their past partners. Specifically, 81% of victims were advised to leave their relationship. Even so, as already mentioned, this only refers to reactions to violence committed by partners or ex-partners and does not go into the real impact of this advice (i.e., to what extent it helped victims end a relationship and/or in their recovery process).

Witnesses in Front of Gender-Based Violence
Previous scientific literature highlights the need to promote the active role of the community in preventing violence from occurring, or in mitigating the aftereffects when it has already occurred (Banyard, Plante & Moynihan, 2004;Cook-Craig et al., 2014). Informal networks provide the most useful and enduring support (Goodman et al., 2016). The main benefits are practical and emotional. Practical benefits entail providing victims with a place to stay, accompanying them to formal service circuits (health care, justice, etc.), helping them with childcare, and giving them financial assistance. Regarding emotional support, benefits include encouraging victims to end their relationship, making them less depressed and anxious, and helping them to have greater self-esteem (Sainio, Veenstra, Huitsing & Salmivalli, 2011) or increasing their security and well-being (Goodman & Smyth, 2011).
The aid offered by these (formal or informal) support networks includes helping victims to: identify points of support available in their environment; strengthen their connections with sources of support; disconnect from people who bring a negative influence to their lives; identify their strengths and available resources; improve their mental health; rethink and reframe their life stories (especially with respect to affective sexual relationships); and gain practical support (e.g., offering victims housing, help with moving, childcare, or financial aid).

Second-Order Sexual Harassment (SOSH)
We can classify the reactions of people who witness or are aware of a situation of gender-based violence into four types: active participants (when they also perpetrate violence), passive bystanders, those who intervene to defend the victim, and those who alert others to intervene on the victim's behalf (Flecha, 2021;Latane & Darley, 1970). To understand this typology, Flecha (2021) underscored three elements that condition the reactions of those who witness International and Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Sciences 37 or are aware of a situation of gender-based violence: (1) their knowledge of the issue; their relationship with the victim or aggressor; and (3) their perception of what may happen to them after offering help. Regarding this last aspect, Flecha, taking as a reference the work of Dziech and Weiner (1990), incorporated a new typology-SOSH-into the conceptualization of genderbased violence (Flecha, 2021). SOSH is triggered because of helping victims of gender-based violence; it aims to halt support and conceal the violence. Thus, the fear of possible reprisals for assisting a woman in a situation of gender-based violence-the fear of suffering from SOSH-can significantly condition the reactions of people in the victim's environment, even paralyzing them. This fear can also condition female victims themselves, leading them to try to hide violence from the people around them in order to prevent them from suffering from reprisals (Evans & Feder, 2015).
SOSH is defined as "physical and/or psychological violence against people who support victims of sexual harassment. Some people, groups, or institutions, who give support to survivors, become the target of violence when they accompany them in the complaint process or when they defend them from revictimization, as a form of coercion against this support" (Vidu et al., 2017, p. 3).
Flecha (2021) concluded that SOSH occurs due to defending a victim of gender-based violence; it can happen in very diverse contexts. SOSH is usually meant to end support for first-order victims and silence the expression of any gender-based violence that may be taking place. Although power relations may facilitate SOSH, it is not necessary for SOSH victims to be in a place of inferiority with respect to their aggressor. As is the case with firstdegree violence, the lack of support from people in the environment can facilitate the perpetration of SOSH, especially given the lack of regulations and action on the part of institutions. The reactions of people in the environment are similar to those that occur in the face of first-order violence. Among the elements that can help predict such intervention, the fear of possible reprisals plays an important role. According to the results of this research, when deciding whether to help a victim of SOSH, of particular relevance is the power or status of the person perpetrating the violence and, in the case of violence occurring within the framework of an institution, the public positioning that the institution itself has shown in previous cases (Flecha, 2021).
To date, only one piece of legislation in the world has contemplated this form of violence: Law 17/2020, enacted on December 22 nd , 2020 (it amended Law 5/2008), on women's right to eradicate male violence, and approved unanimously by the Catalan Parliament (Vidu, Tomás & Flecha, 2021). Following their example, other institutions, such as universities, aware of the need to also address SOSH to achieve effective results against violence, have begun to incorporate it into their regulations. This is the case for the Equality Plan of the University of Girona, approved in April 2020.
Despite all this, there are no quantitative data on SOSH to inform us about its true incidence. We only found the two qualitative investigations (Flecha, 2021;Vidu et al., 2017) mentioned above, which provide detailed descriptions of the perpetration of SOSH.

Methodology
This article is part of the second phase of the R+D+i research project "SOL.NET: Solidarity Networks with impact on the recovery processes of women victims of gender-based violence" (Melgar, 2019(Melgar, -2021. The specific goal of this phase was to analyze elements that hinder and promote citizens' support for female victims of gender-based violence, and/or their involvement in solidarity initiatives that fulfill this function. To respond to this goal, we carried out a quantitative study. We administered a survey to 1541 Spaniards over 18 years of age (49% men, 51% women). We used a multistage sampling procedure, with selection of the primary sampling units (autonomous communities) and of the final units (individuals) and quotas of sex and age. Regarding the sampling error, for a confidence level of 95% (two sigmas) and P=Q, the real error is 2.5% for the entire sample under the assumption of simple random sampling.
We prepared the questionnaire from the scientific literature previously reviewed, specifically 272 documents, of which we used 52 (Melgar, Campdepadrós, Fuentes & Mut, 2021). The questionnaire contains 32 questions distributed in 8 blocks. Of the 8 blocks, 3 ask directly how the respondents reacted to the last case of gender-based violence they were told about or witnessed, as well as how they have reacted in general throughout their lives with respect to all cases they have been told about or witnessed. In this regard, we studied the characteristics of the cases and the elements that encouraged or hindered the respondents from offering help (or not). Finally, we also examined whether the respondents provided help, and if so, the type of help they offered. Results

Gender-based violence explained and witnessed: How do people react to these cases?
In line with the figures already pointed out by previous research, gender-based violence is ceasing to be a social problem that women hide from the rest of society (Ansara & Hindi, 2010; European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2014). In the case of our research, throughout their lives, 68% of the respondents have been told about and/or witnessed a case of gender-based violence. More specifically, 61% affirmed that throughout their lives, someone has explained to them, out of concern or fear, that he/she was suffering from a situation of gender-based violence, and 53% have seen a situation in which a woman was experiencing gender-based violence. These data not only refer to the breaking of silence on the part of women, but also point to their willingness to seek help when these situations are explained. Although the fact that gender-based violence is no longer a silenced reality is a necessary step for its identification and intervention, the responses of people who are aware of it are critical (Cook-Craig et al., 2014;Goodman et al. 2016). Out of those who took part in our study, regarding the set of cases that have been explained to them and/or that they have witnessed throughout their lives, 64% stated that they helped in all cases; hence, 36% did not help in any case (5%), and in some situations, the respondents helped, while in others they did not (31%). When asked specifically about the last case witnessed or explained to them, according to their answers, their offers to help increased. Regarding the most recent situation in which someone explained to them, out of concern or fear, that he/she was suffering from a situation of gender-based violence, 87% said they had offered help and/or looked for someone who could help. Regarding the last time they had witnessed a situation of gender-based violence, 76% said they had helped and/or looked for someone who could help. As such, throughout their lives, to a greater extent, the respondents recognized not having helped in some cases.
The share of those who have not helped in a situation of gender-based violence in their lifetime (36%) is similar to what we found when we asked the respondents how they think most of the people around them would react if they knew about a situation of gender-based violence; 31% believe that most people around them would not intervene, although in some cases they would want to.
However, we must be cautious when interpreting these data, since to truly know if this help has been produced and has been effective, it is necessary to listen to the victims who have received it. We have already seen, in previous research, that according to female victims of violence, the proportion of women who have received help from family and friends is approximately 35% (García-Hernández, Hernández-Sánchez & García-Martínez, 2020; Government Delegation against Gender Violence, 2019; European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2014). Further, 40% of women have not been helped by anyone (Fanslow & Robinson, 2010). In our research, we will collect the voice of the women themselves in future phases through qualitative techniques. Although our questionnaire did not gather information on the help that victims claim to have received or not, we did examine the perceptions of people who have suffered from gender-based violence regarding the possible reactions of the people around them. Specifically, regarding how they think the people around them would react if they knew about a situation of genderbased violence, 46% believe they would not intervene or would want to intervene but would not do so.

First Quantitative Evidence of Second-Order Sexual Harassment: A Barrier Limiting the Spread of Solidarity Networks
Based on the relevance of help from the people around victims in addressing gender-based violence, as well as extending solidarity networks (Melgar, Campdepadrós, Fuentes & Mut, 2021), it is essential to understand the reasons that prevent progress in overcoming gender-based violence in relation to such help (Flecha, 2021).
To this end, we examined the incidence of the reasons identified in scientific literature that lead to people not helping in cases that are explained to them or that they have witnessed. Previously identified motives include being afraid of possible reprisals, consequences, and attacks; in case they also International and Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Sciences 41 received some kind of attack, reprisal... no one would help them; not having enough knowledge of the subject matter; not believing the situation is true; thinking the situation is not serious or important; the fact that the aggressor is a relative, friend, or acquaintance; and that the woman who has suffered from violence is not a person close to them (Banyard & Moynihan, 2011;Flecha, 2021;Jouriles et al., 2017;Kania & Cale, 2018;Liebst, Heinskou & Ejbye-Ernst, 2018;McMahon et al., 2017;van Reemst, Fischer & WC Zwirs, 2015). When answering these questions, multiple responses were given (i.e., respondents could check as many reasons as they wanted); therefore, the categories outlined below may total more than 100%.
40% of people who did not help in some cases of gender-based violence that they witnessed or that were explained to them did not do so out of fear of experiencing SOSH and/or defenselessness against SOSH, specifically, "fear of possible retaliation, consequences, and attacks" and/or "if I were also attacked or retaliated against in some way, no one would help me"-. More specifically, with respect to the most recent case that was explained to them and for which they did not offer help, the reason given in a higher percentage was "I did not have enough knowledge about the subject matter" (41%). However, the next two most cited reasons also refer to SOSH ("if I were also attacked or retaliated against in some way, no one would help me" [19%] and "I was afraid of possible retaliation, consequences, and attacks" [17%]). These two reasons were the main ones given by those who, in the most recent case they witnessed, did not help. Both reasons were given equally by 20%. Therefore, SOSH is the primary reason for not intervening in situations of gender-based violence.
In turn, SOSH is why the respondents believed that the people around them would not intervene. Specifically, 64% thought that the people around them who would not offer help would not do so for fear of the potential consequences.
On the other hand, 19% of the cases of gender-based violence that the respondents witnessed or had explained to them occurred within the framework of a sporadic relationship. In 24% of such cases, no one intervened to help the woman at the time of aggression or afterwards. In this regard, the most important reasons for not intervening were "they thought it was not serious or important" (49%), "they were afraid of possible reprisals, consequences, attacks... that they might receive because of helping her" (45%) and "if they were also attacked or retaliated against in some way, no one would help them" (22%). Once again, in our study as a whole, SOSH became an important inhibitor for people to assist women experiencing gender-based violence. In some cases I helped and in others I did not 5% I did not help in any case 31% I believe that most people around me would not intervene if they knew about a case.

Are they getting help? Responses from the victims 25%
Victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) who did not dare tell anyone (Fanslow & Robinson, 2010). 75% Victims of IPV who told at least one person (Fanslow & Robinson, 2010). 40% Victims of IPV who were not helped by anyone (Fanslow & Robinson, 2010). 42% Victims of GBV who believe that if people around them knew about a case, they would not intervene (Melgar, 2019(Melgar, -2021. 35% Victims of physical or sexual violence whose family and friends helped them overcome the violence (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2014). 36% Victims of violence who suffered at the hands of their current partner in response to those who helped them (this help being understood as ad ising the ictim to lea e the relationship Government Delegation against Gender Violence, 2019).
In contrast, when we intervene against SOSH, this intervention becomes an important driver to activate support for victims. In our research, among people who have helped a woman in a situation of gender-based violence or asserted that, if they knew about a situation, they would help, the reasons that led them to take this stance include "I believe it is our duty as citizens" (67%) and "knowing that if I suffered reprisals, they would also help me" (43%). These reasons were considered more important than knowing about services or having been exposed to awareness campaigns.

Is the Work to Raise Awareness and Train on Gender-Based Violence Combating SOSH?
Although our results do not allow us to completely answer this question, the information obtained in our questionnaire permitted us to reflect on the initial data. We will provide new evidence in future phases of our research. Of those who participate or work in any association, social movement, or public resource that works directly or indirectly against gender-based violence-and/or know of any association or public resource in their municipality, and/or have received information, through publicity campaigns, training courses, and talks on what to do and/or how to intervene in cases of gender-based violence, but have not intervened in any cases of gender-based violence that have been explained to them or that they have witnessed-44% cited SOSH as one reason why they did not intervene. This figure indicates that the link with this type of resource does not always make people feel protected by SOSH. This outcome invites us to look more deeply into the work being carried out by different associations and resources to prevent SOSH, as well as its impact.

Conclusions
Gender-based violence is ceasing to be a hidden problem; 68% of the participants affirmed they have witnessed or been told about a situation of gender-based violence in their lifetime. Although, among these people, we observed a high tendency where they consider that they have helped in cases of gender-based violence (64% say they have helped in all cases throughout their lives), this figure should be contrasted and discussed with other data that involve the opinions of victims about the help they have received. In this regard, previous research reveals that despite reporting and seeking help, women are not receiving it, or the help they do receive does not aid them in their recovery process.
However, citizens in general can provide us with relevant information on the reasons that make it easier or more difficult for them to support victims. In this sense, the fear of suffering second-order sexual harassment (SOSH) and of being defenseless in the face of this form of violence plays a relevant role. 40% of the people who have not helped during their lives in any cases of gender-based violence that they have witnessed or had explained to them have not done so for fear of becoming victims of SOSH. 64% percent believe that the people around them who would not offer help would not do so for fear of these consequences. In turn, intervening to prevent or address SOSH is a driving force in encouraging help in cases of gender-based violence; 43% of people who have helped a woman in a situation of gender-based violence or asserted, if they knew of a situation, they would help, pointed out, as one of the main reasons that led them to take this position, "knowing that if I suffered reprisals -SOSH-, I would also receive help." Although previous research has already identified the existence of SOSH, this article presents, for the first time, evidence that this form of violence conditions the interventions of witnesses. The interventions of witnesses are conditioned by the fear of becoming victimized as well. Hence, in order for the sensitization work carried out with the community to have an impact and enhance its intervention, it will be necessary to activate mechanisms to prevent SOSH. Otherwise, it is possible that some potential supporters will be dissuaded from helping. If we do not act to protect them, it will be difficult to extend informal support networks to victims of genderbased violence.
Our results also contribute to the approach to community training. There is often a tendency to present the lack of identification of gender-based violence as the chief reason why women do not receive support. Our results indicate that more than half of the population has identified cases of violence in their environment. With this, we can deduce that the lack of intervention does not always result from a lack of identification of violence, but to fear of possible negative consequences and retaliation (i.e., SOSH).
We will continue to explore other aspects that condition reactions to cases of violence, identifying in particular the elements that facilitate support and solidarity with victims. Our results demonstrate that one primary motive that drives people to help in situations of gender-based violence is the knowledge that if they were to suffer from retaliation, they would also receive help.
As past research has shown, there is a need to work further and deeper with the community to ensure that family and friends are able to provide adequate support to women seeking help. Notwithstanding, we must also ask why people do not provide help. In turn, to understand the true extent of help received in cases of violence, it is necessary to listen to the women themselves. In this way, we will go from grasping the general community's perception of their reactions to knowing if the women truly felt they received help and, even more importantly, if the help was effective.