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“You go to the system and then the system works against you”: Survivors of sexual violence who were employed in the aid sector share their experiences
Linköping University, Department of Thematic Studies, The Department of Gender Studies.
2025 (English)Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (Two Years)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
Abstract [en]

Safeguarding mechanisms in the aid sector aim to prevent and respond to sexual violence, yet survivors’ experiences of reporting remain under-documented. This thesis examines how aid-sector workers decide whether to report, how they perceive organizational processes and outcomes, and the extent to which their needs are met. Using a mixed qualitative design, I conducted an anonymous online survey (n = 26) and three semi-structured interviews with staff who experienced workplace sexual violence. Reflexive thematic analysis, informed by feminist standpoint theory, intersectionality, and institutional betrayal/moral injury frameworks, guided interpretation. Findings show that decisions not to report were shaped by cumulative deterrents, anticipation of retaliation and disbelief, low trust in channels, power asymmetries, and emotional load. Among the 13 participants who reported, most described poor communication, limited or opaque investigations, minimal support, and persistent safety concerns; several experienced secondary harm from the handling itself. Positive experiences were rare but pointed to actionable practices: independent and confidential processes, regular communication, an immediate support bundle (psychosocial, legal, and safety planning), and active monitoring for retaliation. The study contributes survivor-centered, auditable benchmarks to evaluate safeguarding quality and argues for organizational “moral repair” when harm occurs.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2025. , p. 80
Keywords [en]
safeguarding, sexual violence, humanitarian, aid sector, NGO, victim, survivor-centered, trauma-informed, situated knowledge, PSEA, complaints mechanism, moral injury, institutional betrayal
National Category
Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities and Arts
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-221836ISRN: LIU-TEMA G/GSIC3-A-25/007-SEOAI: oai:DiVA.org:liu-221836DiVA, id: diva2:2044964
Subject / course
Gender Studies - Intersectionality and Change, Two Year
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Examiners
Available from: 2026-03-12 Created: 2026-03-11 Last updated: 2026-03-12Bibliographically approved

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CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

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Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • oxford
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf