"Coming out of the closet about sexual assault": Intersectional sexual assault stigma and (non) disclosure to formal support providers among survivors using Reddit.

Sexual assault is a pervasive, violent and often gendered crime that can result in significant negative consequences. Many sexual assault survivors consider disclosing to health and social care providers, therapists, and others who collectively fall under the banner of formal support, in order to access information, referrals, treatment and/or emotional support, however barriers to disclosure remain. This qualitative study is unique in its application of an intersectional sexual assault stigmatization framework to understand (non)disclosure to formal support providers among diverse sexual assault survivors. Through anonymous online narratives posted to the platform Reddit, survivors documented experiences of intersectional sexual assault stigma (perceived, internalized, anticipated, experienced) showing that they were not only stigmatized through negative gender stereotyping, but they were also marginalized through other structural inequities. The experience of multiple marginalization that arose from intersectional sexual assault stigma often impeded survivors in accessing and/or utilizing the formal support they wished for. The findings suggest that formal support providers could benefit from stigma reduction training related specifically to sexual assault survivors and that current models of stigma and discrimination training need to be expanded to include intersectional stigma. Further, the findings suggest that beyond training at an organizational level, a broader intervention aimed at reducing structural stigma and discrimination toward sexual assault survivors at a societal level appears warranted. Implications for future research related to the unique disclosure, health, and social care needs of diverse sexual assault survivors and support-seeking online alongside or in lieu of formal support are discussed.