‘We work in the grey around decision making’; how ‘thematic discretion’ can help understand police decision-making in cases of youth image-based sexual abuse

Dhir, Alishya

Abstract

In this paper, I argue that a new term, ‘thematic discretion’, can help us understand police decision-making in cases of youth image-based sexual abuse (YIBSA). YIBSA can be defined as harmful image-sharing practices amongst young people, inclusive of the non-consensual sharing of private sexual images, upskirting and cyberflashing, alongside other actions. I will be drawing on findings from a doctoral research project investigating YIBSA, which utilised a mixed methods approach, comprising of quantitative analysis of freedom of information requests from 40 police forces in England and Wales, as well as 26 qualitative interviews with police and non-police practitioners, also based within England and Wales. Research findings established that YIBSA is highly complicated, and as a result, police officers utilised discretion at a considerable rate, alongside crafting their own guidelines to direct their decision-making, which is argued to be steeped in sexist and victim-blaming narratives.

Citation

Dhir, A. (online). ‘We work in the grey around decision making’; how ‘thematic discretion’ can help understand police decision-making in cases of youth image-based sexual abuse. Policing and Society, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1080/10439463.2024.2378302

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 3, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jul 16, 2024
• Deposit Date: Aug 20, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 20, 2024
• Journal: Policing and Society
• Print ISSN: 1043-9463
• Electronic ISSN: 1477-2728
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Pages: 1-14
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10439463.2024.2378302
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2762669