Faculty of Social Sciences

Girls are often told what they should do to stay safe: dress appropriately, avoid unsafe situations, say no clearly, make good choices and stay alert. But what happens when they do all of this and are still blamed when sexual violence occurs? That question is at the heart of research by Mythili Rajiva, professor in the Institute of Feminist and Gender Studies at the Faculty of Social Sciences. She studies how the possibility of sexual violence affects girls’ everyday lives — and why prevention must start with listening to them, not blaming them.