A Critical Analysis of Secondary Victims' Preferred Method of Reporting Crime in a South African Township

ABSTRACT Digital communication has facilitated freedom of expression in various contexts worldwide. Digitalized communication is a form of expression that has become the norm worldwide despite cybercrime and other challenges. Communication preferences for social media determine attitudes to reporting crime. Factors such as policy failures, geographic location, and socio‐economic status have significantly discouraged victims from reporting crimes to the police in South Africa. Gender differences in access to mobile technology and the internet are pronounced in sub‐Saharan African countries. Many women in low‐income countries do not own a mobile phone. Apparently, South Africa’s actual gender‐based violence statistics are unknown due to underreporting. The purpose of the study was to examine the perceptions of secondary victims of gender‐based violence to determine their preferred method of reporting gender‐based violence, their perceptions of safety residing in close proximity of a police station, and their perceptions of the manual recording of witness statements by the Police. A purposive sampling technique was used to recruit 45 secondary victims of gender‐based violence residing within 2 km of the nine police stations in Soweto Township. Interview schedules were administered to participants. Ethical considerations were adhered to, and the trustworthiness criteria were applied. Thematic content analysis on Atlas ti yielded three dominant themes, namely, digital communication, mobile application, and unsafe. The Mere Exposure Effect, which posits that repeated exposure to a stimulus leads to familiarity and liking, was used to interpret data. Findings showed that participants preferred reporting crime through social media and felt unsafe despite living near a police station.