Restorative justice in cases of sexual violence: Exploring the views of the public and survivors

This study aimed to fill a gap in the debate regarding the application of restorative justice (RJ) conferencing to sexual offences. This gap is currently characterized by absence of views expressed by survivors of sexual violence (Wager, 2013). The debate has largely occurred in an ‘empirical vacuum’ (McGlynn et al., 2012) and without the necessary consultation. This study consisted of a web-based survey of 121 community members, 40 of whom identified themselves as survivors of sexual violence. The findings indicate that both survivors and non-survivors of sexual violence express positive attitudes towards the use of restorative justice in these cases.