Abstract
This article examined the methodology used in the survey named “Perception of sexual violence and care of female victims by police institutions”, conducted in 2016 by the Brazilian Forum of Public Security. The results showed that this research has methodological limitations regarding sampling, statistical analysis, and formulation of items (e.g., lack of operationalization of constructs, ambiguity and unrealistic expectation regarding the knowledge of respondents), which compromise the legitimacy of its results. Future surveys conducted in Brazil in this field may benefit from the use of validated scales. This article does not attempt to discredit the idea that many Brazilians endorse tolerant attitudes toward rape. Instead, it emphasizes the need for reliable and valid data that must be the basis for intervention measures.
Keywords:
public opinion; sexual violence; methodology; validity; Brazil