Do you believe her and is it real rape?

Rape is a unique crime insofar as there is both a psychological and physical violation of victims independent corraboration may not be available and the conviction rate is very low. Rape is also a paradoxical crime. Allegations of rape are often contested. As Stanko amd Williams point out in their chapter the disctinction between criminal and legal sex are cloudy and the difference sufficeient to warrant the deprivation of liberty is judged through scrutiny of the consent of the victim rather than the behaviour of the man. To be labelled either a rapist or a liar is highly stigmatising, yet there is a public perception that the greater harm may be done to a man wrongly called a rapist than to a woman wrongly called a lior. The data revealed show that the more vulnerable victims who might reasonably expect the protection of the law actually fare worse and are least likely to have their cases presented in court. When we initiated our seminar series we looked at theories, methods, substatntive findings and practical application in relation to rape. The chapters in this edited volume reflect and supplement the discussions. The autjhors have bought together a number of conceptualisations and formulations when thinking about and claiming sexual assault and rape. The final chapter will offer some reflections on these ideas and approaches and suggest an agenda for action derived from the presented in the books contributions