Projects per year
Personal profile
SUMMARY of research interests (100 words)
Siobhan's research interests are focused in the areas of criminal law and criminal justice. Her research explores the socio-legal responses to, and experiences of, male survivors of sexual violence. She is currently leading an ESRC funded project examining jury decision making in cases of rape and sexual abuse involving male victims.
Siobhan is also interested in the socio-legal responses to women who commit serious offences, including homicide and sexual violence.
Research Grants
Siobhan is currently leading (2023-2026) an ESRC funded research project (£438,635), examining jury decision making in cases of rape and sexual abuse involving male victims. Dr Dominic Willmott at Loughborough University is Co-I on this project.
Between 2020-2021, Siobhan co-led the JiCSAV (Justice in Covid-19 for Sexual Abuse and Violence) research project which identified the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on sexual offences cases within the criminal justice system, as well as exploring innovations in policy and practice of value for the duration of the pandemic and beyond. This research was funded by the ESRC-UKRI Covid-19 Rapid Response Fund (£213,785).
In 2018-2019, Siobhan conducted the first study in the UK on ‘forced-to-penetrate’ cases, interviewing male survivors about their experiences of this form of sexual violence. She was awarded funding from the British Academy to support this work (£9,987).
Research Interests
Criminal law and criminal justice (sexual offences, homicide, domestic abuse), gender (masculinities, femininities, gender and crime, gender theories) and criminal legal and criminological theories
Current Teaching
Siobhan convenes the third year optional module Law314 Sex Crimes and Sexual Offending. She also teaches on Law 101x/y English Legal System and Methods.
Additional Information
Siobhan is Director of Engagement in the Law School.
Web Links
X: @SiobhanWeare https://twitter.com/SiobhanWeare
Keywords
- Law and society
- Criminal Law
- Female Offenders
- Crime and Society
- Sexual Offences
- Criminal Legal Theory
- Gender and Law
- Male victims
- Criminal Justice System
- Gender
- Men and masculinities
- Women and femininities
- Criminology
- Legal theory
User-defined keywords
- Criminal Law
- Gender and the Law
- Forced-to-penetrate cases
- Criminal justice
- Legal Theory
- Sexual Offences
- Female Offenders
- Male Victims
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Trial by gender? Examining jury decision making in cases of rape and sexual abuse involving male victims
Weare, S. (Principal Investigator), Millar, M. (Research Associate) & Willmott, D. (Co-Investigator)
1/09/23 → 29/05/26
Project: Research
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COVID-19: Impact of Covid-19 on criminal justice journeys of adult and child survivors of sexual violence and abuse
Weare, S. (Principal Investigator)
20/11/20 → 20/05/22
Project: Research
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JiCSAV: Justice in Covid-19 for Sexual Abuse and Violence: Impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on criminal justice journeys of adult and child survivors of sexual abuse, rape, and sexual assault
Weare, S. (Co-Investigator) & Hudspith, L. (Research Associate)
20/11/20 → 19/05/22
Project: Research
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Understanding public perceptions of male survivors of sexual violence
Weare, S. (Principal Investigator) & Willmott, D. (Co-Investigator)
2/11/20 → 31/01/22
Project: Research
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National Male Survivors Helpline: Review of data
Weare, S. (Principal Investigator)
1/02/19 → 31/03/20
Project: Research
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Jury Decision Making in Cases of Male Rape - Policy Briefing
Weare, S., Millar, M. & Willmott, D., 20/11/2025, 2 p.Research output: Book/Report/Proceedings › Other report
Open AccessFile3 Downloads (Pure) -
Mock-jurors' determinations of guilt in sexual offences involving male victims: A systematic review
Millar, M., Weare, S. & Willmott, D., 24/07/2025, (Accepted/In press) In: Trauma, Violence, and Abuse.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open AccessFile27 Downloads (Pure) -
The English Legal System
Gillespie, A. & Weare, S., 20/08/2025, 10th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 784 p.Research output: Book/Report/Proceedings › Book
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The Forced-to-Penetrate Myth Acceptance Scale (FTP-MAS): A new attitudinal tool for assessing myths that surround female perpetrated sexual violence against men
Weare, S. & Willmott, D., 28/02/2025, In: Behavioral Sciences and the Law. 43, 1, p. 158-168 11 p.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open AccessFile75 Downloads (Pure) -
Validating the Male Rape Myth Scale - Shortened Version (MRMS-SV): Examining Melanson’s original factorial structure among a large nationally representative sample of the UK
Weare, S. & Willmott, D., 25/04/2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: The Journal of Men’s Studies.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open AccessFile66 Downloads (Pure)
Activities
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Jury decision making in male rape trials
Weare, S. (Invited speaker)
15/08/2025Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
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Research cited in Law Commission's ‘Evidence in Sexual Offence Prosecutions: A consultation paper’ final report
Weare, S. (Contributor) & Willmott, D. (Contributor)
22/07/2025Activity: Expert Knowledge and Consultancy types › Non-governmental organization
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Jury decision making in male rape trials
Weare, S. (Invited speaker) & Millar, M. (Invited speaker)
11/07/2025Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
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Trial by Gender: Jury Decision Making in Male Rape Trials. Stream One: Preliminary Findings
Weare, S. (Keynote speaker), Millar, M. (Keynote speaker) & Willmott, D. (Keynote speaker)
05/2025Activity: Talk or presentation types › Business Course/Training
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Cited in Public Account Committee 'Crown Courts Backlog' Report
Weare, S. (Contributor), Hudspith, L. (Contributor), O'Doherty, L. (Contributor), Munro, V. (Contributor), Sleath, E. (Contributor), Carter, G. (Contributor), Brown, S. (Contributor) & Cutland, M. (Contributor)
5/03/2025Activity: Expert Knowledge and Consultancy types › Parliament
Prizes
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Research Impact Award - Lancaster University Staff Awards 2021
Weare, S. (Recipient), 06/2021
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
Press/Media
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Radio interview with BBC Radio Lancashire and BBC Radio Cumbria
5/05/25
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Research
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Sexual abuse: Huge rise in survivors seeking support as Covid pandemic unleashed hidden traumas
4/10/21
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Newspaper Article
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Male sex abuse victims lack support, study finds
29/01/20
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Newspaper Article