Evaluation of the Effectiveness of a Sexual Assault Education Program Focusing on Psychological Barriers to Resistance

• NCJ Number: 209049
• Journal: Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 16 Issue: 5 Dated: May 2001 Pages: 387-407
• Author(s): Kimberly Hanson Breitenbecher; Michael Scarce
• Date Published: May 2001
• Length: 21 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study longitudinally evaluated the effectiveness of sexual assault prevention programs in reducing the psychological barriers to resistance among women.

Abstract

Sexual assault prevention programs have proliferated on college campuses across the country. While evaluations concerning the effectiveness of these programs have focused on the programs’ effects on various variables such as rape-supportive attitudes, few evaluations have focused on the effectiveness of these programs in reducing the actual incidence of sexual assault. The current study evaluated the effectiveness of a sexual assault risk-reduction education program in reducing the victimization risk of women. Participants were 94 women recruited from a university community. Participants were randomly assigned to a treatment or control group; those in the treatment group were enrolled in a 90-minute sexual assault risk-reduction program that focused mainly on acquaintance rape and overcoming the psychological barriers to resistance in sexual assault-threatening situations. Treatment group participants read vignettes describing sexual situations and were asked to imagine the emotions and cognitions they would experience in the same situation. Following the program, participants completed a variety of questionnaires measuring demographic information, previous prevention training, child sexual abuse history, sexual experience history, dating behavior, sexual communication, risk perception, and sexual assault knowledge. Participants returned for a 7-month follow-up and completed the same measures. Results indicated that the sexual assault risk-reduction education program was ineffective at influencing any of the outcome variables. These findings are consistent with previous sexual assault prevention program evaluations that found little long-term effectiveness in reducing the incidence of sexual assault. The findings underscore the importance of continued program evaluation so that effective programs may be identified and emulated. Appendix, notes, references