NCJ Number
139029
Date Published
1992
Length
4 pages
Annotation
The Protective Behaviors suicide prevention program in Melbourne, Australia, helps young people learn the skills to identify their personal vulnerabilities while devising strategies to protect themselves or seek help if unable to cope alone.
Abstract
The program is based on two internalized themes: that everyone has a right to always feel safe and that there is nothing so bad it cannot be discussed with another person. Safety, early warning signs, and networking are the three core concepts of the program. Protective Behaviors uses five strategies to practice these core concepts to the greatest effectiveness. Theme reinforcement is achieved through program repetition, posters, and stickers. The adolescent participants identify a personal network of trustworthy, helping adults to whom they can turn in times of stress and periodically review that network. The one step removed strategy allows participants to check out others' attitudes, obtain needed information, and avoid revictimization by disclosing their abuse publicly. Persistence expectation counteracts the adolescent's internalized feeling that failure is inevitable and can be used by adults in their advocacy for non-victimization. The final strategy, protective interrupting, is used to stop someone from self- disclosing in a context that would increase their victimization.