Who Are the Mavens of Bystander Intervention? Implications for the Social Diffusion of Intervention Norms

A recent randomized controlled trial reported that Green Dot (GD)—a bystander intervention training program that targets popular opinion leaders for intensive training—reduced school-level interpersonal violence perpetration and victimization. Expanding GD’s targeted group members to include “mavens” of bystander intervention—those who spread bystander intervention norms to others by communicating with peers—may increase the effectiveness of such training. Self-report data collected from students at the 13 intervention high schools in Kentucky are analyzed to identify characteristics of those who engage in discussions with peers about preventing interpersonal violence. Findings show that students who engage in more frequent bystander behaviors are more likely to have such conversations with peers, but GD participants were no more likely than nonparticipants to discuss preventing interpersonal violence with peers

Less Safe in the Ivory Tower: Campus Sexual Assault Policy in the Trump Administration

Since the late 20th century, the federal government has regulated colleges’ and universities’ handling of campus sexual and gender-based violence (CSGBV). Although the arc of history has bent toward establishing greater protections for victims of such violence, new proposed regulation by the U.S. Department of Education under the Trump administration focuses more heavily on ensuring due process rights for students accused of CSGBV. Most recently, in November 2018, U.S. Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos submitted a proposed rule change to the regulation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. This article provides the historical context for this most recent proposed federal regulation of CSGBV and discusses the criticism of this proposal that, if it is implemented, students would become less safe in the ivory tower

The Application of Bystander Intervention Scripts: Implications for Guardianship in Action

Responding to high rates of interpersonal victimization and perpetration among adolescents, schools have implemented bystander intervention (BI) training to educate students to intervene to prevent or stop violence. These trainings function much like an application of scripts for guardianship in action. The current study builds on the overlapping and complementary bodies of BI and routine activities research by testing whether participation in BI training, namely Green Dot (GD), influences individuals’ underlying ability to intervene. Using four years of survey data collected from high school students (N = 2,374–3,443), we use item response theory to model the difficulty of engaging in different BI behaviors. We then estimate multivariate ordinary least squares regression models, one for each year, to estimate the effect of GD training on students’ ability to intervene. The item response theory results show that BI behaviors differ in terms of how “difficult” they are for respondents to engage in. Findings show that in each year, GD training increased students’ underlying ability to intervene. Our findings suggest BI training and guardianship in action scripts should take into account this varying difficulty of intervention behaviors to best train individuals for successful intervention to prevent victimization

Does Change in Binge Drinking Reduce Risk of Repeat Sexual Assault Victimization? Evidence From Three Cohorts of Freshman Undergraduate Women

Many college students who experience sexual assault experience subsequent (i.e., repeat) sexual assault incidents. There is also an established relationship between sexual assault and binge drinking. The “once bitten, twice shy” (OBTS) hypothesis suggests that those who experience alcohol- or drugrelated (AOD) sexual assault would reduce how frequently they binge drink in an effort to avoid repeat victimization. We test this hypothesis by analyzing two years of survey data collected from a panel of three cohorts of freshmen women. Supportive of OBTS, our analyses reveal that students who experienced an AOD-related sexual assault at time 1 only reduced the number of days they binge drank from time 1 to time 2 and that this change significantly differed from repeat victims. Implications for efforts to reduce sexual victimization against college women are discussed

Public Opinion about Punishment and Corrections

Get tough control policies in the United States are often portrayed as the reflection of the public\u27s will: Americans are punitive and want offenders locked up. Research from the past decade both reinforces and challenges this assessment. The public clearly accepts, if not prefers, a range of punitive policies (e.g., capital punishment, three-strikes-and-you\u27re-out laws, imprisonment). But support for get-tough policies is mushy. Thus citizens may be willing to substitute a sentence of life imprisonment without parole for the death penalty. Especially when nonviolent offenders are involved, there is substantial support for intermediate sanctions and for restorative justice. Despite three decades of criticism, rehabilitation-particularly for the young-remains an integral part of Americans\u27 correctional philosophy. There is also widespread support for early intervention programs. In the end, the public shows a tendency to be punitive and progressive, wishing the correctional system to achieve the diverse missions of doing justice, protecting public safety, and reforming the wayward

College Students\u27 Crime-Related Fears on Campus: Are Fear-Provoking Cues Gendered?

Gender plays a central role in the study of crime-related fear as does the description of various fear-provoking cues in the environment. Despite the ever-growing body of crime-related fear research, few researchers have examined which fear-provoking cues, if any, are gendered. Using a large sample of undergraduates from a public university, this article explores the gendered nature of fear-provoking cues and crime-related fears while on campus. Bivariate and multivariate results suggest that fear-provoking cues are not gendered for fear of larceny-theft or fear of assault. These results inform the fear of crime research on a number of dimensions and have implications for future research

A New Frontier: The Development and Validation of the Intimate Partner Cyber Abuse Instrument

As technology advances, new opportunities for partners to gain power and control in their romantic relationships are readily available. New cyber-based behaviors have slowly garnered scholarly attention, but measurement-related issues have not. We take the logical next steps to (1) develop and validate a comprehensive measure of intimate partner cyber abuse (IPCA) for adults using classical test theory and item response theory and (2) estimate IPCA prevalence rate for a range of relationship types. A sample of 1,500 adults, currently in an intimate partner relationship, 18 years or older, and living in the United States, completed an online questionnaire about their IPCA experiences within the 6 months prior. Two parameter logistic modeling and confirmatory factor analyses revealed a five-dimensional structure: cyber direct aggression, cyber sexual coercion, cyber financial control, cyber control, and cyber monitoring, with 14.85% of the sample experiencing at least one dimension. These IPCA dimensions were examined for differential functioning across gender identity, race, student status, and relationship type. Collectively, the findings have implications for IPCA measurement and related research, including theoretically derived hypotheses whose findings can inform prevention

They Were There for People Who Needed Them : Student Attitudes Toward the Use of Trigger Warnings in Victimology Classrooms

Over the last five years, vigorous debate has been waged about the purpose, use, and impact of trigger warnings in courses offered at institutions of higher education. This debate has been largely uninformed by research findings. This study fills this gap using quantitative and qualitative data collected via surveys in a large undergraduate victimology course to explore student attitudes toward trigger warnings. Findings revealed considerable, but nuanced support for trigger warning use in victimology courses. Support does not appear to differ between crime victims and non-victims; support is higher among females than males. These findings underscore that universal decisions mandating or advocating for or against the use of trigger warnings are premature. Further study is needed with a diverse range of samples to gain a fuller picture of student attitudes about trigger warnings as well as to assess any impact of trigger warnings use on student behavior and learning

Implementing Sexual Violence Primary Prevention Programs: A Case Study of Implementer Perspectives

Sexual violence prevention programs are important for addressing sexual violence and are often implemented in local community and university settings. However, program implementer perspectives are often missing from academic research literature, limiting access to practical knowledge that can provide insights to improving programs and prevention. This study illustrates the landscape of sexual violence primary prevention work in a Midwestern metropolitan area. Seven interviews with community and university implementers took place in 2020, providing information about local prevention programs and expert insights to community prevention culture. Geographic data about implementation locations was also collected to visually assess coverage of preventive services and confirm that the major sub-areas of the metropolitan area were represented by this research. Interviews provided descriptions of local programs implemented with adolescents and young adults which usually took place in school or university settings and focused on healthy relationships. Capacity was most often cited as a challenge faced internally, whereas broader outer contexts may inhibit or support prevention externally. Findings capture the perspectives of sexual violence prevention program implementers, including discussion of tensions related to adaptation versus fidelity and how implementation contexts specific to this programming may influence implementation