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01-05-2019 | Rape

Evaluation of a Bystander-Focused Interpersonal Violence Prevention Program with High School Students

Authors: Katie M. Edwards, Victoria L. Banyard, Stephanie N. Sessarego, Emily A. Waterman, Kimberly J. Mitchell, Hong Chang

Published in: Prevention Science | Issue 4/2019

Abstract

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a seven-session, bystander-focused, classroom-delivered curriculum (i.e., Bringing in the Bystander—High School Curriculum [BITB-HSC]) in reducing rates of interpersonal violence among high school students. High schools (N = 26) were randomly assigned to the treatment or control condition. In classrooms in treatment schools, students (n = 1081) completed a baseline survey, participated in the BITB-HSC, and completed an immediate post-test, a short-term post-test (approx. 2 months after intervention), and a long-term post-test (approx. 1 year after intervention). Youth in control schools (n = 1322) completed surveys at similar time points but did not participate in the BITB-HSC. Participants were 15.8 years old on average and largely White (85.1%) and heterosexual (84.5%). Students exposed to the BITB-HSC demonstrated significant short-term changes in victim empathy and bystander barriers/facilitators, and long-term changes in rape myths, media literacy, bystander readiness, and knowledge relative to youth in the control condition. Although the BITB-HSC had little long-term impact on actual bystander behavior, there were reductions in some forms of violence among students in the BITB-HSC condition relative to the control condition. Future research is needed to determine if, for whom, why, and in what contexts (e.g., classroom-based versus school-wide initiatives) bystander-focused violence prevention initiatives reduce violence.

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The starting sample was 4069, but we removed 665 cases (16.34%) due to an inability to match surveys across time points (n = 625, 15.36%; which would mean that a single participant would be in the dataset as different participant across time points or only took the survey once [e.g., due to absence]), two or more mischievous responses (n = 31, .76%; e.g., wrote in impossible demographics [e.g., age 3], wrote or drew lewd comments and figures, etc.) and/or extreme responses (n = 6, .15%; e.g., indicated the highest possible response on two or more measures, answering yes to every victimization/perpetration question, saying they intervened every time, etc.), and/or transferring from a treatment to control school or vice versa (n = 3, .07%; and thus concerns about contamination). Participants excluded from the final sample had a significantly higher proportion of non-White and/or Hispanic, male, sexual minority, older, impoverished students than other students. We also removed 1001 participants who were surveyed but were not part of the randomized controlled trial (i.e., students in treatment schools who did not receive the program).

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Title: Evaluation of a Bystander-Focused Interpersonal Violence Prevention Program with High School Students
Authors: Katie M. Edwards
Victoria L. Banyard
Stephanie N. Sessarego
Emily A. Waterman
Kimberly J. Mitchell
Hong Chang
Publication date: 01-05-2019
Publisher: Springer US
Keyword: Rape
Published in: Prevention Science / Issue 4/2019
Print ISSN: 1389-4986
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6695
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-019-01000-w

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