Objective: Past research suggests students have differing definitions of sexual assault, violence and intimate partner violence (IPV). To adequately develop violence prevention efforts, it is important to examine how college students understand these terms and associated behaviours. The purpose of this study was to identify which behaviours are…

College-age women represent the highest-risk age group for intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization. Bystander prevention approaches (primarily developed to address sexual assault risk on college campuses), have quickly become the mainstay of primary prevention education for gender-based violence in these settings and have been applied to all…

Given high rates of relationship violence among adolescents, there is a need to understand variables that influence adolescents' helping behaviors to reduce risk for dating and sexual violence (reactive) and promote prevention before violence happens or risk factors are evident (proactive). The current paper examined individual and school…

Controversy surrounding sex discrimination and sexual misconduct in higher education has existed now for over 50 years. Title IX is the federal law banning sex discrimination in schools receiving federal funds. This Report examines the evolving understanding of sex discrimination in higher education over the years, as well as the mechanisms that…

The purpose of the present study was to examine the experiences of six bilingual Spanish-English speaking mental health professionals who facilitated groups using the Sí, Yo Puedo (translated in English as Yes, I Can) curriculum and program within a six-year period in two Midwestern states. Designed for immigrant Latinas, the main components of…

Background: Approximately 10% of U.S. high school-attending youth are physically abused by a dating partner each year. Many sequelae of dating violence have been documented, but the dating violence literature is lacking information about commercial sexual exploitation as a possible outcome of an abusive dating relationship. Conversely, scholarship…

This fact sheet presents questions and answers related to teen dating violence in the United States. It defines teen dating violence, describes the extent of teen dating violence in U.S. schools, how teen dating violence affects our schools, and things schools can do to help. This fact sheet also contains resources and publications for further…

Objective: Despite extensive efforts to develop sexual assault prevention programs for college women, few have been rigorously evaluated, and fewer have demonstrable effects on victimization. This study pilots the Dating Assertiveness Training Experience (DATE), designed to train young women in assertiveness skills for responding to sexual…

This study evaluated the effects of a sexual victimization history and the contextual features of sexual activity and alcohol use on the effectiveness of women's responses to 44 written vignettes describing diverse dating and social situations. One hundred and one undergraduate women reported their history of sexual victimization and provided…

Though research has examined risk factors associated with street victimization among homeless young people, little is known about dating violence experiences among this group. Given homeless youths' elevated rates of child maltreatment, it is likely that they are at high risk for dating violence. As such, the current study examined the association…

In 2011-2013, a qualitative exploratory study was conducted to examine the experiences of 36 immigrant Latina women who participated in a culturally specific 11-week curriculum--Sí Yo Puedo--in a psycho-educational group format. Using action research as a research design, four groups were conducted over a 2-year period at a community health clinic…

Adolescent females under Child Protective Services care in Quebec, Canada (n = 328) completed a questionnaire designed to explore associations between prior victimization (childhood sexual abuse and four forms of dating violence) and four dimensions of sexual and contraceptive self-efficacy. Five MANCOVAs were performed. In each model, a…

Despite growing evidence suggesting that women engage in verbal and physical dating aggression, there is a dearth of research examining the predictors of women's engagement in these behaviors. Utilizing a college sample, the purpose of the current study was to explore women's perpetration of dating aggression within the context of victimization…

The primary purpose of this investigation was to assess the convergent validities of two measures of dating behaviors related to risk for sexual victimization, the Dating Self-Protection Against Rape Scale (DSPARS) and the Dating Behavior Survey (DBS). Three hundred seventy-seven women responded to measures assessing self-protective dating…

Content and thematic analyses were used to examine women's written responses to a hypothetical attempted sexual assault. A community sample (N=371) participated in an experiment examining the effects of alcohol on sexual assault resistance. Women received a high-dose alcohol, low-dose alcohol, placebo, or control beverage and then projected…