To address sexual assault on college campuses, many universities have adopted affirmative consent. Despite the adoption of these policies, there has been little research understanding the nuances of sexual consent. Drawing from sexual script theory, this study uses qualitative methodology to explore how college students understand sexual consent.…

Sexual assault has significant physical and psychological impacts on victims but remains underreported, especially in higher learning institutions. The primary aim of this study was to examine college and university students' knowledge and attitudes towards sexual assault disclosure protocols and procedures in the institutions. Students' knowledge…

Schools are required to have written policies regarding the handling of sexual misconduct cases, but little research has examined the content of these policies. This study explored the content of Title IX sexual misconduct policies for 200 universities in the U.S. specifically assessing if the content is in line with the Title IX regulations set…

Objective: This study examined students' perceptions of campus environmental factors related to bystander intentions and behaviors, and if intentions mediated the relationship between students' perceptions and behaviors. Participants: Participants were 274 students at a southern university who observed a situation they believed was, or could lead…

Hundreds of U.S. institutions of higher education have conducted campus climate surveys recently to assess students' experiences with sexual misconduct and perceptions of institutions' related policies and procedures. Many of these surveys were implemented in response to the recommendation by the 2014 White House Task Force to Protect Students…

Objective: Few studies have compared measures of sexual misconduct reporting, and there are few assessments of campus policies on reporting. Methods: Using data from New York institutions of higher education (IHEs) (N = 209) we compare the number of sexual misconduct incidents reported in Annual Security Reports (ASRs) and to Title IX…

The prevalence of sexual violence victimization on college campuses has varied by gender, sexual orientation, and ethnicity (Conley et al., 2017). Research has shown that sexual minorities have higher incidences of campus sexual violence compared to heterosexual students (Coulter et al., 2017). Black women reported higher incidences of campus…

Universities across the world have been increasingly focused on responding to campus sexual violence. Developing a response is complex and involves addressing policy, support for those impacted by sexual violence and prevention. This manuscript outlines the structure and development of the University of Otago's whole campus approach to sexual…

To respond to the epidemic of sexual assault on college campuses, many postsecondary institutions have instituted campus climate surveys, strengthened sexual assault misconduct policies, and created sexual assault task forces to coordinate entities "within" the institutional setting. However, few colleges and universities have engaged…

This study investigated the perceptions and attitudes students have regarding their decision to participate or not as witnesses in a southwest United States private university gender-based violence adjudication process. The study also investigated whether there was a relationship between students' decisions to participate and their gender, age,…

Addressing the widespread problem of sexual assault in college environments requires both prevention programming and policies addressing sexual misconduct in institutions of higher education. Through the Campus Sexual Assault Policy and Prevention Initiative, nine programs funded by the Office on Women's Health approached this problem within a…

Campus sexual violence activists (CSVAs) work to challenge their campuses by actively opposing rape culture, changing policies and practices, and educating their peers to prevent sexual violence. Despite renewed activism on campuses, little is known about how CSVAs conceive of their identities, and how their identities change through the…

Over the last few years, there have been some egregious examples of rape culture on college campuses that call into question the effectiveness of current sexual-assault policies. This article contains brief recaps of four recent events that took place at prominent American universities, drawn from a laundry list of contemporary examples. They…

Over the last decade, sexual violence in higher education has been a focus for colleges and universities, student activists, parents and families, and the media alike. As institutions responded to these complaints and students demanded action and accountability, it became clear there were too few resources available to address this issue.…

Seeking to improve university accountability and compliance with federal mandates, states are considering new reforms including mandating reporting of campus sexual assault allegations. These new policies remain an empirical "black box." To address these gaps, the current exploratory study draws upon a recent survey that examines the…