Journal
JOURNAL OF INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE
Volume 37, Issue 5-6, Pages 2510-2534Publisher
SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC
DOI: 10.1177/0886260520934437
Keywords
disclosure of domestic violence; sexual assault; dating violence; domestic violence
Funding
- National Institute of Health (NIH) [5R34AA024849-03]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
This study evaluated an intervention aimed at improving positive social reactions to disclosures of sexual assault and partner violence among college students. The intervention showed effectiveness in increasing intentions for positive social reactions, but did not result in overall differences in actual social reactions provided. Moderation analyses indicated that the intervention was more effective for certain groups of students.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate an intervention (Supporting Survivors and Self[SSS]) created to increase positive social reactions and decrease negative social reactions to sexual assault and partner violence disclosures among informal support disclosure recipients. Participants were 1,268 college students from a medium-sized New England university who completed an online baseline survey and were assigned to either the treatment or control condition. The SSS intervention trained potential informal supports on what to say and not to say to disclosure recipients. Six months after the SSS intervention, participants in both conditions completed the follow-up survey online. Although intentions to provide positive social reactions significantly increased among participants in the treatment group compared with the control group and there were marginally significant effects in the anticipated directions for alcohol-specific intended social reactions, no overall difference was observed across conditions in actual social reactions provided. Moderation analyses suggested that, in general, the SSS intervention was more effective on various outcomes for students who were younger, male, non-White, sexual minorities, and/or non-victims. Moderation analyses also suggested that the intervention varied in efficacy depending on the circumstances of the disclosure. Despite the mixed outcomes of the SSS intervention, these data suggest that the SSS intervention was effective in improving social reactions for some students and under some circumstances. Future research is needed to further refine the SSS intervention to bolster its effectiveness in reducing negative social reactions and increasing positive social reactions for all students.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available