Addressing alcohol’s role in campus sexual assault: Prevention educator perspectives

Abstract

Objective

Alcohol use is implicated in 50 to 70% of campus sexual assaults (CSA). Despite research, practice, and policy guidance that campus prevention efforts should address alcohol’s role in CSA, there is limited guidance for prevention educators and administrators on how to actually do so. Participants: Campus-based sexual assault prevention educators (n = 23) were recruited between May and July 2017 from the Campus Advocacy and Prevention Professionals Association (CAPPA) listserv using purposive sampling. Methods: A qualitative study design using a critical feminist participatory action approach was used to conduct in-depth semi-structured phone interviews. Results: Participants described six key steps forward to address alcohol’s role in CSA (a) proactivity; (b) consistency; (c) nuance; (d) equity; and (e) authenticity. Conclusions: To address alcohol’s role in CSA, prevention educators need (a) concrete messaging, (b) evidence-based interventions, and (c) evaluation of campus culture change efforts.

Keywords:

• Rape
• sexual assault
• alcohol
• prevention
• health education

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank our study participants, expert advisory board, and the members and leadership council of the Campus Advocacy and Prevention Professionals Association. We are grateful to Sarah E. (Betsy) Bledsoe and Rebecca J. Macy for their support as we conceptualized this project and for their review of a previous version of this manuscript.

Conflicts of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States and received exemption from further review from the Institutional Review Board of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by an Innovative Research Award from the Prevention Innovations Research Center at the University of New Hampshire.