A Qualitative Study of Sexual Violence Prevention Strategies that Engage Men and Boys Open Access

Abstract

Abstract

This qualitative study was conducted to find out more about Rape Prevention Education (RPE) programs implemented across the United States that focus on targeting men and boys as a primary prevention strategy for sexual violence. RPE programs are programs at the State Department of Health in all 50 states and United States territories that receive funds from the RPE program, which resides at the CDC, Division of Violence Prevention. Each state then provides funding to programs that deliver sexual violence prevention programs at the community level. These local programs are comprised of a variety of organizational types with some being created and managed by the state as a state program and others being independent, nonprofit entities that engage in sexual and domestic violence prevention activities.

This study examined four primary research questions: 1) What does implementation for the selected strategies look like in practice; 2) What, if any, evaluation is being conducted; 3) What are the facilitators/barriers to evaluation and; 4) What types of technical assistance do programs need to conduct evaluation. These questions were selected because of an ongoing effort within the RPE program to assist grantees in evaluation, and in implementing effective programs to prevent sexual violence in their communities.

Four participant sites that implement RPE programs focused on men and boys were selected as part of a convenience sample. The programs of interest were Coaching Boys into Men (CBIM), Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) and My Strength. Interviews with the four sites were conducted in April, 2014 and findings were compiled using a cross-site matrix to look at differences and/or commonalities across emerging themes.

Findings revealed that local level programs are not conducting evaluation on the effectiveness of their strategies outside of general data collection from pre-post survey results. The reasons for this are multifaceted, but one of the major findings is that there is a lack of expertise and financial and human resources that impede evaluation. A set of recommendations, with associated intended outcomes, to alleviate some of the barriers is proposed for both state level RPE grantees and the CDC RPE program.

Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter I: Introduction 1

Introduction and Rationale 1 Purpose 3

Significance 4

Objectives 5 Problem Statement 6 Theoretical Framework 11 Social Ecological Model 12 Definition of Key Terms 14

Chapter II: Review of the Literature 16

Introduction 16 The Problem of Sexual Violence 17

Consequences of Sexual Violence and Impact on Victims 19

The Current Status of Sexual Violence Prevention Effectiveness 20

Men and Boys and Masculinity 24

Strategies for Men and Boys: Program Reviews 39

Coaching Boys into Men 30 Mentors in Violence Prevention 32 My Strength 34 Summary 36

Chapter III: Methodology 38

Introduction 38 Site Selection Criteria 39 Study Recruitment 39 Data Collection Instrument 40 Data Collection 42 Data Analysis 43 Limitations 44

Chapter IV: Findings 45

Introduction 45 Findings 45 Research Question #1 45 Adaptations made during implementation 47 CBIM 48 MVP 49 My Strength 51 Research Question #2 52 CBIM data collection 53 Research Question #3 55

Desire to build evaluation capacity amidst limitations 56

Time 56

Money and staff resources 57

Knowledge of evaluation practice 57 Lack of evaluation partnerships 58

Perceived isolation from what others are doing 58

Research Question #4 59 Staff training 60 Information exchange and networking 61 Expanded staff 62

Chapter V: Discussion, Implications and Recommendations 63

Introduction 63 Discussion: Overview of Findings 63 Research Question #1 Implementation 63 Research Question #2 Evaluation 65

Research Question #3 Facilitators and Barriers to Evaluation 67

Time 67 Money and staff resources 68 Knowledge of evaluation practice 69 Lack of evaluation partnerships 70

Research Question #4 Technical Assistance 71

Staff training 71 Information exchange and networking 72

Expanded staff 73

Implications for the Rape Prevention Education (RPE) Program 73

Implications for Public Health and Community and Community 74

Involvement in Sexual Violence Prevention

Recommendations 76 Recommendation #1 77 Recommendation #2 78 Recommendation #3 79 Recommendation #4 80 Conclusion 81 Bibliography 83

Appendices 92

Appendix A 92 Appendix B 96 Appendix C 106 LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 : Risk Factors for Sexual Violence (CDC) 11

Table 4: Sexual Violence Prevalence Rates for U.S. Women 19

at 12-Month and Lifetime

Table 6 : Program Site Location and SV Prevention Strategy 40

Implemented

Table 7 : Description of SVP Strategies and Implementation Contexts 46

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2: Social Ecological Model for SVP Risk Factors 13

Figure 3 : Power and Control Wheel (Duluth Model) 17

Figure 5 : CBIM Intervention Components and Relational Outcomes 31

About this Master's Thesis

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School	Rollins School of Public Health
Department	Career Masters of Public Health
Degree	MPH
Submission	Master's Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Health Sciences, Public Health
Keyword	Prevention Dating Violence Sexual Violence Prevention
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Baldwin, Grant T., Emory University
Committee Members	Freire , Kimberley , Centerd for Disease Control and Prevention
Partnering Agencies	CDC

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