Multi-College Bystander Efficacy Evaluation
| Status: | Enrolling by invitation |
|---|---|
| Healthy: | No |
| Age Range: | 18 - 24 |
| Updated: | 3/1/2019 |
| Start Date: | January 2016 |
| End Date: | December 2019 |
Growing Researcher and College Communities Supporting Violence Prevention Research
Bystander interventions, recognized as promising violence prevention strategies, are unique
in their engagement of all community members to 1) recognize situations that may become
violent and 2) learn to safely and effectively intervene to reduce violence risk. Based on
their promise, the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act (SaVE) now requires all
publicly-funded colleges to provide bystander intervention. With SaVE's policy intervention
requiring bystander interventions, a "natural experiment" has arisen to determine the
relative efficacy of students' bystander training across multiple colleges. Investigators
propose a quasi-experimental design (using fractional factorials) to evaluate the relative
efficacy of three bystander interventions to reduce violence in college communities. Green
Dot will be one of three bystander interventions evaluated. A recent rigorous evaluation has
found that Green Dot is associated with a 20-40% reduction in VAW in college and high school
settings.
In aim 1, investigators will compare the relative efficacy of bystander interventions to a)
increase bystander efficacy and behaviors, b) reduce violence acceptance, c) reduce
interpersonal violence victimization and perpetration, and d) increase program cost
effectiveness. The three main bystander groups compared will be: exclusively online training,
Green Dot (speeches and intensive bystander training), and other skills-based bystander
training. Program efficacy data will be obtained from student surveys, campus crime
statistics, and surveys with college staff and administrators responsible for selecting and
implementing bystander interventions.
In aim 2, investigators seek to grow communities of VAW prevention researchers. Researcher
communities will form through researchers' engagement with college recruitment, survey
design, data collection and analyses. Specifically investigators will determine the efficacy
of this program to increase VAW prevention research productivity defined as a) increasing
research skills and b) increasing research communications measured as manuscript submissions,
presentations, and publications.
This natural experiment will generate new understanding into efficacy of how bystander
programs work. This natural experiment will also provide the VAW research community an
opportunity to increase our skill-sets and share our experiences with and help grow the next
generation of VAW prevention researchers.
in their engagement of all community members to 1) recognize situations that may become
violent and 2) learn to safely and effectively intervene to reduce violence risk. Based on
their promise, the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act (SaVE) now requires all
publicly-funded colleges to provide bystander intervention. With SaVE's policy intervention
requiring bystander interventions, a "natural experiment" has arisen to determine the
relative efficacy of students' bystander training across multiple colleges. Investigators
propose a quasi-experimental design (using fractional factorials) to evaluate the relative
efficacy of three bystander interventions to reduce violence in college communities. Green
Dot will be one of three bystander interventions evaluated. A recent rigorous evaluation has
found that Green Dot is associated with a 20-40% reduction in VAW in college and high school
settings.
In aim 1, investigators will compare the relative efficacy of bystander interventions to a)
increase bystander efficacy and behaviors, b) reduce violence acceptance, c) reduce
interpersonal violence victimization and perpetration, and d) increase program cost
effectiveness. The three main bystander groups compared will be: exclusively online training,
Green Dot (speeches and intensive bystander training), and other skills-based bystander
training. Program efficacy data will be obtained from student surveys, campus crime
statistics, and surveys with college staff and administrators responsible for selecting and
implementing bystander interventions.
In aim 2, investigators seek to grow communities of VAW prevention researchers. Researcher
communities will form through researchers' engagement with college recruitment, survey
design, data collection and analyses. Specifically investigators will determine the efficacy
of this program to increase VAW prevention research productivity defined as a) increasing
research skills and b) increasing research communications measured as manuscript submissions,
presentations, and publications.
This natural experiment will generate new understanding into efficacy of how bystander
programs work. This natural experiment will also provide the VAW research community an
opportunity to increase our skill-sets and share our experiences with and help grow the next
generation of VAW prevention researchers.
A. SPECIFIC AIMS Goal 1. Grow Colleges as Communities for Primary Prevention of Violence
Against Women Research The opportunity: Because the 2013 Campus Sexual Violence Elimination
Act1 (SaVE) now requires bystander training in all publicly funded colleges and universities
(hereafter colleges), a "natural experiment" presents itself to determine what components of
bystander interventions have greater efficacy. Inclusion of multiple college communities
(n=24) provides sufficient statistical power for these comparisons. The timing of this U01
(RFA-CE-15-003) is strategically important for the work investigators propose: to evaluate
the efficacy of bystander interventions components (BIC) to reduce violence against women
(VAW: operationally defined as intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual violence (SV)).
Investigators propose a quasi-experimental design using fractional factorials. Data to
measure program efficacy for bystander and violent behavior outcomes will be obtained from
student surveys and campus crime data. Key informant interviews with college administrators
responsible for selection and implementation of bystander programs will describe components
and attributes of bystander programs important for colleges' adoption, implementation and
retention of bystander programs over the 4 years.
The purpose of this quasi-experimental, multi-college study is to evaluate the relative
efficacy of newly implemented bystander interventions over time. Because all colleges must
adopt an intervention, comparisons will be made prospectively before and after implementation
and across program interventions.
Aim 1. Compare the relative efficacy of bystander interventions to a) increase bystander
efficacy and behaviors, b) reduce violence acceptance, c) reduce violence victimization and
perpetration, and d) increase program cost effectiveness. Three BIC comparisons will be:
exclusively online training, Green Dot, and other skills-based, interactive bystander
programs. Whether training is mandatory will also be evaluated.
Hypothesis 1: Relative to colleges implementing exclusively online training, colleges
implementing Green Dot (or other skills-based programs) will significantly a) increase
bystander efficacy and behaviors, b) reduce violence acceptance, c) reduce violence
victimization and perpetration, and d) demonstrate greater cost effectiveness to reduce VAW.
Goal 2. Grow Communities of Violence Against Women Prevention Researchers The opportunity:
This "natural experiment" also offers a unique opportunity for more senior VAW prevention
researchers to share their expertise with each other and with more junior researchers, i.e.
grow a researcher community. Team science is increasingly required in violence prevention
research yet funding mechanisms supporting cross-institutional and cross-disciplinary career
development grants in violence prevention are limited.
The purpose: Investigators propose a researcher community collaborative to grow the next
generation of VAW researchers. Through engaging multiple public universities as our research
community partners (Goal 1), investigators have the added opportunity to partner as a
researcher community to both a) conduct better research because a broader skill-set can be
engaged and b) share our research skill-sets with more junior researchers.
Aim 2. Determine the efficacy of this collaborative to increase VAW prevention researchers'
productivity defined as a) research skills and b) research communications measured as
manuscript submissions, presentations, and publications. Both senior and junior researchers
will be members of this collaborative and included in prospective qualitative and
quantitative assessment.
Hypothesis 2: Participation within research communities will, over time, increase research
productivity for both senior and more junior collaborative members relative to their
productivity prior to study participation.
Expected outcomes:
(Aim 1) This study will identify components of bystander programs associated with greater
violence prevention efficacy and greater cost-effectiveness. Currently colleges have limited
data or experience to make informed decisions regarding selecting a bystander intervention,
now required by SaVE. With the range of bystander program comparisons afforded by including
up to 24 multiple college communities, investigators will have the ability to measure
relative bystander program efficacy (which programs are associated with the greater reduction
in violence), which programs are associated with lower program implementation costs, and the
programs associated with the lower cost to violence reduction ratio.
(Aim 2) As both senior and junior researchers are engaged in college recruitment,
mixed-method data collection, and data analyses, research skill-sets will be shared such that
senior researchers learn newer research approaches and junior researchers learn skills in
survey design and conduct, measurement and surveying on sensitive topics), data analyses, and
research communication.
Benchmarks for Success will be measured: [Aim 1] as our ability to recruit 24 colleges,
conduct key informant interviews and annual undergraduate surveys, and final analyses by Fall
2019; and [Aim 2] by our ability, as a collaborative, to recruit and retain VAW prevention
researchers from identified colleges and provide mentoring and training needed to advance
their research skills.
Against Women Research The opportunity: Because the 2013 Campus Sexual Violence Elimination
Act1 (SaVE) now requires bystander training in all publicly funded colleges and universities
(hereafter colleges), a "natural experiment" presents itself to determine what components of
bystander interventions have greater efficacy. Inclusion of multiple college communities
(n=24) provides sufficient statistical power for these comparisons. The timing of this U01
(RFA-CE-15-003) is strategically important for the work investigators propose: to evaluate
the efficacy of bystander interventions components (BIC) to reduce violence against women
(VAW: operationally defined as intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual violence (SV)).
Investigators propose a quasi-experimental design using fractional factorials. Data to
measure program efficacy for bystander and violent behavior outcomes will be obtained from
student surveys and campus crime data. Key informant interviews with college administrators
responsible for selection and implementation of bystander programs will describe components
and attributes of bystander programs important for colleges' adoption, implementation and
retention of bystander programs over the 4 years.
The purpose of this quasi-experimental, multi-college study is to evaluate the relative
efficacy of newly implemented bystander interventions over time. Because all colleges must
adopt an intervention, comparisons will be made prospectively before and after implementation
and across program interventions.
Aim 1. Compare the relative efficacy of bystander interventions to a) increase bystander
efficacy and behaviors, b) reduce violence acceptance, c) reduce violence victimization and
perpetration, and d) increase program cost effectiveness. Three BIC comparisons will be:
exclusively online training, Green Dot, and other skills-based, interactive bystander
programs. Whether training is mandatory will also be evaluated.
Hypothesis 1: Relative to colleges implementing exclusively online training, colleges
implementing Green Dot (or other skills-based programs) will significantly a) increase
bystander efficacy and behaviors, b) reduce violence acceptance, c) reduce violence
victimization and perpetration, and d) demonstrate greater cost effectiveness to reduce VAW.
Goal 2. Grow Communities of Violence Against Women Prevention Researchers The opportunity:
This "natural experiment" also offers a unique opportunity for more senior VAW prevention
researchers to share their expertise with each other and with more junior researchers, i.e.
grow a researcher community. Team science is increasingly required in violence prevention
research yet funding mechanisms supporting cross-institutional and cross-disciplinary career
development grants in violence prevention are limited.
The purpose: Investigators propose a researcher community collaborative to grow the next
generation of VAW researchers. Through engaging multiple public universities as our research
community partners (Goal 1), investigators have the added opportunity to partner as a
researcher community to both a) conduct better research because a broader skill-set can be
engaged and b) share our research skill-sets with more junior researchers.
Aim 2. Determine the efficacy of this collaborative to increase VAW prevention researchers'
productivity defined as a) research skills and b) research communications measured as
manuscript submissions, presentations, and publications. Both senior and junior researchers
will be members of this collaborative and included in prospective qualitative and
quantitative assessment.
Hypothesis 2: Participation within research communities will, over time, increase research
productivity for both senior and more junior collaborative members relative to their
productivity prior to study participation.
Expected outcomes:
(Aim 1) This study will identify components of bystander programs associated with greater
violence prevention efficacy and greater cost-effectiveness. Currently colleges have limited
data or experience to make informed decisions regarding selecting a bystander intervention,
now required by SaVE. With the range of bystander program comparisons afforded by including
up to 24 multiple college communities, investigators will have the ability to measure
relative bystander program efficacy (which programs are associated with the greater reduction
in violence), which programs are associated with lower program implementation costs, and the
programs associated with the lower cost to violence reduction ratio.
(Aim 2) As both senior and junior researchers are engaged in college recruitment,
mixed-method data collection, and data analyses, research skill-sets will be shared such that
senior researchers learn newer research approaches and junior researchers learn skills in
survey design and conduct, measurement and surveying on sensitive topics), data analyses, and
research communication.
Benchmarks for Success will be measured: [Aim 1] as our ability to recruit 24 colleges,
conduct key informant interviews and annual undergraduate surveys, and final analyses by Fall
2019; and [Aim 2] by our ability, as a collaborative, to recruit and retain VAW prevention
researchers from identified colleges and provide mentoring and training needed to advance
their research skills.
Inclusion Criteria at College level:
- Public universities with junior faculty to be mentored in violence prevention
Exclusion Criteria:
- Private universities, institutions with less than 10,000 undergraduate students
Inclusion Criteria at Student level:
- Undergraduate students at the public 4 year colleges or universities, ages 18-24
Exclusion Criteria:
- Graduate or professional students, non-degree seeking or not enrolled
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