A Novel Model for Generating Creative, Community-Responsive Interventions to Reduce Gender-Based Violence on College Campuses

Abstract

Currently, the most successful prevention interventions against sexual violence (SV) on United States college campuses target modifications at the individual and interpersonal levels. Community-level interventions have been under-developed for college campuses. To address this gap, we employ a citizen science model for understanding campus community factors affecting SV risk. The model, called Our Voice, starts by engaging groups of college students to collect data in their own communities, identifying factors they view as increasing the risk of SV. In facilitated meetings, participants then review and analyze their collective data and use it to generate actionable community-level solutions and advocate for them with local decision-makers. We share findings from a first-generation study of the Our Voice model applied to SV prevention on one college campus, and include recommendations for further research.

How Can Sport-Based Interventions Improve Health among Women and Girls? A Scoping Review

“…Digital health has been characterized as a strategy to bolster health equity among women, and access to such tools is increasing across low- and middle-income countries [ 53 ]. Progress may be achieved through pathways such as increased access to health care and services, empowerment gained by having access to one’s own health data, opportunities to capture relevant information, and improved visibility of issues such as gender-based violence, discrimination, and inaccessibility to health-bringing behaviors in their local environments [ 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 ].…”

The “Our Voice” Method: Participatory Action Citizen Science Research to Advance Behavioral Health and Health Equity Outcomes

“…A growing evidence base characterizes the OV method as an accessible, adaptable, and impactful approach to community-engaged participatory research [ 16 , 17 ], It has been applied to numerous health equity topics, including food environments [ 23 , 24 ], active living and physical activity [ 25 , 26 ], gender-based violence [ 27 ], and accessibility in public spaces [ 28 ].…”

“…Studies have taken place across a range of settings, including urban neighborhoods [ 29 ], parks [ 28 ], farmers’ markets [ 30 ], schools [ 31 ], college campuses [ 27 ], and rural communities [ 32 ]. Likewise, members of diverse population groups have participated as citizen scientists across dozens of OV global research projects spanning six continents, with emphasis on youth [ 17 ], older adults [ 16 ], low-income communities [ 33 ], and other groups historically underrepresented in decision-making processes.…”

“…Studies that emphasize distinct citizen scientist populations, such as older adults or school-age children, within specific settings such as neighborhoods or school environments, can advance understanding of the interactive effects of environment and individual experience in those specific populations [ 31 , 34 ]. Evaluation of the Discovery Tool app and process has yielded acceptability and usage information, which have included both positive experiences [ 31 , 32 ] and opportunities for improvement [ 27 ].…”

“…The group process can foster community outcomes by creating new linkages and relationships across citizen scientist community members and building understanding between citizen scientists and stakeholders, as well as identifying trusted stakeholders within a community [ 23 ]. The group process can also strengthen community connectedness and cohesion through collective solution building and priority setting for action [ 27 , 28 ].…”