Enhancing Women's Resistance to Sexual Coercion: A Randomized Controlled Trial of the DATE Program

Abstract

Assertiveness training for resisting sexual coercion holds promise for reducing sexual victimization of young women.

Reducing Sexual Victimization Among Adolescent Girls: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial of My Voice, My Choice

“…We believe this line of research provides important support for prevention efforts that target risk-reduction by training girls to use assertive resistance skills. Combined with previous work in this area (Gidycz et al, 2001;Simpson Rowe et al, 2012), the results suggest that providing the opportunity to practice and master assertive resistance skills may help adolescent girls to avoid and/or escape potentially threatening interpersonal situations. It is important to highlight, however, that the number of girls who were sexually victimized during the follow-up period was quite small (8 out of 36 participants in the waitlist condition and 4 out of 42 in the MVMC condition).…”

“…Moreover, research with actual and potential perpetrators of sexual violence indicates that girls and women with a confident, assertive self-presentation are less likely to be identified as potential victims (Book, Costello, & Camilleri, 2013;Parks, Hequembourg, & Dearing, 2008;Sakaguchi & Hasegawa, 2006) and that assertive resistance is more likely to be perceived as true rather than "token" refusal (Garcia, 1998). In addition, there is experimental evidence suggesting that training in assertive resistance can reduce the likelihood of sexual victimization (e.g., Gidycz et al, 2001;Simpson Rowe, Jouriles, McDonald, Platt, & Gomez, 2012). Thus, correlational and experimental data are consistent with a theorized causal relation: Assertive resistance in response to unwanted sexual advances or sexual coercion may help girls and women escape potentially dangerous interpersonal situations and reduce likelihood of harm.…”

A Critical Review of Sexual Violence Prevention on College Campuses

“…Table 4 in the appendix presents a summary of these five studies. In one of the three studies to report significant findings [59,60], the treatment significantly impacted rates of victimization only for those with no victimization histories, and rates of perpetration were not examined. Another of these studies [61] found that participants in the treatment group exhibited a statistically significant lower likelihood of reporting sexual victimization compared to the control group.…”

The Roles of Body Mass Index and Jealousy in Women’s Perpetration of Sexual Coercion

“…Despite these distinctions and the similarity between men's and women's sexual coercion perpetration rates in recent research, most research on this topic focuses on men as perpetrators (see Monson et al, 2009, for a review). Furthermore, research on sexual coercion/assault prevention and intervention primarily includes samples of men as perpetrators (Rowe, Jouriles, McDonald, Platt, & Gomez, 2012;Senn et al, 2013;Stewart, 2014). In order for programs to be able to protect both male and female victims, it is essential that we develop a more comprehensive understanding of women's perpetration of sexual coercion and the associated pathways for its development.…”

“…Within the literature on men's perpetration, researchers consistently find that jealousy is a significant predictor not only of aggression but also in particular of sexual coercion (DeGue & DiLillo, 2005;Salwen & O'Leary, 2013). Research by Goetz, Shackelford, and colleagues (Goetz & Shackelford, 2009;Goetz, Shackelford, Romero, Kaighobadi, & Miner, 2008;Kaighobadi et al, 2009) suggests that men's perpetration of sexual coercion may be a tactic for mate retention.…”