The Influence of Community Sociocultural Context on Creating an Effective, Coordinated Response to Sexual Assault

2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 445-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan R. Greeson ◽  
Christina Soibatian ◽  
Jaclyn D. Houston-Kolnik
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Rape Myths ◽  
Community Response ◽  
Victim Blame ◽  
Sociocultural Context ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Public Intervention ◽  
Values And Beliefs ◽  
Sexual Assault Response Teams

Members of Sexual Assault Response Teams (SARTs) coordinate and improve the community response to sexual assault. A SART’s effectiveness is likely influenced by its sociocultural context, or the norms, values, and beliefs of the local community. However, this has yet to be empirically examined. We conducted a qualitative study to explore how sociocultural context may influence effectiveness within a sample of 169 leaders of 169 U.S. SARTs. SART leaders believed that specific norms and beliefs held by the general public in their community (rape myths and victim blame, denial of sexual assault happening locally, taboos against discussing sexual assault, and a male-dominated environment) delegitimized sexual assault as a problem that deserved public intervention. Leaders believed these led community members to resist the team’s efforts, by decreasing the community’s support and buy-in to the SART, interfering with efforts to make services accessible to survivors, and obstructing the SART’s ability to effectively respond to cases. And some leaders believed highly interconnected communities compromised the accessibility and objectivity of systems that respond to sexual assault. SARTs need to carefully tailor their efforts to improve accessibility of systems, and the response to sexual assault cases, to their unique local sociocultural context.

scholarly journals Raising Awareness and Empowering Diverse Survivors: Addressing Mental and Physical Health Needs Among LGBTQIA+ Community Members Post-Sexual Assault

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-144
Author(s):  
Daniel W. Oesterle ◽  
◽  
Leah Giorgini ◽  
Christopher Eckhardt
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Community Based Participatory Research ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Treatment Needs ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Community Based

Experiences of sexual violence are commonplace among individuals within the LGBTQIA+ communities, with more than 63% of sexual and gender minority (SGM) individuals experiencing victimization. Despite high rates of victimization, few individuals experiencing sexual assault seek services post-assault, with even fewer individuals within the LGBTQIA+ community accessing post-assault care. This is further exacerbated when considering the unmet treatment needs of sexual assault survivors and victims, where individuals commonly experience high rates of internalizing (i.e., post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety) and externalizing (i.e., substance use/misuse) symptoms for years after experiencing an assault. Although these experiences occur at alarming rates on college campuses, LGBTQIA+ college students may be more likely to seek services and treatment from off-campus providers for a variety of reasons, including privacy concerns and less rigid stereotypes in how services are delivered. Many college students and community members are unaware of their options for receiving post assault care off-campus and within their local communities. Therefore, in conjunction with the YWCA of Greater Lafayette, this service-learning project seeks to establish and build a relationship with a community-based provider responding to instances of sexual violence within the community. The first goal of this research is to support the YWCA in outreach efforts targeted to LGBTQIA+ victims of sexual assault, to increase awareness of the programs offered by the organization within these communities. The second goal of this research is to provide didactic trainings to community providers responding to sexual violence and assault to be able to more effectively deal with SGM individuals experiencing assault, and reduce the heightened barriers faced by this group in receiving post-assault care. Considerations as to how researchers can employ community-based participatory research frameworks to more effectively serve their local community will be discussed.

Gender, Myths, and Assumptions: Correlates of Risk Perception in Sexual Assault Scenarios

2021 ◽  
pp. 088626052110358
Author(s):  
Melanie D. Hetzel-Riggin ◽  
Shauntey James ◽  
Ryan Roby ◽  
Theresa J. Buczek
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Rape Myths ◽  
Rape Myth Acceptance ◽  
Rape Myth ◽  
Victim Blame ◽  
World Assumptions ◽  
Risk Recognition ◽  
The World

Sexual violence continues to plague college campuses even with the implementation of bystander intervention programs. Previous research has demonstrated that diminished situational risk recognition increases the risk for sexual assault victimization. However, there is a paucity of research comparing men’s and women’s risk perception in sexual assault scenarios, risk perception from a victim or perpetrator perspective, or the role of previous sexual violence history, rape myth acceptance, and world assumptions on sexual risk perception. The current study examined male and female college students’ risk perception while reading a sexual assault scenario. Participants also completed measures of victim and perpetrator blame, rape myth acceptance, and beliefs in a just world. The results suggested that men’s and women’s risk perception is influenced by different rape myths and world assumptions. Specifically, women’s risk perception and victim blame are associated with sexual communication myths and beliefs in the randomness of the world, while men’s risk perception and victim blame are related to the acceptance of myths that women ask for sexual assault and that the world is a just, cruel place. The results call for the incorporation of additional training on how rape myths and world assumptions may impact risk recognition and intervention in sexual assault education. It will also be important to target different barriers to intervention for men and women.

Effects of Rape Myths on Students' Perceptions of Sexual Assault

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen A. Curtiss ◽  
Jeanne B. Funk ◽  
Alexander M. Czopp
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Rape Myths

DIFFUSION AND ADOPTION OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES IN SOUTH AFRICAN TELECENTRES: SELECTED TELECENTRES IN KWAZULU-NATAL

Mousaion ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blessing Mbatha
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Diffusion Of Innovations ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Information And Communications Technologies ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Ict Tools ◽  
The Government ◽  
Types Of Information

This study investigated the usage and types of information and communications technologies (ICTs) accessible to community members in four selected Thusong Service Centres (TSCs or telecentres) in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). The telecentres that participated in the study were: Nhlazuka, Mbazwane, Dududu and Malangeni. The study was informed by Rogers’ (1995) Diffusion of Innovations (DoI) theory. Through a survey, four TSCs were purposively selected. A questionnaire was used to collect data from community members in the four telecentres involved. The data collected was tabulated under the various headings and presented using tables, frequencies, percentiles and generalisations with the help of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The results indicated that a variety of ICT tools have been adopted in the TSCs to provide the local community with the much-needed access to information and improved communication. The government should ensure that adequate varieties and levels of ICT competence are offered to all the citizens. In conclusion, there is a need for sufficient and coherent government policies regulating the training of the local community to use these ICTs effectively.

scholarly journals Intrinsic Value and Perceived Essentialism of Culture Heritage Sites as Tools for Planning Interventions

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 5078
Author(s):  
Magdalena Roszczynska-Kurasinska ◽  
Anna Domaradzka ◽  
Anna Wnuk ◽  
Tomasz Oleksy
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Intrinsic Value ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Design Changes ◽  
Culture Heritage ◽  
Response To Change

In order to remain alive and relevant, cultural heritage sites have to react and adapt to changing context in a coherent manner, i.e., in a way that is in line with the memory and identity of the place. The incoherent changes, i.e., the transformations that according to the local community do not agree with a character of a place, can be destructive for the long-term vitality of urban cultural heritage. In this study, we test which factors influence social acceptance of different alternations within the context of urban historical gardens that might, in turn, ensure the resilience of the place. Our study focuses on the intangible qualities of the place measured by intrinsic value, perceived essentialism and anti-essentialism as important predictors shaping the response to change. The correlational study was conducted using an online questionnaire designed to empirically grasp intangible qualities of cultural heritage sites. Five hundred twenty-nine responses were included in the analysis. The study shows that perceived historic value, inherent value (uniqueness and importance of the place) and (anti-)essentialist character of a place capture the differences between parks well and enables the finding of interventions that are coherent with a site’s genius loci. Measuring intangible qualities of urban gardens can help to design changes that find higher approval among local community members and users of the site. We discuss how the analysis of an intrinsic value and essentialism allows for planning better spatial interventions that align with the human-centered approach to urban development.

scholarly journals 3543 Translating the complex medical jargon of opioid use disorder and medication assisted treatment into locally relevant messages in rural Colorado using Boot Camp Translation

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (s1) ◽  
pp. 97-98
Author(s):  
Mary Fisher ◽  
Donald E. Nease ◽  
Linda Zittleman ◽  
Jack Westfall ◽  
Jennifer Ancona
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Boot Camp ◽  
Opioid Use Disorder ◽  
Research Network ◽  
High Plains ◽  
Opioid Use ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Medication Assisted Treatment ◽  
South Central

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a national epidemic and identified as a top priority by the practices and communities in rural Colorado. Until recently, few resources existed to address OUD in rural communities. In addition to training primary care and behavioral health practice teams in medication assisted treatment (MAT), Implementing Technology and Medication Assisted Treatment and Team Training and in Rural Colorado (IT MATTTRs Colorado) engaged local community members to alter the community conversation around OUD and treatment. For IT MATTTRs, the High Plains Research Network and the Colorado Research Network engaged community members in a 8-10 month process known as Boot Camp Translations (BCT) to translate medical information and jargon around OUD and MAT into concepts, messages, and materials that are meaningful and actionable to community members. The resulting community interventions are reported here. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: IT MATTTRs conducted separate BCTs in Eastern Colorado and the south central San Luis Valley. Community partners included non-health professionals with diverse backgrounds, public health and primary care professionals, law enforcement, and others. The BCT process includes a comprehensive education on OUD and MAT and facilitated meetings and calls to develop messages and dissemination strategies. Each BCT lasted around 8-10 months. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: The BCT process elicited unique contextual ideas and constructs for messages, materials, and dissemination strategies. Themes common to both BCTs include the prevalence of OUD and that help is available in the local primary care office. Community-tailored messages are distributed through posters and flyer inserts, drink coasters, newspaper articles, letters to local judges, restaurant placemats, and websites. Examples of the materials and messages will be presented. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: Local community members are eager to help address the OUD crisis. Built on community-based participatory research principles, BCT can be used to translate complex information and guidelines around OUD and MAT into messages and materials that reflect local culture and community needs.

scholarly journals ‘You withhold what you are feeling so you can have a family’: Latinas’ perceptions on community values and postpartum depression

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. e000504
Author(s):  
McClain Sampson ◽  
Miao Yu ◽  
Rebecca Mauldin ◽  
Angelina Mayorga ◽  
Lorena G Gonzalez
Keyword(s):  
Postpartum Depression ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Family Services ◽  
Community Values ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Community Acceptance ◽  
Values And Beliefs

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to explore the postpartum depression (PPD) beliefs and experiences of mothers who access local community faith-based organisations providing family services to low-income, predominantly immigrant Latino populations.DesignUsing a qualitative research design, we conducted 18 focus groups with Latina mothers to inquire about their community values and beliefs of PPD. All groups were conducted in Spanish.SettingAn academic research team located in Houston, Texas, USA, partnered with six faith-based organisations in five cities to recruit and host focus groups at the site of the organisation.ParticipantsOne hundred and thirty-three women participated in the focus groups across all sites. Thirty-seven of them (27.8%) had given birth to a child in less than 1 year. Inclusion criteria included mothers 18 years and older and Latino ethnicity.ResultsA six-step process was used to apply thematic analysis to sort data into the themes. All mothers had heard of depression after childbirth, some had experienced it and most remarked that the personal experience and community acceptance of it vary by family. The main findings suggest that mothers take pride in parenting by instilling values to support family and the value of relying on family for emotional support. Findings reveal that many mothers suffer and sacrifice for their children, they feel judged and feel they must hide their emotions. Factors such as birth and postpartum customs from a native country, gender roles and beliefs of what a good mother shape their beliefs and messages about PPD.ConclusionOur findings indicate that programme developers should consider family and community focused education and intervention efforts to help decrease stigma and increase understanding of PPD.

Community dynamics in Fijian coral reef fish communities vary with conservation and shark-based tourism

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 363
Author(s):  
Mallory G. McKeon ◽  
Joshua A. Drew
Keyword(s):  
Community Dynamics ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Census Data ◽  
Fish Abundance ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Composition And Structure ◽  
Feeding Methods ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Unprotected Area

Marine protected areas (MPAs) effectively improve the biomass and diversity in heavily exploited marine systems, but often fail to reach their full potential because they require more space, time, and consistency of regulation. Recently, shark-based tourism, which utilises some of the remaining shark strongholds as tourism hotspots, has brought about increased awareness to exploited reef systems. In Fiji, specifically, shark diving companies include local community members in their operations to promote better understanding of their reefs. We seek to investigate whether seemingly denser shark populations during feeding times influence community composition and structure. Visual census data were collected from 50-m belt transects at four different reefs in Fiji: two MPAs with shark-based ecotourism with food provisioning, one MPA without shark-based ecotourism, and one unprotected area without shark-based tourism. Paradoxically, indices of evenness and diversity were highest in the non-protected site. However, there was significantly higher fish abundance and species diversity within reserves than outside of reserves. Within reserves, sites with shark feeding had lower fish abundance and higher richness, diversity, and evenness. Mean trophic level was highest at sites with shark feeding. Use of chum increased average fish abundance and diversity within shark-dive sites. These results indicate that there are evident differences between MPAs that do and do not offer trophic supplementation for shark-based ecotourism. Thus, tourism may be facilitating a shift of ecosystem composition in such areas. Furthermore, the results suggest that feeding methods may augment the impacts of shark-based tourism on the reef at large.

scholarly journals Ched Evans, rape myths and Medusa's gaze: a story of mirrors and windows

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 454-468
Author(s):  
David Gurnham
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Sexual Activity ◽  
Rape Myths ◽  
Social World ◽  
Male Gaze ◽  
Visual Metaphor ◽  
Critical Scholarship ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Court Of Appeal

AbstractThis paper analyses the visualisation of rape and sexual assault in legal and scholarly language. It begins with a critique of the Court of Appeal ruling inR v. Evans (Chedwyn)and its forensic examination of the details of a female rape complainant's consensual sexual activity with other men. The case is analysed in light of a visual metaphor used by Ellison and Munro to describe the removal of popular misconceptions about rape. The paper contextualises that discussion with reference to the idea of the male gaze and its affirmation of a phallocentric cultural and social world in which the objectification of female difference is entrenched. The paper finally challenges that assessment, however, sketching an alternative approach to visual-critical scholarship that embraces interdisciplinarity and a literary sensibility to break (or at least to loosen) the association between the prurient eye of the male voyeur and the criminal justice gaze.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document