The Impact of Sexual Assault Prevention Information on Perceived Control and Victim Blaming

Universities are required to educate students on the prevention of sexual assault. Victim-focused strategies, which suggest practical measures to minimize the risk of victimization, have become controversial for their potential to exacerbate victim-blaming attitudes. Five studies investigate whether, and when, victim blaming increases as a result of exposure to prevention information. Results demonstrate that victim-focused prevention information can indeed increase victim blaming, and that such an effect, found to result from victim-focused sexual assault prevention information, does not generalize to all victim-focused approaches. It may, therefore, be possible to offer practical advice without promoting such blame shifting.