Psychology Commons^™

Adverse Consequences To Assisting Victims Of Campus Violence: Initial Investigations Among College Students, Alison Krauss, Ernest N. Jouriles, Kristen Yule, John H. Grych, Kelli S. Sargent, Victoria Banyard

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Despite growing interest in the use of bystander education programs to address the problems of sexual and relationship violence on college campuses, little knowledge exists on adverse consequences experienced by students intervening as a bystander. The current study examined the prevalence and correlates of adverse consequences of bystander intervention in two samples of first-year college students. In Study 1, 281 students completed a measure of negative consequences experienced when acting as a bystander to help someone at risk of sexual assault, relationship abuse, or stalking. Efficacy for bystander behavior was also assessed. Approximately one third of the students (97/281) reported …