Download Bystander Intervention Strategies

TALK ABOUT:
BYSTANDER INTERVENTION
Origins of Bystander Intervention
Catherine Genovese
March 13, 1964
What is Bystander Intervention?
Bystander intervention is safe and positive
options that may be carried out by faculty
and staff to prevent harm or intervene
when there is a risk of sexual harassment,
sexual assault, dating violence, domestic
violence or stalking
Bystander Intervention includes:
•
•
•
Recognizing situations of potential harm
Understanding institutional structures and cultural
conditions that facilitate violence, overcoming
barriers to intervening, identifying safe and
effective intervention options, and taking actions to
intervene
Risk Reduction: options designed to decrease
perpetrations and bystander inaction, and to
increase empowerment for victims in order to
promote safety and to help individuals and
communities address conditions that facilitate
violence
Things to Talk About
What are the warning signs that a sexual
assault is about to occur and bystander
intervention is needed?
What are effective strategies for preventing
sexual assault as a bystander?
HOW TO RECOGNIZE
SEXUAL ASSAULT
What is Consent?
Consent is:
Voluntary (freely given)
Only Active (not passive)
Informed
Clear
Engaged Permission
Acquaintance Rape
90% of college women who were victims of
attempted or completed rape knew their
attacker.
Acquaintance rape is not an accident.
Perpetrator’s often choose the target carefully
and plan the assault, involving three different
stages:
– Intrusion: accidental touches and stares
– Desensitization: the target dismisses their
unease
– Isolation: separates the target from others
Attitudes that Enable Sexual Assault
Victim blaming
– Places partial or complete blame for the assault
in the victim
Rape myths
– The idea that “real rape” is only committed by a
stranger who ambushes a woman unexpectedly
Studies have shown most men disagree with
such attitudes, but are afraid to speak out
– Silence encourages harmful behavior
STRATEGIES FOR
INTERVENTION
General Strategy
The best model for preventing sexual
assault as a bystander is to:
– Notice the event
– Identify it as an emergency
– Take responsibility
– Decide how to help
– Act to intervene
Specific Steps
• Step in and ask if the person needs help
• Don’t leave
• Have a buddy system, and let your
friends know if you’re worried about
them
• Ask directly, “Do you need a ride?”
• Find their friends or call 911
• Distract the perpetrator so there’s time
to intervene
Bystander Effect
The more people who are there to witness
a situation where someone needs help, the
less likely it is that someone will actually
intervene.
A person’s feeling of responsibility is not as
strong when that responsibility is shared by
others.
Things to Think About
What are reasons someone might NOT
intervene in a situation?
What can we do on campus to overcome
these barriers to intervention and create a
more supportive campus climate?
Let’s practice scenarios:
Each day before class you notice a young
woman being walked to her class by her
boyfriend. Initially, you think they are just
close as a couple, but after a few classes
you realize that the young man waits
outside of class to immediately meet the
young woman. At times you even notice
him peering in the classroom to watch her.
What do you do?
Scenario 2
You assign a personal essay for a writing
assignment. A young woman writes hers
about a relationship where she is
experiencing domestic violence. She
includes details of the violence. What
should you do?
Scenario 3
You are in your department and you notice
that a superior is constantly making
advances at a younger co-worker. The
younger co-worker is new to campus and
is having difficulty fending off the
advances. What do you do?
Thank you for participating!
Any questions or comments?
Please remember, we can all help to make
our campus community safer and more
welcoming!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
For more resources like this one, including
workshops, posters, and online training tailored to
prevent sexual assault and substance abuse, visit our
website at https://www.campusclarity.com, or call 800652-9546.