Bystander Action in Situations of Dating and Sexual Aggression: A Mixed Methodological Study of High School Youth

Bystander action is a critical component of dating and sexual aggression prevention; however, little is known about barriers and facilitators of bystander action among high school youth and in what situations youth are willing to engage in bystander action. The current study examined bystander action in situations of dating and sexual aggression using a mixed methodological design. Participants included primarily Caucasian (83.0 %, n = 181) male (54.6 %, n = 119) and female (44.5 %, n = 97) high school youth (N = 218). Most (93.6 %) students had the opportunity to take action during the past year in situations of dating or sexual aggression; being female and histories of dating and sexual aggression related to bystander action. Thematic analysis of the focus group data identified barriers (e.g., the aggression not meeting a certain threshold, anticipated negative consequences) to bystander action, as well as insight on promising forms of action (e.g., verbally telling the perpetrator to stop, getting a teacher); problematic intervention methods (e.g., threatening or using physical violence to stop the perpetrator) were also noted. Implications for programming are discussed.