Addressing Alcohol's Role in Campus Sexual Assault: A Toolkit by and for Prevention Specialists

Publication Date: 2018
Tag(s): data and research, prevention, sexual assault, strategies, trauma informed, trauma-informed
Author(s): R.C. Woofter, A.J. Rizzo, Prevention Innovations Research Center, L.B. Klein, L.H. Cherry, Campus Advocacy and Prevention Professionals Association (CAPPA)
Abstract: Alcohol use plays a role in 50-70% of campus sexual assaults, which has generated heightened consideration of the intersections of sexual assault and alcohol use on campus. Existing research and guidance from various organizations stress the importance of consistency between alcohol use/abuse prevention efforts and sexual assault prevention efforts that use individual, relationship, community, and policy-level strategies. However, there is limited guidance for sexual assault prevention specialists on how to do so. This toolkit integrates research and practice evidence to help prevention specialists begin to answer the frequently asked question: How should our campus address alcohol in our sexual assault prevention efforts? It examines how to address alcohol and sexual violence across the social ecology, ideas for partnerships on campus and within communities, and challenges as well as advice from the field. This toolkit also pays attention to navigating privilege and oppression within the campus system at large and how it relates to alcohol and sexual violence.