Development and Psychometrics of Instruments to Assess School Personnel's Bystander Action in Situations of Teen Relationship Abuse and Sexual Assault

Katie M Edwards, Stephanie N Sessarego, Linda R Stanley, Kimberly J Mitchell, Robert P Eckstein, Kara Anne E Rodenhizer, P Caroline Leyva, Victoria L Banyard, Katie M Edwards, Stephanie N Sessarego, Linda R Stanley, Kimberly J Mitchell, Robert P Eckstein, Kara Anne E Rodenhizer, P Caroline Leyva, Victoria L Banyard

Abstract

This article describes recently developed instruments that assess school personnel's bystander barriers and intentions in situations of teen relationship abuse, sexual assault, and sexual harassment, as well as perceptions of school readiness specific to relationship abuse, sexual assault, and sexual harassment prevention and response. Participants were 1,150 high school personnel from 25 schools in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine. Specific instruments focused on bystander intentions, bystander action, barriers to bystander action, and perceptions of school readiness. Participants were randomly divided into two groups for analysis-the exploratory sample (ES; n = 575) and the confirmatory sample (CS; n = 575). Overall, the measures demonstrated acceptable fit indices. Results suggested that most measures and subscales had adequate reliability, but a few subscales had less than ideal internal consistency, which can likely be attributed to the small number of items. More work is needed, but these measures act as a starting point by which the role of school personnel in prevention initiatives and bystander intervention can be evaluated.

Keywords: bystander; relationship abuse; school climate; school personnel; sexual assault; sexual harassment.

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

References

    1. Aceves MJ, Hinshaw SP, Mendoza-Denton R, & Page-Gould E (2010). Seek help from teachers or fight back? Student perceptions of teachers’ actions during conflicts and responses to peer victimization. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 39, 658–669. doi:10.1007/s10964-009-9441-9
    1. Astor RA, Benbenishty R, Zeira A, & Vinokur A (2002). School climate, observed risky behaviors, and victimization as predictors of high school students’ fear and judgments of school violence as a problem. Health Education & Behavior, 29, 716–736. doi:10.1177/109019802237940
    1. Banyard VL (2008). Measurement and correlates of prosocial bystander behavior: The case of interpersonal violence. Violence and Victims, 23, 83–97. doi:10.1891/0886-6708.23.1.83
    1. Banyard VL (2013). Go big or go home: Reaching for a more integrated view of violence prevention. Psychology of Violence, 3, 115–120. doi:10.1037/a0032289
    1. Banyard VL (2015). Toward the next generation of bystander prevention of sexual and relationship violence: Action coils to engage communities (1st ed.). Cham, Switzerland: Springer.
    1. Banyard VL, & Cross C (2008). Consequences of teen dating violence understanding intervening variables in ecological context. Violence Against Women, 14, 998–1013.
    1. Banyard VL, Edwards KM, & Seibold W (2015). Involving community in sexual violence prevention: Engaging bystanders In Sturmey RP (Ed.), Handbook of violence and aggression: Societal interventions (Vol. 3). Malden, MA: John Wiley; Retrieved from
    1. Banyard VL, Moynihan MM, Cares A, & Warner R (2014). How do we know if it works? Measuring outcomes in bystander-focused violence prevention on campuses. Psychology of Violence, 4, 101–115. doi:10.1037/a0033470
    1. Banyard VL, Weber MC, Grych J, & Hamby S (2016). Where are the helpful bystanders? Ecological niche and victims’ perceptions of bystander intervention. Journal of Community Psychology, 44, 214–231.
    1. Basile KC, Smith SG, Breiding MJ, Black MC, & Mahendra R (2014). Sexual violence surveillance: Uniform definitions and recommended data elements, version 2.0. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
    1. Bennett S, Banyard VL, & Edwards KM (2015). The impact of the bystander’s relationship with the victim and the perpetrator on intent to help in situations involving sexual violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 32, 682–702. doi:10.1177/0886260515586373
    1. Black BM, Weisz AN, & Jayasundara DS (2012). Dating violence and sexual assault prevention with African American middle schoolers: Does group gender composition impact dating violence attitudes? Child & Youth Services, 33, 158–173. doi:10.1080/0145935X.2012.704788
    1. Black S, & Hausman A (2008). Adolescents’ views of guns in a high-violence community. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 592–610. doi:10.1177/0743558408322142
    1. Brand S, Felner R, Shim M, Seitsinger A, & Dumas T (2003). Middle school improvement and reform: Development and validation of a school-level assessment of climate, cultural pluralism, and school safety. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 570–588. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.95.3.570
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017). Teen dating violence. Retrieved from
    1. Charmaraman L, Jones AE, Stein N, & Espelage DL (2013). Is it bullying or sexual harassment? Knowledge, attitudes, and professional development experiences of middle school staff. Journal of School Health, 83, 438–444.
    1. Edwards KM (2015). Incidence and outcomes of dating violence victimization among high school youth: The role of gender and sexual orientation. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. Advance online publication. doi:10.1177/0886260515618943
    1. Edwards KM, Jones L, & Rodenhizer-Stämpfli KA (2017). Development of a measure to examine school readiness to address dating violence and sexual assaults.
    1. Edwards KM, Mattingly MJ, Dixon KJ, & Banyard VL (2014). Community matters: Intimate partner violence among rural young adults. American Journal of Community Psychology, 53, 198–207.
    1. Edwards KM, Moynihan MM, Rodenhizer-Stämpfli KA, Demers JM, & Banyard VL (2015). Campus community readiness to engage measure: Its utility for campus violence prevention initiatives—Preliminary psychometrics. Violence and Gender, 2, 214–224. doi:10.1089/vio.2015.0028
    1. Edwards KM, Rodenhizer-Stämpfli KA, & Eckstein RP (2015). Bystander action in situations of dating and sexual aggression: A mixed methodological study of high school youth. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 44, 2321–2336. doi:10.1007/s10964-015-0307-z
    1. Edwards KM, Rodenhizer-Stämpfli KA, & Eckstein RP (2017). School personnel’s bystander action in situations of dating violence, sexual violence, and sexual harassment among high school teens: A qualitative analysis. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. Advance online publication. doi:10.1177/0886260517698821
    1. Edwards RW, Jumper-Thurman P, Plested BA, Oetting ER, & Swanson L (2000). Community readiness: Research to practice. Journal of Community Psychology, 28, 291–307. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1520-6629(200005)28:3<291::AIDJCOP5>;2-9
    1. Espelage DL, Low SK, Anderson C, & De La Rue L (2014). Bullying, sexual, and dating violence trajectories from early to late adolescence. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice.
    1. Espelage DL, Low SK, Polanin JR, & Brown EC (2013). The impact of a middle school program to reduce aggression, victimization, and sexual violence. Journal of Adolescent Health, 53, 180–186. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2013.02.021
    1. Espelage DL, Polanin JR, & Low SK (2014). Teacher and staff perceptions of school environment as predictors of student aggression, victimization, and willingness to intervene in bullying situations. School Psychology Quarterly, 29, 287–305. doi:10.1037/spq0000072
    1. Garrido LE, Abad FJ, & Ponsoda V (2016). Are fit indices really fit to estimate the number of factors with categorical variables? Some cautionary findings via Monte Carlo simulation. Psychological Methods, 21, 93–111. doi:10.1037/met0000064
    1. Geldhof GJ, Preacher KJ, & Zyphur MJ (2014). Reliability estimation in a multilevel confirmatory factor analysis framework. Psychological Methods, 19, 72–91. doi:10.1037/a0032138
    1. Gonzalez-Guarda RM, Cummings AM, Pino K, Malhotra K, Becerra MM, & Lopez JE (2014). Perceptions of adolescents, parents, and school personnel from a predominantly Cuban American community regarding dating and teen dating violence prevention. Research in Nursing & Health, 37, 117–127.
    1. Gottfredson GD, Gottfredson DC, Payne AA, & Gottfredson NC (2005). School climate predictors of school disorder: Results from a national study of delinquency prevention in schools. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 42, 412–444. doi:10.1177/0022427804271931
    1. Hektner JM, & Swenson CA (2012). Links from teacher beliefs to peer victimization and bystander intervention: Tests of mediating processes. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 32, 516–536.
    1. Holt MK, & Espelage DL (2007). Perceived social support among bullies, victims, and bully-victims. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36, 984–994.
    1. Hoy WK, Smith PA, & Sweetland SR (2002). The development of the organizational climate index for high schools: Its measure and relationship to faculty trust. The High School Journal, 86, 38–49. doi:10.1353/hsj.2002.0023
    1. Huang FL, Cornell DG, Konold T, Meyer JP, Lacey A, Nekvasil EK, … Shukla KD (2015). Multilevel factor structure and concurrent validity of the teacher version of the Authoritative School Climate Survey. Journal of School Health, 85, 843–851.
    1. Khubchandani J, Price JH, Thompson A, Dake JA, Wiblishauser M, & Telljohann SK (2012). Adolescent dating violence: A national assessment of school counselors’ perceptions and practices. Pediatrics, 130, 202–210.
    1. McMahon S, & Banyard VL (2012). When can I help? A conceptual framework for the prevention of sexual violence through bystander intervention. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 13, 3–14.
    1. Molidor C, Tolman R, & Kober J (2000). Gender and contextual factors in adolescent dating violence. Prevention Research, 7, 1–4.
    1. Morey EA (2002). A staff-based approach to high school dating violence prevention programming (Doctoral dissertation). Miami University, FL.
    1. Muthén LK, & Muthén BO (1998–2016). Mplus user’s guide (Vol. 7, 6th ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Author.
    1. Muthén LK, & Muthén BO (2010). Mplus user’s guide: Statistical analysis with latent variables: User’s guide. Los Angeles, CA: Author.
    1. Novick RM, & Isaacs J (2010). Telling is compelling: The impact of student reports of bullying on teacher intervention. Educational Psychology, 30, 283–296.
    1. Nunnally JC, & Bernstein I (1994). The assessment of reliability. Psychometric Theory, 3, 248–292.
    1. Oetting ER, Donnermeyer JF, Plested BA, Edwards RW, Kelly K, & Beauvais F (1995). Assessing community readiness for prevention. International Journal of the Addictions, 30, 659–683.
    1. Phillips M (1997). What makes schools effective? A comparison of the relationships of communitarian climate and academic climate to mathematics achievement and attendance during middle school. American Educational Research Journal, 34, 633–662. doi:10.2307/1163352
    1. Plested BA, Edwards RW, & Jumper-Thurman P (2006). Community readiness: A handbook for successful change. Fort Collins, CO: Tri-Ethnic Center for Prevention Research.
    1. Porter SR, Whitcomb ME, & Weitzer WH (2004). Multiple surveys of students and survey fatigue. New Directions for Institutional Research, 2004, 63–73.
    1. Rinehart SJ, & Espelage DL (2016). A multilevel analysis of school climate, homophobic name-calling, and sexual harassment victimization/perpetration among middle school youth. Psychology of Violence, 6, 213–222.
    1. Stanley L (2014). Community readiness for community change (2nd ed.). Fort Collins: Tri-Ethnic Center for Prevention Research, Colorado State University.
    1. Turner HA, Finkelhor D, Hamby SL, Shattuck A, & Ormrod RK (2011). Specifying type and location of peer victimization in a national sample of children and youth. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40, 1052–1067. doi:10.1007/s10964-011-9639-5
    1. Equal U.S. Employment Opportunity Commission (n.d.). Sexual harassment. Retrieved from
    1. Vagi KJ, Olsen EO, Basile KC, & Vivolo-Kantor AM (2015). Teen dating violence (physical and sexual) among US high school students: Findings from the 2013 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics, 169, 474–482. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2014.3577
    1. Yoon JS, & Barton E (2008). The role of teachers in school violence and bullying prevention In Miller TW (Ed.), School violence and primary prevention (pp. 249–275). New York, NY: Springer.
    1. Yoon JS, & Bauman S (2014). Teachers: A critical but overlooked component of bullying prevention and intervention. Theory Into Practice, 53, 308–314.
    1. Young AM, Grey M, & Boyd CJ (2009). Adolescents’ experiences of sexual assault by peers: Prevalence and nature of victimization occurring within and outside of school. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 38, 1072–1083.

Source: PubMed

Sponsor e collaboratori

Condizioni mediche

Interventi farmacologici

3
Sottoscrivi