Do Pornography Use Factors Affect Willingness to Engage in Bystander Intervention Among College Students?

• In Event: Sexual Assault in Educational Settings

Abstract

While sexual assaults on college campuses continue to be a problem across the U.S., bystander intervention is one of the most endorsed ways of solving this issue. Programs teaching college students how to intervene in a scenario when someone may be or is being assaulted have been implemented on every Title IX campus in the country. Despite the implementation of these programs, the rate of sexual assaults on these campuses is still rising (Cantor et al., 2019). One factor that may be playing a role in the lack of bystander intervention is pornography use. Pornography use in this digital age is nearly guaranteed among college males, with increasing rates of pornography use among college females as well. There is a limited body of research exploring the relationship between pornography use and bystander intervention but what has been examined shows a possible relationship. This study is meant to fill the gap in the research by further examining pornography use variables and its impact on self-reported willingness to intervene in a bystander scenario. This study implements a quasi-experimental design. Data collection is ongoing with a current sample of 252 men and women college students, and a goal of 400.

Authors

• Kirstin Jacobs, Sam Houston State University

• Holly A. Miller, Sam Houston State University