Prosocial Bystander Research Articles

The Role of Personality, Just World Beliefs, and Rape Myth Acceptance on Sexual Violence Bystander Intentions

ABSTRACT Socioecological models of bystander intervention suggest that a complex decision-making process is required for a prosocial bystander to intervene, starting with intrapersonal variables of cognition and personality. This study investigates how rape myth acceptance, personality, and just world beliefs impact the frequency of positive bystander intention. The study’s sample size consisted of 139 college students. Participants completed an online survey in which they read a vignette and indicated whether they would intervene as a bystander at 25 different instances throughout the vignette. Correlational analyses showed that agreeableness and openness were positively associated with prosocial bystander behavioral intention. A multiple regression analysis found only the belief that the world was a safe and good place was predictive of prosocial bystander behavioral intention. The results suggest that bystander intervention education programs should be revised to address just world beliefs.

Bystander responses in five-steps: Paving road to prosocial intervention to social exclusion through social-cognition.

To promote prosocial defending behaviours to social exclusion, it is important to understand the role of social-cognitive factors in bystanders' cognition, judgements and responses. The current research examined how social cognitive skills relate to different aspects of bystanders' cognition, judgements and responses in the five-step intervention model. Data were collected from 96 Turkish children and adolescents (Mage = 12.39 years, SD = 1.74, 59 girls, aged 10-17). Participants were presented with a hypothetical social exclusion scenario and their bystanders' cognition, judgements and responses were measured via five-step intervention model. Theory of mind (ToM), mind-reading motivation (MRM) and empathy were also measured as predictors. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that while ToM and MRM were more likely to predict bystanders' judgements and cognitions around social exclusion, empathy was also found to be correlated with behavioural aspects of bystanders' responses beside cognitions and judgements. Overall, our novel findings provide insight for intervention studies to promote prosocial bystanders' judgements, cognitions and responses by addressing different social-cognitive skills.

Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial of RealConsent2.0: a web-based intervention to promote prosocial alcohol-involved bystander behavior in young men

BackgroundSexual violence (SV) is a significant, global public health problem, particularly among young adults. Promising interventions exist, including prosocial bystander intervention programs that train bystanders to intervene in situations at-risk for SV. However, these programs suffer from critical weaknesses: (1) they do not address the proximal effect of alcohol use on bystander decision-making and (2) they rely on self-report measures to evaluate outcomes. To overcome these limitations, we integrate new content specific to alcohol use within the context of prosocial bystander intervention into an existing, evidence-based program, RealConsent1.0. The resulting program, RealConsent2.0, aims to facilitate bystander behavior among sober and intoxicated bystanders and uses a virtual reality (VR) environment to assess bystander behavior in the context of acute alcohol use.MethodsThis protocol paper presents the design of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) in which we evaluate RealConsent2.0 for efficacy in increasing alcohol- and non-alcohol-involved bystander behavior compared to RealConsent1.0 or to an attention-control program (“Taking Charge”). The RCT is being implemented in Atlanta, GA, and Lincoln, NE. Participants will be 605, healthy men aged 21–25 years recruited through social media, community-based flyers, and university email lists. Eligible participants who provide informed consent and complete the baseline survey, which includes self-reported bystander behavior, are then randomized to one of six conditions: RealConsent2.0/alcohol, RealConsent2.0/placebo, RealConsent1.0/alcohol, RealConsent1.0/placebo, Taking Charge/alcohol, or Taking Charge/placebo. After completing their assigned program, participants complete a laboratory session in which they consume an alcohol (target BrAC: .08%) or placebo beverage and then engage in the Bystanders in Sexual Assault Virtual Environments (BSAVE), a virtual house party comprising situations in which participants have opportunities to intervene. Self-reported bystander behavior across alcohol and non-alcohol contexts is also assessed at 6- and 12-months post-intervention. Secondary outcomes include attitudes toward, outcome expectancies for, and self-efficacy for bystander behavior via self-report.DiscussionRealConsent2.0 is the first web-based intervention for young men that encourages and teaches skills to engage in prosocial bystander behavior to prevent SV while intoxicated. This is also the first study to assess the proximal effect of alcohol on bystander behavior via a VR environment.Trial registrationClinicaltrials.gov, NCT04912492. Registered on 05 February 2021

The devil is in the detail: reconceptualising bystander reactions to online political hostility

ABSTRACT Online content moderation is often equated with platform-initiated take-downs and account suspensions. Counterspeech and other types of pro-social bystander behaviours present alternative approaches. They rely on the reactions of online bystanders to crowd-moderate hostile content. However, the current conceptual understanding of bystander reactions to hostility on social media is inadequate. What constitutes a reaction; what functions do specific reactions serve; and what audiences are reactions aimed at? Conceptual clarity is a prerequisite for studying the prevalence and consequences of pro-social bystander reactions. We therefore offer a novel unifying framework for conceptualising bystander reactions to online hostility: The Online Bystander Repertoire of Action (OBRA) Framework. This provides a foundation for future research on crowd-moderation, as it (1) combines insights across multiple research fields, (2) explicates the complex possible reactions beyond simplistic ‘reaction/no reaction´ distinctions and (3) draws attention to the degree of pro-sociality of bystander reactions – something that is often taken for granted.

Alcohol’s Effects on the Bystander Decision-Making Model: A Systematic Literature Review

ABSTRACT To decrease rates of sexual assault victimization, young people are encouraged to become involved when they see questionable sexual situations (i.e., be a prosocial bystander). Several factors can facilitate or inhibit intervention, including alcohol use. To inform bystander prevention programs that aim to address alcohol’s impact on bystanders, the current study reviewed research focused on alcohol use and bystander decision making. In December 2022, the authors searched published studies from six major electronic databases. Empirical articles were deemed eligible if they examined alcohol and the bystander decision-making model within the context of sexual assault, were based in the United States or Canada, and not an intervention study; 32 studies were included in the final review. Across 32 studies published between 2015–2022, 12 assessed the proximal effects of alcohol on bystander constructs and the additional studies examined the distal effects of alcohol on bystander constructs. Alcohol use appeared to impede earlier steps of the bystander decision-making model; however, alcohol use was associated with impeding and facilitating bystander decision making at the latter half of the model. Overall, alcohol use appears to be negatively rather than positively associated with bystander constructs. Bystander intervention programs may want to move beyond the narrative of alcohol as a risk factor for sexual assault and discuss how alcohol impairs a bystanders’ ability to recognize risk. More work is needed to ensure researchers assess alcohol consistently and with similar methods (number of drinks, subjective intoxication) to increase generalizability of findings to prevention programs.

Training bar staff to serve as active bystanders in the prevention of substance-involved sexual assault: a quasi-experimental field evaluation of behavioural effects of the Raise the Bar programme

ABSTRACT This study is a quasi-experimental field evaluation of Raise the Bar (RTB), a prevention programme that trains bar staff to intervene when witnessing risk factors for sexual assault. Previous studies have demonstrated effects of similar programmes on attitudes/knowledge among bar staff. Yet, no studies have examined the effects of such programmes on intervention behaviour. Using a waitlist control design, we conducted thirty observations at four trained and four waitlist control bars in a rural U.S. college town, enacting scripts that matched the prompts for intervention that were included in the RTB curriculum implemented at the trained bars. Findings indicated staff at trained bars were significantly more likely to intervene than staff at the waitlisted bars, but this effect attenuated when control variables were included in the model. RTB appears promising, but further research is needed to fully establish its effects on intervention behaviour before recommending wide-spread rollout. Practice Impact Statement Findings from this study suggest that training bar staff to act as prosocial bystanders has the potential to prevent alcohol-involved sexual assault among college students. Yet, it is important to note that, although staff at trained bars were more likely to intervene than staff at waitlist control bars, intervention was relatively rare and the effect of training attenuated when controlling for contextual factors. Stronger evidence of the effects of such training needs to accumulate before community agencies widely implement these programmes.

The Sohanjana Antibullying Intervention: Pilot Results of a Peer-Training Module in Pakistan

Although comprehensive school-wide interventions targeting bullying have proven effective, many schools, particularly those in low-to-middle income countries like Pakistan, lack the necessary resources to implement them. As a result, implementing cost-effective antibullying bystander programs that train students to become peer advocates is a promising approach for intervening in bullying incidents. Peer training in antibullying intervention involves training students to take on leadership roles and advocate for antibullying initiatives within their school communities. The aim of this study was to design, implement, and evaluate a peer-training module that was subsequently implemented in four schools (N = 38, boys = 26, girls = 12) in Pakistan. The aim was to raise awareness and prepare a team of peer mentors to effectively implement antibullying policies in educational institutions. Pre-post tests and participant feedback were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the peer-training program in increasing knowledge and awareness of bullying and the role of bystanders among trained peer mentors. To determine the impact of the peer mentor training on improving the school environment, data were also collected from students (N = 219, boys = 152, girls = 67) before and after the implementation of the program. The pilot implementation of the peer-training module was considered successful, indicating that the training was effective in improving the knowledge of peer mentors and could be used in a similar way in future cases. The results also showed a significant improvement in the development of prosocial bystanders. However, although improvements were observed in other aspects of the school environment, these did not reach statistical significance. The discussion section includes recommendations and explanations for differences based on gender and urban–rural factors. Suggestions are also made to improve the results for future applications.

Sexual and Gender Minority Men's Bystander Behaviors and Barriers in Response to Witnessing Minor Sexual Aggression.

Sexual and gender minority (SGM) men experience sexual assault victimization. Encouraging people to become involved when they witness high-risk sexual situations as a prosocial bystander is one preventative mechanism to address sexual assault victimization. However, research assessing the extent that SGM men will intervene when they witness a concerning male-to-male sexual situation and barriers that prevent intervention is lacking. We sought to address these gaps. SGM men (n = 323, Mage = 39.4, range 18-77) completed a web-administered survey. Participants were asked if they had witnessed a high-risk sexual situation and, if so, to describe how they intervened; if they did not intervene, they were asked to explain why not. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Nearly 50% (n = 157) of participants reported witnessing a situation that may require intervention, of those men 40% reported involvement. When SGM men intervened, their behaviors included direct and indirect verbal and nonverbal strategies. Reasons for not intervening included not appraising the situation as risky, not viewing it as their responsibility to intervene, or lacking the self-efficacy to act. SGM men reported similar barriers to intervention that heterosexual young adults encounter. Participants also provided a variety of intervention tactics that could be included in bystander intervention initiatives to increase their effectiveness and inclusivity. Additional efforts are needed to modify intervention initiatives at both the individual and community level.

Impacts of GlobalConsent, a Web-Based Social Norms Edutainment Program, on Sexually Violent Behavior and Bystander Behavior Among University Men in Vietnam: Randomized Controlled Trial.

Sexual violence against women is prevalent worldwide. Prevention programs that treat men as allies and integrate a bystander framework are emerging in lower income settings, but evidence of their effectiveness is conflicting. This study aimed to test the impact of GlobalConsent on sexually violent behavior and prosocial bystander behavior among university men in Vietnam. We used a double-blind, parallel intervention versus control group design with 1:1 randomization at 2 universities. A total of 793 consenting heterosexual or bisexual men aged 18-24 years who matriculated in September 2019 were enrolled and assigned randomly to GlobalConsent or an attention-control adolescent health education (AHEAD) program. GlobalConsent is an adapted, theory-based, 6-module web-based intervention with diverse behavior change techniques and a locally produced serial drama. AHEAD is a customized, 6-module attention-control program on adolescent health. Both the programs were delivered to computers and smartphones over 12 weeks. Self-reported sexually violent behaviors toward women in the prior 6 months and prosocial bystander behaviors in the prior year were measured at 0, 6, and 12 months. More than 92.7% (735/793) of men in both study arms completed at least 1 program module, and >90.2% (715/793) of men completed all 6 modules. At baseline, a notable percentage of men reported any sexually violent behavior (GlobalConsent: 123/396, 31.1%; AHEAD: 103/397, 25.9%) in the prior 6 months. Among men receiving GlobalConsent, the odds of reporting a high level (at least 2 acts) of sexually violent behavior at the endline were 1.3 times the odds at baseline. Among men receiving AHEAD, the corresponding odds ratio was higher at 2.7. The odds of reporting any bystander behavior at endline were 0.7 times the odds at baseline for GlobalConsent, and the corresponding odds ratio for AHEAD was lower at 0.5. Compared with a health attention-control condition, GlobalConsent has sustained favorable impacts on sexually violent behavior and prosocial bystander behavior among matriculating university men in Vietnam, who would otherwise face increasing risks of sexually violent behavior. GlobalConsent shows promise for national scale-up and regional adaptations. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04147455; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04147455. RR2-10.1186/s12889-020-09454-2.

Fostering college students’ responsibility as prosocial bystanders to sexual violence prevention: A meta-analysis of the Bringing in the Bystander program

Objective: To synthesize research examining the effectiveness of the sexual violence bystander program Bringing in the Bystander (BitB). Participants: The analytic sample included 2083 youth in the treatment group and 969 in the comparison group. Method: A search strategy that included a total of 45 search terms was applied to 28 electronic databases. Results: The systematic search yielded a final analytic sample of 14 evaluations, with 38 independent effect sizes calculated across four outcome measures: rape myth attitudes (n = 11), bystander efficacy (n = 11), bystander intentions (n = 11), and bystander behavior (n = 5). The BitB program produced significant, positive pooled effects on measures of rape-supportive attitudes, bystander efficacy, and bystander intentions. Conclusions: The overall results are promising and suggest that the BitB education program may be an effective tool for targeting sexual violence on campuses.

Relationships between Spirituality, Happiness, and Prosocial Bystander Behavior in Bullying-The Mediating Role of Altruism.

Positive psychology is vital in increasing prosocial behavior and reducing bullying. However, limited studies have analyzed the influence of positive personal characteristics on the prosocial behaviors of bystanders in bullying. The present study examined direct and indirect relationships between spirituality, happiness, altruism, and prosocial bystander behavior in bullying. Participants in this study were 685 students from Northwestern Mexico; 51% were male and 49% female, between 12 and 18 years old (M = 14.3 years, SD = 1.68). A structural equation model (SEM) was calculated. The results indicate that happiness and altruism were related to prosocial bystander behavior. Spirituality and happiness have an indirect relationship by increasing prosocial bystander behavior through the positive effects of altruism. The SEM explained 48% of the variance of the prosocial bystander. The implications for improving defensive behavior in bullying and reducing school violence are discussed.

Theoretical mediators of GlobalConsent: An adapted web-based sexual violence prevention program for university men in Vietnam

Sexual violence remains a global problem that disproportionately affects women. Though sexual violence interventions exist, few have been implemented in low- or middle-income countries, and none in Vietnam for young men. We adapted a sexual violence prevention intervention (RealConsent) developed for college men in the U.S. and conducted a randomized controlled trial of the adapted intervention (GlobalConsent) with college men in Vietnam. We assessed the effects of GlobalConsent on sexually violent behavior and prosocial bystander behavior, directly and through theoretically targeted mediators. The study design entailed a double-blind, parallel intervention-control-group design in two universities. Consenting heterosexual or bisexual men 18–24 years starting university in September 2019 (n = 793) completed a baseline survey and were assigned with 1:1 randomization to GlobalConsent or attention control. Both programs were web-based and lasted 12 weeks. Path analysis was performed to study the mediating effects of cognition/knowledge, beliefs/attitudes, affect, and efficacy/intention variables measured at six months on sexually violent behavior and prosocial bystander behavior measured at 12 months. In parallel multiple-mediator models, initiating GlobalConsent lowered the odds of sexually violent behavior mainly indirectly, via knowledge of sexual violence legality and harm and victim empathy and increased the odds of prosocial bystander behavior directly and indirectly, through knowledge of sexual violence legality and harm and bystander capacities. The efficacious direct and indirect effects of GlobalConsent support the cross-cultural applicability of its underlying theory of change and findings from mediation analyses of its sister program RealConsent, suggesting GlobalConsent's national scalability and adaptability across Southeast Asia.

When do bystanders get help from teachers or friends? Age and group membership matter when indirectly challenging social exclusion.

We examined developmental changes in British children’s (8- to 10-year-olds) and adolescents’ (13- to 15-year-olds, N = 340; Female N = 171, 50.3%) indirect bystander reactions (i.e., judgments about whether to get help and from whom when witnessing social exclusion) and their social-moral reasoning regarding their reactions to social exclusion. We also explored, for the first time, how the group membership of the excluder and victim affect participants’ reactions. Participants read a hypothetical scenario in which they witnessed a peer being excluded from a school club by another peer. We manipulated the group membership of the victim (either British or an immigrant) and the group membership of the excluder (either British or an immigrant). Participants’ likelihood of indirect bystander reactions decreased from childhood into adolescence. Children were more likely to get help from a teacher or an adult than getting help from a friend, whereas adolescents were more likely to get help from a friend than getting help from a teacher or an adult. For both indirect bystander reactions, children justified their likelihood of responding by referring to their trust in their teachers and friends. Adolescents were more likely to refer to group loyalty and dynamics, and psychological reasons. The findings support and extend the Social Reasoning Developmental (SRD) approach by showing the importance of group processes with age in shaping children’s judgments about how to respond indirectly by asking for help from others, when they are bystanders in a situation that involves exclusion. The findings have practical implications for combating social exclusion and promoting prosocial bystander behavior in schools.

Serious Game-based Psychosocial Intervention to Foster Prosociality in Cyberbullying Bystanders.

Bystanders of cyberbullying play an important role in the resolution of such situations and therefore, it is beneficial to promote self-regulation strategies that enable them to engage in prosocial behavior in these contexts. We propose that serious game-based psychosocial interventions with profile-based social agents can encourage prosocial bystander behavior in cyberbullying. A pilot quasi-experimental study with repeated and pre/post measurements was performed. We randomly assigned 194 7th and 8th graders to three conditions, namely experimental condition (n = 103, Mage = 13.91, SD = 1.02, 53.3% male); alternative condition (n = 37, Mage = 14, SD = 0.86, 54.1% female) and control condition (n = 54, Mage = 13.92, SD = 0.85, 50.9% female). An analysis of covariance showed that players revealed higher levels of prosocial assertive behavior when compared to other participants. Through multilevel modelling of longitudinal log-file data, we found that those who did not experience the game tended to interpret the cyberbullying situations more as non-serious, avoid assuming responsibility for intervening, and engage in aggressive behavior toward the victim. Players tended to support more and were less aggressive with victims from their in-group than those from the out-group. Insights for the development of games to promote prosocial behavior in bystanders of cyberbullying are presented.

Workplace incivility and bystanders’ helping intentions

PurposeUsing observational and experimental designs, the purpose of this study was to explore if the power relation between the offender and the victim of incivility and the level of perceived severity of the incivility were associated with bystanders’ intentions to help when witnessing workplace incivility.Design/methodology/approachIn Study 1, 160 participants completed a questionnaire where they described a recent uncivil incident they had witnessed, and completed measures of perceived severity and measures of their behavioural response as bystanders. In Study 2, 183 participants were randomised to read one of two vignettes (a manager being uncivil towards a subordinate or vice versa), and completed measures of perceived severity and of their motivation to intervene. The authors investigated whether the power relation between perpetrator and victim, and the perceived severity of the uncivil exchange, were associated with prosocial bystander behaviours in Study 1 and with motivation to defend the victim of incivility in Study 2.FindingsHigher perpetrator power was significantly associated with the incident being perceived as more severe, and higher perpetrator power was directly related to greater tendency to confront, and lower tendency to avoid, the perpetrator. Perpetrator power was indirectly associated with social support according to the perceived severity. A supervisor acting in an uncivil manner was rated as more severe than a subordinate acting in such a way. Perceived severity mediated the relationship between perpetrator power and the witness’s introjected, identified and intrinsic motivation to intervene.Originality/valueThis study extends previous work by investigating how the perpetrator’s power influences both the bystander’s prosocial behaviour and their motivation to defend the victim. Furthermore, previous research has not considered how perceptions of severity might mediate the relationship between power, behaviour and motivation.

Minority- and majority-status bystander reactions to, and reasoning about, intergroup social exclusion

We examined minority-status (non-Cypriot immigrant) and majority-status (Cypriot national) preadolescents’ bystander reactions to, and reasoning about, intergroup social exclusion (N = 367; Mage = 11.7 years; 50% Cypriot). Participants read one of three contexts where victim group identity was either non-Cypriot or Cypriot or a context where identity was not mentioned (i.e., control). Cypriot participants reported higher prosocial bystander responses when Cypriot victims were excluded compared with when non-Cypriot victims were excluded. Non-Cypriot participants reported equally high prosocial bystander responses for Cypriot and non-Cypriot victims, and both were higher than those for the control condition. When choosing to challenge social exclusion, non-Cypriot and Cypriot participants employed moral reasoning, focusing on concerns of welfare and equality. When choosing not to challenge the exclusion, Cypriot bystanders referenced personal choice (e.g., “I would not say anything; it is not my problem”) more when victim identity was salient. Non-Cypriot bystanders referenced personal choice only when not challenging exclusion in the control context. Cypriot participants with high levels of intergroup contact reported higher helping intentions toward non-Cypriot victims. These findings support and extend social reasoning developmental theory and highlight practical implications for tackling intergroup social exclusion in schools and maintaining positive intergroup relations.

Developmental differences in bystander behavior toward intergroup and intragroup exclusion.

This study examined prosocial bystander behavior in an online ball-throwing game (Cyberball), toward the exclusion of immigrants and nonimmigrant peers within intergroup and intragroup contexts. Participants were British children (8- to 10-year-olds) and adolescents (13- to 15-year-olds, N = 292; female N = 144). They were an ethnically diverse low-to-middle SES sample from a South Asian, White, Black, or mixed ethnic background. Participants played the game and witnessed a victim being excluded by peers. The victim's and excluders' group membership and status were highlighted in a prototypical (i.e., majority status peers excluding a minority status victim) or nonprototypical (i.e., minority status peers excluding a majority status victim) intergroup context. In intragroup contexts exclusion involved peers from the same group (i.e., majority status peers excluding a majority status victim or minority status peers excluding a minority status victim). Prosocial bystander behavior and "verbal" reactions to the exclusion were measured. Adolescents showed more prosocial bystander behavior than children when it was an intergroup context but not when it was an intragroup context. Only adolescents showed more prosocial bystander behavior when the intergroup context was prototypical compared to nonprototypical. Verbal reactions were related to prosocial bystander behavior and, with age, individuals increasingly verbally challenged the exclusion and the motivation behind it. The findings support the Social Reasoning Developmental (SRD) approach to social exclusion by showing that from late childhood into midadolescence bystander behavior is increasingly related to group membership and group status of the excluders and victim. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Gender-sensitive school environment and bullying victimization among adolescent girls: A multilevel study in Nepal.

BackgroundBullying is an understudied global social problem. While school-level factors are a recognized influence on bullying victimization, the elements of a ‘girl-friendly’ school that may reduce the risk of bullying victimization among girls and prevent dropout is understudied in lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study used baseline data from the evaluation of the Room-to-Read (RtR) Girls’ Education Program (GEP) in Nepal to assess the relationship of a conceptually grounded gender-equitable school (GES) index with girls’ risk of direct and relational bullying victimization, adjusted for potential confounders at the individual and school levels.MethodsThe school sample included all 24 RtR GEP schools and 25 community schools attended by girls in a comparison cohort, representing 729 grade six girls with complete outcome data. We employed multilevel negative binomial regression to assess the relationship between the GES score (higher scores indicate greater support for girls), and girls’ risk of peer victimization, controlling for individual- and school-level covariates.ResultsOn average, girls reported 2.84 direct victimizations and 0.27 relational victimizations in the prior week. The first component of the GES index, a generalized measure of school-level support for girls, showed a significant negative relationship with weekly relational bullying victimization in models with all school- and individual-level covariates. In the full model, a one-point higher score on the generalized GES component accounted for a 26% lower risk of relational bullying victimization in the prior week.ConclusionSchool-level policies, practices, and pedagogy designed to support girls may reduce their exposure to relational aggression, a form of bullying that girls most often perpetrate. In LMICs, the school may be an ideal place to raise awareness about the types and effects of peer bullying and to promote prosocial bystander behavior. Further research is needed to identify factors related to other forms of bullying.

Pro-social bystander sexual violence prevention workshops for first year university students: perspectives of students and staff of residential colleges

ABSTRACT Bring in The Bystander is a workshop programme that was developed to tackle the problem of sexual violence on university campuses by taking a community values approach. In this paper, we present quantitative and qualitative findings from a process of piloting the programme at a university in Aotearoa/New Zealand. The study was designed as a parallel QUAN-qual approach, utilising a survey and focus group discussions as data collecting methods. The analyses revealed an increase in bystander efficacy among students who attended the workshop and a decrease in the control group, but no significant changes were detected in application of bystanding behaviour. Qualitative analysis of the focus group transcripts with the workshop participants indicated an increase in the BITB participants’ knowledge and understanding related to sexual violence; it also provided insight on factors that can influence participants’ bystanding behaviour, suggesting possible explanations for how to improve the connection of bystanding information with bystanding behaviour. The change in the student knowledge and attitudes was also noticed and highlighted by the residential college staff members.

Effects of Humor and Bystander Gender on Responses to Antigay Harassment

ABSTRACT Individuals perceived to be LGBTQ+ are at risk for harassment. Although bystanders who confront harassers and support targets of harassment may promote inclusivity, the use of humor to express antigay harassment may inhibit prosocial bystander intervention. Non-LGBTQ+ undergraduates (N = 326) were randomly assigned to respond to a scenario in which a male peer disparaged another peer with antigay comments involving either the presence or absence of humor. Results showed that bystanders reported less intent to intervene in the presence of humor than in its absence. Bystander gender moderated perceptions of humorous harassing speech but not intent to intervene. In the presence of humor, men but not women perceived antigay harassment as more amusing; they also perceived the harassing peer more favorably. To promote ally behavior, bystander education may explicitly address critical thinking about the functions and effects of disparaging humor.