Evaluation of the Safer Bars Prevention Program for Sexual Assault

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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The goal is to evaluate at three sites the implementation of the Safer Bars sexual assault prevention program.

Detailed Description
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Sexual violence perpetration is robustly associated with social contexts that support high levels of alcohol consumption. Beginning in 2007, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) developed and field-tested the Safer Bars curriculum with support from the CDC Rape Prevention and Education (RPE) funding program. Safer Bars is a bystander prevention training for staff of alcohol serving establishments. This application proposes a theory-driven, quasi-experimental effectiveness evaluation based at The University of Arizona. Our approach is significant because few evaluations have measured behavioral outcomes as well as the mediators that explain the observed changes in bystander behavior, or community-level outcomes associated with such interventions. Specific Aims: the specific aims are to: (1) Test a hypothesized mediational model of individual-level behavioral outcomes based on the Theory of Planned Behavior; (2) assess the effect of the program on bar-level risk management safety policies; and (3) examine the community-level impact of the Safer Bars program on reducing the number of police dispatches in areas with high densities of alcohol-serving establishments. Methods: A cluster-randomized trial design with crossover to randomize participants at the bar level into intervention and delayed intervention arms is proposed. Assessments are at baseline, completion of training, and at three and six months post-training. The sample bars will be selected within a three-mile radius of the three major Arizona universities, all of which have a high density of alcohol-serving establishments adjacent to campus. Our analytical model will assess a hypothesized moderated mediational model based in the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Outcomes of interest include: (a) the extent to which Behavioral Intent, the central construct of TPB, mediates bar staff performance of intended bystander behaviors at three-month follow-up and the extent to which this relationship is moderated by personal characteristics and bar environment; (b) the effects of the program on bar-level risk management patron safety policies; and, (c) the community-level effects as demonstrated by number of police dispatches in areas with a high density of alcohol-serving establishments at baseline and at the end of the project using GIS data. With evidence of efficacy, Safer Bars is feasible for scale-up without excessive financial burden in other states, which all receive RPE funding.

Official Title
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Safer Bars: A Cluster-Randomized Effectiveness Evaluation of Alcohol-related Sexual Violence Prevention Through Bar Staff Bystander Training

Conditions
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Sexual Assault Precursor Behavior

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Safer Bars


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Both an employee and a liquor server, security official, or owner/manager of a bar randomly selected to receive Safer Bars training immediately or after an assessment only phase of 4 months and that has not participated in the Safe Bars training in the past 12 months. Accepts healthy volunteers as defined by holding active employment. Employees may opt out of training and/or assessment. Exclusion Criteria: None. No liquor servers are allowed by law to be younger than 19 years old.

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 19 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Prevention
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Crossover Assignment
Interventional Model Description: A cluster-randomized trial design with crossover to randomize participants at the bar level into intervention and delayed intervention arms.
Masking: Single


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Other: Control<br>Delayed intervention: baseline and 3-month assessment prior to receiving the Safer Bars training. | Behavioral: Safer Bars<br>* Safer Bars, a primary perpetration prevention program based on a bystander intervention model and the theory of planned behavior. Bar staff are trained to recognize and respond to sexual aggression and its precursors among patrons.<br>|
| Experimental: Intervention<br>This arm with consist of bars randomized to have the Safer Bars training on their premises attended by all their liquor serving staff with assessment directly before and after training (pre/post), and at 3 and 6 months post-training follow-up. | Behavioral: Safer Bars<br>* Safer Bars, a primary perpetration prevention program based on a bystander intervention model and the theory of planned behavior. Bar staff are trained to recognize and respond to sexual aggression and its precursors among patrons.<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mean change from baseline in Bar Staff Skills Utilization Scale at 6 months | Self-reported survey items measuring actual behavior (action taken) in response to observation of sexual aggression in the bar environment will be analyzed to identify significant change from pre- and post-intervention in participants attending the Safer Bars training. | at baseline and up to 6 months | 
| Mean change from baseline in Bar Environment Prevention Practices Checklist at 3 months | Self-reported survey items completed by bar owners/managers will be analyzed to determine significant change from pre- and post-intervention to bar policies and/or physical environment attributes after participating in the Safer Bars training. | at baseline and up to 3 months | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mean change from baseline in regional rates of sexual assault reported to law enforcement at 5 years. | Geographic information system (GIS) mapping will be used to identify the number of police calls to areas with a concentration of trained bars compared to areas that did not receive training. | at baseline and up to 5 years |