Media Contact
Sam Fahmy
Director of Communications
School of Public Health
[email protected]
$3.5 Million Project Conducted Through GSU’s National Center for Sexual Violence Prevention
ATLANTA — A new study led by researchers at Georgia State University seeks to better understand the roles that alcohol misuse and peer influences play in the perpetration of sexual assault among Marines. The findings will lay the foundation for effective, evidence-based sexual assault prevention programs.
The five-year project, funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism for up to $3.5 million, is led by Associate Professor Amanda Gilmore in the School of Public Health and Professor Julianne Flanagan in the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine.
By combining traditional surveys, a series of assessments delivered through a smartphone app and scenarios that mimic real-world interactions, Gilmore and her colleagues will better understand the associations between alcohol misuse and risk factors for sexual violence perpetration. The study also will explore how peers influence — and can be leveraged to prevent — alcohol-involved sexual violence.
“By understanding how alcohol use influences the potential for sexual assault perpetration among Marines, we can develop targeted interventions that leverage the tight-knit military culture to help service members protect each other,” said Gilmore, who directs the National Center for Sexual Violence Prevention at GSU. “Our goal is to help ensure a safe environment for all military personnel while also improving force readiness.”
Alcohol has long been associated with increased risk of sexual violence perpetration and victimization. Previous studies have found that heavy episodic drinking, more commonly known as binge drinking, is especially prevalent among Marines, with many believing that it is part of military culture.
The new study builds on previous work conducted by Gilmore with civilians as well as service members. The web-based program she created, Positive Change, has been shown to reduce sexual assault victimization and increase bystander intervention among college students. In addition to conducting research, the National Center for Sexual Violence Prevention houses an NIH-funded doctoral training program focused on the intersection of alcohol and violence prevention.
In addition to Gilmore and Flanagan, co-investigators on the study are Ruschelle Leone, visiting associate professor at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus; Rachel Tomko, associate professor at the MUSC College of Medicine; Anna Jaffe, associate professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine, as well as consultant Kristen Walter, adjunct assistant professor at the San Diego State University School of Public Health.
— Story by Sam Fahmy
Research reported in this news release was supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health under award number 1R01AA031667-01A1. One hundred percent (up to $3.5 million) of the total project costs are financed with federal money. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.