Research
Sexual violence (SV) toward women, often perpetrated by men, in the U.S. is alarmingly common – one in two women experience some form of SV in their lifetime. Due to the prevalence of SV, researchers have spent over three decades trying to identify the causes of SV and ways to reduce the negative consequences for survivors. While findings from this research have been translated into practice and policy, SV rates remain high. As a result, transformative theoretical frameworks and corresponding methodological and analytic approaches are needed. Toward that end, we use theories from social psychology, feminism, public health, and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies to answer two related questions in our program of research:
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1) When and why is SV perpetrated by men, and
2) what are the consequences of SV for victims?
Since similar processes underlie different types of SV (Gervais & Eagan, 2017), we examine these questions in multiple ways including sexual assault, uninvited sexual attention, and sexual harassment. Our methodological approach is multi-pronged, using quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods. In addition to generating new knowledge, we are committed to sharing that knowledge to facilitate social justice and guide policymakers and practitioners with empirically-based actions that are survivor-focused and trauma-informed. Check out some of our current and past projects below!
Current Research Projects
We are currently working on multiple projects dealing with issues of sexual violence (SV), from a project working to better understand the mechanisms behind WHY some men choose to perpetrate SV to an applied project working to educate STEM students on how to both recognize and combat gender bias. We have collaborators from Sonoma State University, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and Clark University. Check out some of our current work by clicking the button below!
Upcoming Research Projects
Even though we have multiple exciting projects currently in progress, we also have some future research avenues we plan to investigate. One main area we plan to expand into is sexual violence experienced by queer and gender-diverse communities. This population is heavily affected by sexual violence yet is particularly understudied and underrepresented in research. Check out some resources in the link below!
