Assessment of Psychosocial Programs to Prevent Sexual Violence During Adolescence

Abstract

ImportanceSexual violence is a public health problem that affects adolescents globally. To our knowledge, no meta-analysis of prevention programs for adolescent sexual violence has been conducted.ObjectiveTo perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials evaluating the efficacy of psychosocial programs for preventing sexual violence during adolescence.Data SourcesPeer-reviewed articles published in English were searched in PsycINFO, ERIC, PsycArticles, PubMed, and Web of Science databases through December 2021.Study SelectionStudies were included if they were randomized clinical trials assessing the efficacy of a psychosocial prevention program targeting sexual violence and delivered to adolescents aged 10 to 19 years.Data Extraction and SynthesisPreferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) guidelines were followed to identify studies. The quality of individual studies was assessed with the Revised Cochrane Collaboration Risk of Bias tool. A random-effects model was used to pool odds ratios (ORs). Exploratory subgroup and metaregression analyses were performed to evaluate the associations between moderators and effect sizes.Main Outcomes and MeasuresPrimary outcomes were perpetration of sexual violence, experience of sexual violence, and a composite measure of any perpetration or experience of sexual violence.ResultsData were analyzed from 20 trials involving 37 294 adolescents. Compared with control conditions, prevention programs were associated with a significant reduction in the perpetration (OR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73-0.95; P = .005) and experience (OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.78-0.98; P = .02) of sexual violence, as well as a 13% significant reduction of any sexual violence (OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.78-0.97; P = .009). Exploratory analyses of the combination of program setting and participant age indicated that programs that were delivered in school settings and targeted at adolescents aged 15 to 19 years yielded significantly larger effect sizes (Cochran Q = 4.8; P = .03) compared with programs that were either delivered outside of a school setting or targeted younger adolescents. Quality assessment of trials revealed concerns of risk of bias across several included studies.Conclusions and RelevanceIn this meta-analysis, evidence suggested that prevention programs were associated with reducing adolescent sexual violence, especially when implemented at school with older adolescents. However, there is need for additional high-quality research. Prevention of adolescent sexual violence remains understudied compared with other similarly important public health prevention targets.

Legal intervention program for the prevention of sexual violence in an Elementary School

“…Además, la apreciación positiva de los participantes sobre el apoyo emocional recibido resalta la importancia de brindar atención holística a las víctimas, más allá de los aspectos legales. En conjunto, estos hallazgos indican la necesidad de desarrollar programas integrales de atención legal en instituciones educativas que aborden las múltiples necesidades de las víctimas (Piolanti, Jouriles y Foran, 2022).…”

“…Diversos estudios previos proporcionan una base de conocimiento sobre cómo se han abordado estas cuestiones en diferentes partes del mundo. Se destacan investigaciones realizadas en Maryland (Estados Unidos) (Piolanti, Jouriles y Foran, 2022), Malasia (Yusof, Norhayati y Azman, 2022), Japón (Nagamatsu, Ooshige, Sonoda, Niina y Hara, 2021), Perú (Alvarez y Machaca, 2019) y Colombia (Ramírez, 2019), que aportan perspectivas valiosas sobre la eficacia de los programas implementados en contextos educativos diversos.…”

Now Is the Time to Invest in Child and Adolescent Sexual Violence Prevention Programming

“…In summary, the findings from Piolanti et al support the call for increased funding and implementation of effective, evidence-based sexual violence prevention programs with children and adolescents. The study also provides reason to fund the development and testing of programming that may be more scalable, such as those delivered via technology.…”

“…The findings of Piolanti et al 1 suggest that sexual violence prevention programs may be effective in reducing the perpetration and the experience (ie, as a target of the perpetration) of sexual violence for adolescents age 10 to 19 years. This is one of the first meta-analyses of adolescent sexual violence prevention programs that address behaviors within as well as outside intimate partnerships.…”

“…As reflected both in the methods of the Piolanti et al study as well as the definition articulated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, sexual violence reflects a broad range of unwanted behaviors. Important gaps in the literature include understanding both downstream impacts as well as the cost benefit of sexual violence prevention programs that target behaviors across the range of sexual violence.…”