Date of Conferral

2021

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Criminal Justice

Advisor

John Walker

Abstract

As rapes and sexual assaults continue to occur on Historically Black College and University (HBCU) campuses, students remain apprehensive in reporting victimizations to law enforcement, despite the presence of sexual assault prevention and awareness programming. Research has shown that the lack of reporting to law enforcement is based on specific barriers. However, there is little knowledge on the perceptions of program facilitators and administrators on why victims decline to report to law enforcement. This qualitative phenomenological study gathered the perceptions of eight program facilitators and administrators on the effectiveness of rape and sexual assault prevention programming. The community readiness theoretical model provided the foundation to display the culture and dynamics of a university campus. The research questions examined the influence programming has on victim reporting to law enforcement and the capacity of campus community involvement. Through purposive sampling, participants' perceptions were gathered through semistructured interviews and coded through initial, axial, and theoretical coding. As a result, five emergent themes explained significant barriers and support mechanisms in program effectiveness. The results indicated that intimate programming, integrity, and trust in programming and personnel influenced student reporting to law enforcement officials. At the same time, education was imperative for the campus community in instilling and maintaining trust and integrity among students and social support. The results from this study can contribute to positive social change by providing program facilitators and campus administrators tools to implement impactful campus sexual assault programming for campus communities.

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