Date of Conferral

2021

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Criminal Justice

Advisor

Robert Spivey

Abstract

Sexual assault violence affects many college students regardless of ethnicity, age, gender, race, or socio-economic background. There is a problem with reporting sexual assaults on college campuses to campus law enforcement officials. The purpose of this qualitative narrative study was to utilize the theory of andragogy and social theory to identify the factors that contribute to effective campus law enforcement training as it relates to responding to sexual assaults. The research questions addressing the existing gap in the literature examined whether campus law enforcement officers were receiving adequate training to assist a sexual assault victim and the strategies that are being used by training officers to ensure survivors of sexual assault are comfortable to discuss the events of the trauma. Data were collected from open-ended interviews with 20 certified police officers who work at universities. To analyze the data gathered, the participants’ interview responses were coded and themed for comparison. Results indicated that attending trauma-based sexual assault response training assisted participants with their bias toward sexual assault cases. The implications for positive social change include law enforcement officers acknowledging the existence of proper trauma-based training and how such training could improve investigations with survivors.

Download

Share

 
COinS