259719 You the Man: Longitudinal study examining a theatre program's role in bystander engagement and violence prevention

Tuesday, October 30, 2012 : 4:50 PM - 5:10 PM

Cathy Plourde, MA , Add Verb Productions, Westbrook College of Health Professions, University of New England, Portland, ME
Add Verb, a program of the University of New England, has presented YOU THE MAN to US high schools and colleges since 2002. YOU THE MAN is a 30-minute play professionally performed by one actor featuring five male characters whose lives are impacted by violence committed by other men around them. The play is at the center of a school-based educational program geared to engage bystander prevention for interpersonal violence and sexual assault. The premise of the play, as presented in context of an empowerment/educational process, is to model realistic characters and scenarios as to engage the community in violence prevention, and to provide a critical opportunity for local violence prevention agencies to interact with students. Emphasis is on bystander accountability, while honoring the voice and safety of survivors. Increasingly arts and media are used to communicate with youth around violence issues, but there is very little data as to efficacy, and there is a valid concern about making things worse, marginalizing victims, or overgeneralization. With funding from the Bingham Program, a longitudinal study follows 9th graders with pre and post surveys as well as focus groups to examine the programs influence on the likelihood of bystander engagement in particular and school climate overall. At the APHA 2012 meeting research and early findings from 2 years of data will be shared. This study will inform best practices for theatre as an evidence-based educational tool in the area of violence prevention specifically, and using theatre in youth-based health education in general.

Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Other professions or practice related to public health
Public health or related education

Learning Objectives:
1. Explain the study design for the longitudinal study examining the impact of the educational program "You the Man" on bystander engagement with interpersonal violence and sexual assault in Maine high schools. 2. Describe changes inspired by the program and the community action/education guide on stakeholders, including school programming, advocating agencies, and individuals. 3. Analyze data from the first two years of the study.

Keywords: Violence Prevention, School-Based Programs

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am Director of Add Verb Productions and Assistant Professor of Integrated Health Sciences, Westbrook College of Health Professions holding a MA in Theatre and Social Change and is a co-Investigator in a University of New England IRB-approved longitudinal study for this project. I have presented nationally and internationally about theatre for health and wellness education since 1997 including Collaborationg Across Borders, Toronto InterProfessional Education Collaborative, AACOM, ATHE, NEDA and others.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 4425.1: School Violence and Safety