Applying the public health approach to sexual violence primary prevention in Indiana: Assessing the needs of our communities

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been applying the public health approach to national violence prevention efforts for many years. However, this approach is a newer paradigm for community level violence prevention efforts, particularly those focused on preventing sexual violence (SV). The initial step of the public health approach is to define and monitor the problem, using data (both quantitative and qualitative) to understand baseline and trends of violence statistics and indicators of risk factors. The Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence (ICADV), utilizing Rape Prevention and Education funding, assisted eight community organizations around Indiana with assessing the SV risk factors of their communities. These communities range from rural to urban, with representative populations from all geographic regions of the state. Data was collected through the collection of secondary data, key informant interviews, community surveys, focus groups, and observation methods on risk factors across the socioecological model (i.e., poverty and economic factors, family environment, psychosocial factors and drug/alcohol abuse). ICADV compiled the findings of participating communities into one statewide profile of SV risk factors in Indiana. Based on their findings, these eight communities are now currently developing SV primary prevention plans to address the specific risk factors affecting their communities.