Sexual Assault or Sexual Violence - Essay Example

? The problem of sexual violence is widespread in some sections of the society. In order to combat this problem, a holistic approach has to be taken by different people in the society. As such, this paper seeks to critically evaluate some of the contemporary approaches to sexual violence prevention that can be implemented in different parts of the world. This problem can be effectively addressed if all people are enlightened about its negative impacts on the society. The other important aspect is that people should also be enlightened about the benefits that can be derived from preventing sexual violence in different societies. Basically, sexual assault or sexual violence takes different forms and it can happen between people of the same sex or different sexes. This involves oral sex, deep kissing, sexual touching as well as sexual intercourse (Albury et al 2011). In most cases, when this act occurs, there is no consent from the other partner and this is the reason why it is treated as an offence which needs to be prevented. However, there are different measures that can be taken to prevent the cases of sexual violence. For instance, a research conducted in Australia entitled ‘Playing by the rules: researching, teaching and learning sexual ethics with young men in the Australian National Rugby League’ has shown that peer education especially among the males is very effective in as far as sexual violence prevention is concerned. This study is based on Michel Foucault’s ethical model of ‘care of the self, care of the other’ (Foucault 1990, 1997 as cited in Albury et al 2011). As a point of departure, it can be noted that any sex education program that is designed to enlighten people about different problems related to sexual violence should reflect the need for personal respect as well as respect for others. When there is respect between two different people, their sexual encounter is likely to be based on consent rather than force as is the case in certain instances. Sex can be enjoyed by both partners if they realise that they are important to each other. This mainly emanates from what Louisa Allen (2005) terms ‘a discourse of erotics’ (Albury et al 2011). There is need for different individuals to be enlightened about the significance of respecting other people since this can lead to enjoyable sexual encounter between different people. Peer education is also very important in addressing the problem of sexual violence since it enlightens the people about the dangers associated with this practice. Peer education programs that are designed to highlight the benefits of safe sex between different partners are likely to produce positive results since they will help people to learn by doing. Communication between different partners is another very important element that ought to be taken into consideration whenever the aspect of sex is concerned. All human beings have sexual desires but total pleasure can be derived if there is mutual understanding between the two people involved. This can be achieved through communication hence peer education programs are seen as effective in as far as enlightenment of people to have respect for other people’s sexual feelings is concerned. According to Brome et al (2004), the Rape Prevention and Education grant program should be the major contributor towards preventing the cases of sexual violence in different societies. The population-based approach is one of the principles that are seen as effective in dealing with the problem of sexual violence which is widespread in different parts of the society. According to this principle, the onus is put on the society where all the members of the society are given the responsibility to ensure that they prevent sexual violence from occurring in their respective communities. A community oriented approach encourages the entire community to participate in programs that are designed to enlighten all the people about the importance of preventing cases of sexual violence since these cause social upheaval as well as instability. As such, concerted efforts by all members of the society should be put in place in order to ensure that this problem is prevented from recurring again. A three step approach can be taken in order to prevent cases of sexual violence and these include the following: primary prevention, secondary as well as tertiary prevention (Brome et al, 2004). Whilst it is everyone’s responsibility to act in terms of preventing cases of sexual violence, the public health workers are supposed to take a leading role in implementing different strategies that are designed to curb this problem. The public health officials should take a leading role in educating people about the measures they can take to prevent sexual violence before it occurs (primary prevention). This can be achieved through peer education where sex information is disseminated to different people so that they are in a position to prevent themselves from falling victim to cases of cases of sexual violence. As the adage goes “prevention is better than cure,” it can be seen that this strategy is very effective in as far as the aspect of sexual violence is concerned. If people are aware of the impact of sexual violence, they are likely to take decisive measures that are meant to prevent sexual violence from happening in their societies. Secondary and tertiary prevention are designed to deal with short and long term consequences of sexual violence after it has occurred. Counselling is used as an effective strategy to help the victims to cope with the trauma they are likely to experience after the event. This also helps them to gain knowledge about the measures they can take in order to prevent similar situations from happening in the future. The victims of sexual violence can take a leading role in educating other people about the measures they can take in order to prevent cases of sexual violence from happening. Knowledge about the negative effects of sexual violence is very important and this is the reason why collective intervention strategies ought to be implemented by all members of the society since it is their responsibility to ensure that such practices are kept at bay since they destabilize peace and tranquillity in the society. Therefore, preventive measures ought to be adopted by all members of the society in order to promote harmony among them. Banyard, Eckstein & Moynihan (2010, p. 110) suggest that “measuring and understanding participants’ levels of understanding and motivation for engaging in prevention work will allow programs to be tailored to meet their specific needs.” For instance, the Bystander programme is seen as a very effective strategy that can be implemented in order to deal with the problem of sexual violence at primary level. According to Banyard, Eckstein & Moynihan (2010), this model is primarily concerned with increasing the community member’s receptiveness to prevention messages and training and supporting behaviour that is intended to prevent assaults from happening. As aptly stated in this model, the behaviour of people can be changed if they have relevant information about a particular subject. Indeed, issues related to sexual violence are problematic but the people need to know the details why this is seen as a widespread problem. This strategy is very effective since it seeks to empower the members of the society so that they can be proactive when dealing with this problem in their respective society. The readiness to change model is also effective in as far as the issue of sexual violence is concerned. The theory suggests that the success of prevention and intervention efforts designed to change behaviour of people mainly depends on the different messages and techniques used in different stages involved in transforming the way people behave (Banyard, Eckstein & Moynihan, 2010). Behaviour change among people goes stage by stage and this should be positively influenced by influential people who are concerned about changing the behaviour of people in as far as prevention of sexual violence is concerned. Changing behaviour of people is a process that goes stage by stage and this can be very effective if a holistic approach is taken to make sure that people have the correct message about a subject. Over and above, it can be observed that the issue of sexual violence is widespread in different sectors of the society. This problem has negative impacts on the victims of sexual violence as well as the society as a whole. In order to combat this problem, concerted efforts should be made by different members of the society since it is their responsibility to ensure that all the people enjoy their right to freedom and safety. Involvement of members of the community in programs that are designed to prevent sexual violence is one of the most effective ways of addressing this problem. Peer education can also play a significant role in minimising the chances of occurrence of cases of sexual violence in different societies. It has also been observed that a community based approach is also effective in combating the problem of sexual violence in different sectors of the society. Bibliography Albury, K. et al (2011). ‘Playing by the rules: researching, teaching and learning sexual ethics with young men in the Australian National Rugby League,’ Sex Education, 11:3, 339-351. Banyard, V.L., Eckstein, R.P. & Moynihan, M.M. (2010). ‘Sexual Violence Prevention: The Role of Stages of Change’ Journal of Interpersonal Violence. Volume 25, Number 1 111-135. Brome, M. Et al (2004). ‘Sexual violence prevention: Beginning the dialogue. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2004. Carmody, M. 2005. Ethical erotics: Rethinking anti-rape education. Sexualities 8, no. 4: 465– 80. Katz, J. (1995). Reconstructing masculinity in the locker room: Mentors in Violence Prevention. Harvard Educational Review, 65, 163-174. Zimmerman, M. A., & Rappaport, J. (1988). Citizen participation, perceived control, and psychological empowerment. American Journal of Community Psychology, 16, 725-750. Read More