Red Flags of Dating Violence Among College Students: From the Perspective of Campus Service Providers in Costa Rica Señales de alerta de la violencia en el noviazgo entre estudiantes universitarios: Desde la perspectiva de los proveedores de servicios estudiantiles en Costa Rica

Dating violence has negative consequences on the well-being of college students. Thus, it is imperative that providers of student-oriented services can detect and respond to dating violence. Although many universities worldwide have implemented dating violence screenings protocols, they are not yet common practice in Costa Rica. As a result, there is inadequate recognition of this problem, so it remains unaddressed. Therefore, this qualitative descriptive study explored the perceptions of professionals working in student-oriented services in Costa Rica about dating violence warning signs exhibited by college students. 29 providers from four public universities were interviewed, and three main areas were identified from a content analysis: the process that providers follow to identify dating violence, the visible signs that victims display, and the self-protective strategies that victims employ to hide their abuse. These findings are important for researchers and practitioners wanting to improve dating violence screening instruments for the Central American context.

Resumen

La violencia en el noviazgo tiene consecuencias negativas en el bienestar de los estudiantes universitarios. Por lo tanto, es determinante que los proveedores de servicios orientados a los estudiantes universitarios puedan detectar y responder a la violencia en el noviazgo. Aunque muchas universidades en todo el mundo han implementado protocolos de detección de violencia en el noviazgo, aunque aún no es una práctica común en Costa Rica. Como resultado, el reconocimiento de este problema es insuficiente y sigue sin abordarse. Por lo tanto, este estudio descriptivo cualitativo exploró las percepciones de los profesionales que trabajan en servicios orientados a los estudiantes universitarios en Costa Rica sobre las señales de alerta de violencia en el noviazgo manifestadas exhibidas por los estudiantes universitarios. Se entrevistó a 29 proveedores de cuatro universidades públicas. A partir de un análisis de contenido se identificaron tres temas principales: el proceso que los proveedores siguen para identificar la violencia en el noviazgo, los signos visibles que muestran las víctimas y las estrategias de autoprotección que las víctimas emplean para ocultar su abuso. Estos hallazgos son importantes para los investigadores y profesionales que desean mejorar los mecanismos de detección temprana de la violencia en el noviazgo para el contexto universitario.

International networking guidelines for nurses

ABSTRACT

Basic guidelines are necessary for international networking in nursing. This article outlines the benefits of and strategies for networking, highlights the social and behavioral considerations of social networking, and presents potential guidelines for further discourse.

Optimizing the US-AUDIT for Alcohol Screening in U.S. College Students

This study examined cutoff scores on the new (2014) US-AUDIT (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test), adapted for U.S. standard drinks. No studies have examined optimal cutoff scores on the US-AUDIT for college students. 250 undergraduates (65% men) completed the US-AUDIT. At-risk drinkers reported at least four binge drinking episodes per week. Likely alcohol use disorder was assessed with a self-report diagnostic measure. Using the Youden method, the ideal cutoff to identify at-risk drinkers for the US-AUDIT was 5 for men (sensitivity = .93, specificity = .96) and 6 for women (sensitivity = .77, specificity = .86); and to identify likely alcohol use disorder was 13 for men (sensitivity = .69, specificity = .81) and 8 for women (sensitivity = .83, specificity = .80). Cutoffs were lower than the original AUDIT. Different US-AUDIT cutoffs for men and women should be used for likely alcohol use disorder, which may reflect differences in drinking quantity and frequency. Empirical guidelines for alcohol screening with the new US-AUDIT may be used to enhance research or identification of at-risk drinkers in college settings, or for college students in primary care or other health care settings.

Health education needs of intimate partner violence survivors: Perspectives from female survivors and social service providers

OBJECTIVE

To explore the health education needs and learning preferences of female intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors in a social service agency located in South Florida, United States.

DESIGN AND SAMPLE

An exploratory two-phase sequential mixed-methods study was completed through semistructured interviews with social service providers (n = 10), followed by a survey with predominately female IPV survivors (n = 122, 98.4%).

MEASURES

Data obtained from interviews with social service providers were analyzed through conventional thematic content analysis. Data from interviews were used in developing a health survey completed by IPV survivors and analyzed utilizing descriptive statistics, chi-square tests and t tests.

RESULTS

Three themes emerged from interviews including multidimensional health needs, navigating barriers to health care, and self-improvement specific to survivors of intimate partner violence. Survey results indicated that depression and self-esteem were the health education needs of highest priority. Demographic characteristics, including age and language use, were significantly associated to preferred methods of learning, p < .05.

CONCLUSIONS

IPV survivors present with various health education needs. Current study findings can inform public health nurses in developing interventions or health-based programs for female IPV survivors in social service agency settings.

Changing attitudes and perceptions of Hispanic men ages 18 to 25 about rape and rape prevention

This exploratory study was designed to test the effectiveness of Foubert's intervention, The Men's Program, on a sample of 18- to 25-year-old Hispanic men who are not enrolled at a University or College. We explored participants' perceptions of, reactions to, and experience of the program. The information collected will be used to adapt the program to this specific population in order to increase cultural relevancy and specificity and create lasting attitudinal change. Three groups of six-eight Hispanic males (n = 22) were exposed to the intervention program. The Bystander Attitude Scale and the Rape Attitude and Beliefs Scale were administered as pre- and post-test measures. A short focus group was conducted to ask the men about their experience of the intervention. Analysis showed a significant increase in participants' willingness to intervene (p = 0.005) along with a decrease in rape myth acceptance in four of the five subscales (Justice p = 0.03; Status p = 0.004; Tactics p = 0.04; and Gender p = 0.002) after exposure to the intervention. Analysis of focus group material yielded several interesting themes about knowledge of rape, family and culture, perceptions of women, and the program material. This study showed promising change in attitudes about rape beliefs and bystander behaviors in Hispanic males exposed to an educational intervention. Through the information obtained, a cultural adaption from the analysis of the focus group data will be implemented during Phase 2 of the study. The adapted intervention will be tested before, after, and 1- and 3-months post-intervention to test whether the change in attitudes and behaviors are sustainable over time.