Abstract
Statement of the Problem
This study was conducted to contribute to the growing body of research about abuse prevention education. Non-physical forms of abuse are mainly glossed over by larger society despite there being authentic physical, emotional, and mental effects. There currently exists a gap between what is known about abuse and the current practices that are being taught to combat and identify abuse. It was the researcher’s goal to not only shed light upon some non-physical forms of abuse plaguing society today but also exemplify how education can be an exemplary tool to stop abuse at its root.
Sources of Data
Participants were students who attended a Northern California University and were enrolled in various Education courses. The researcher created three surveys to fully assess the effectiveness of an all-encompassing abuse prevention educational seminar. Both quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed from the three surveys designed. Quantitative data was gathered via the pre and post-surveys that followed a Likert-style scale. Qualitative data was included for the student participants to fully express their ideas about non-physical forms of abuse and their perceived shift in sentiments.
Conclusions Reached
Quantitative findings suggest a stark shift in attitudes from pre-test to post-test following student participation in the research seminar. According to the percentage of movement calculated by the researcher, the participants expressed an overwhelming shift in attitudes and feelings of confidence following the seminar presentation. Qualitative findings confirm the stark change in sentiments, with many participants stating that they did not realize how severe nor pervasive of an issue non-physical forms of abuse are.