https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6214-223X
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Abstract
Objective: Much is known about how alcohol increases the risk of sexual assault or intimate partner violence victimization during college. This research qualitatively explores perceptions about how alcohol influences disclosures about these events to informal supports. Participants: Participants included college students who received a disclosure wherein they or the survivor were drinking during the disclosure (n = 81). Methods: Responses were coded with regard to who was drinking and whether the effect of drinking during the disclosure was perceived as positive, negative, mixed, or neutral/none. Results: Participants perceived alcohol to have both positive (e.g., increasing the likelihood of discussing difficult topics) and negative (e.g., cognitive impairment increased negative emotions) effects on disclosures. Conclusion: Prevention and intervention efforts should identify targeted strategies (e.g., remembering one or two easy and helpful phrases; revisiting the topic again while sober) to help survivors and disclosure recipients have constructive conversations in the presence of alcohol.
Acknowledgments
The authors owe a great deal of gratitude to the participants for the time and energy spent on this study. Thank you to Tori Oestmann and Samantha Moore who coded the data. We would also like to thank Jania Marshall, Caroline Leyva, Robert Eckstein, and Jane Stapleton for their contributions to the larger study, as well as the 20+ research assistants and program facilitators at University of New Hampshire, including Prentiss Phillips, Victoria Stanek, Allison Depuy, Drew Doyle, Lianna Nawn, Meredith Baker, Nicole Westfall, Lauren Flynn, Hannah Nordstorm, Kristina Kalla, Michael Green-Kelsey, Abi Beaulieu, Eleonora Giovine, Ross Jones, and Sarah Russo. Without these individuals, this project would not have been possible.
Authors’ contributions
All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Data collection performed largely by Emily Waterman. Coding of responses performed by Lindsey Rodriguez and Emily Waterman. Background written by all authors. Analysis performed by Lindsey Rodriguez. Method section written by Emily Waterman. All authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Conflicts of interest disclosure
The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of the University of New Hampshire.
Data availability statement
Data is available upon request.