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NCT Number: NCT06058455

An Evaluation of an Online Sexual Assault Resistance Program (IDEA3)

The goal of this randomized trial is to test whether the Internet-Delivered Enhanced Assess, Acknowledge, Act (IDEA3) sexual assault resistance education intervention reduces sexual violence victimization in undergraduate women.

Participants in the intervention group will be asked to attend four three-hour group sessions of a sexual assault resistance program called IDEA3 with a partner, as well as fill out a number of surveys. Participants in the control group will be asked to attend a one-hour consent workshop with a partner and fill out surveys.

Researchers will compare sexual assault victimization between the groups in the one year following the intervention.

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Key information

Conditions

Sexual Assault

Age range

17 year–24 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada

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About this study

Sexual violence (SV), which occurs along a continuum from unwanted sexual contact to rape, is common among young women, with some 40% experiencing sexual assault during their time in college. Given the numerous negative consequences associated with SV, developing effective SV prevention and resistance programs for young adult women is critical for reducing victimization and improving health outcomes for adolescent girls. The Enhanced Assess, Acknowledge, Act (EAAA) sexual assault resistance program has been shown to substantially reduce rates of SV (50% for rape and attempted rape) in young women attending university (ages 17-24). The purpose of the current study is to test the efficacy of the newly adapted Internet-Delivered Enhanced Assess, Acknowledge, Act (IDEA3) program in reducing sexual violence victimization among undergraduate women over 12 months of follow-up. IDEA3 is a 12-hour psychoeducational intervention that provides information, skills, and practice aimed at a) decreasing the time needed for young women to assess sexually coercive situations as dangerous and to take action, b) reducing emotional obstacles to taking action, c) increasing the use of the most effective methods of verbal and physical self-defense, and d) identifying sexual and relationship values and boundaries and reinforcing the right to defend them.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • 1st- and 2nd-year university students at one of the 4 sites
  • female-identifying students
  • students between ages of 17-24
  • able to attend one of the scheduled program groups
  • able and willing to be matched with another eligible student

Exclusion criteria

  • None

Treatment and study plan

IDEA3 Sexual Assault Resistance Intervention

Behavioral

Internet-delivered EAAA (IDEA3), adapted from an in-person sexual assault resistance education intervention: Enhanced Assess, Acknowledge, Act (EAAA) intervention that was found in a randomized trial to reduce sexual assault victimization by about 50% at follow-up. IDEA3 designed for female identifying university students and focuses on resisting sexual assault committed by males in 4, 3-hour units: 1-ASSESS builds ability to detect risk with male acquaintances and develop risk reduction strategies. 2-ACKNOWLEDGE explores overcoming emotional barriers preventing women from acknowledging risk and employing effective resistance strategies with males. 3-ACT shows effectiveness of resistance strategies and teaches verbal and physical self-defense in common situations. 4-RELATIONSHIPS & SEXUALITY adapts the Our Whole Lives curriculum to increase women's comfort in talking about sex/sexuality and identify sexual values/desires.

Consent Workshop

Behavioral

Participant pairs assigned to the control arm will receive a 60-minute session consisting of a 60-min interactive, virtual consent workshop. The workshop will include information on a) what consent is, including the idea that consent is about bodily autonomy and applies to interactions beyond sex, b) how to give and ask for consent, and c) examples of what it looks like to ask for and give/not give consent. This presentation will be given by a well-trained Research Assistant.

Primary outcomes

  1. Completed rape

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    The Sexual Experiences Survey Short Form Victimization (SES-SFV) will be used to measure the primary sexual assault outcomes. Completed rape will have occurred when a participant indicates she has had at least one experience of threatened, forced, or drugged completed (not attempted) sexual activity (oral, anal, or vaginal intercourse - answered 'once' or more to any of 9 questions (2c, 2d, 2e, 3c, 3d, 3e, 4c, 4d, or 4e) in the period between the baseline measurement and the 12-month survey measurement.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Attempted rape

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    The SES-SFV will also be used to measure secondary sexual assault outcomes: Attempted rape will have occurred when a participant indicates she has had at least one experience of threatened, forced, or drugged attempted (not completed) sexual activity (oral, anal, or vaginal intercourse - answered 'once' or more to any of 9 questions (5c, 5d, 5e, 6c, 6d, 6e, 7c, 7d, or 7e) in the period between the baseline and the 12-month survey.

  2. Other Forms of Sexual Assault

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    The SES-SFV will also be used to measure other sexual assault outcomes:

    Non-penetrative forced sexual contact will have occurred when a participant indicates she has had at least one such experience of non-penetrative sexual contact by any perpetrator strategy - answered 'once' or more to any of 5 questions (1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e).

    Completed sexual coercion will have occurred when a participant indicates she has had at least one experience of coerced (not forced) completed sexual activity (oral, anal, or vaginal intercourse - answered 'once' or more to any of 6 questions (2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b).

    Attempted sexual coercion will have occurred when a participant indicates she has had at least one experience of coerced (not forced) attempted (not completed) sexual activity (oral, anal, or vaginal intercourse - answered 'once' or more to any of 6 questions (5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b).

Other outcomes

  1. Self-defense self-efficacy

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    Measured with a questionnaire to assess changes from baseline in women's confidence that they could defend themselves if confronted with a sexual assault situation.

  2. Perception of personal risk

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    A single item will be used to measure women's perception of their personal risk of sexual assault by male acquaintances.

  3. Detection of risk cues

    Time frame: 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    Participants' ability to detect risk in hypothetical assault scenarios will be assessed at the first time point by a measure in which participants read a scenario and then complete a subscale assessing their perception of the situation. At the other time points a measure will be used in which an acquaintance (6-mos) and stranger (12-mos) vignette unfolds line by line and the point at which participants indicate they would become uncomfortable and when they would leave the scenario are recorded. Receiving the same scenario/vignette more than once invalidates the measures.

  4. Willingness to use Effective Self-Defense Strategies

    Time frame: 1-week post-intervention

    Using the same vignettes participants read to assess the Detection of Risk Cues outcome, the Direct Resistance scale of an untitled measure developed by Testa et al (2006) will be used to assess participants' willingness to use effective self-defense strategies at different points while reading a vignette of a sexual assault scenario.

  5. Rape Myth Acceptance

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    The Updated Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance scale will be used to assess respondents' belief in prejudicial and false ideas about rape.

  6. Belief in Female Precipitation of Rape

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    The female precipitation subscale of the Perceived Causes of Rape scale will be used to measure beliefs that women cause rape.

  7. Knowledge of and Willingness to Use Effective Self-Defense Strategies

    Time frame: 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    An open-ended question will be used to measure participants' knowledge of and willingness to use of the most effective self-defense strategies at follow-ups. Participants will respond to the question "If a man I knew (e.g., a date or acquaintance) tried to force me to have sex with him when I didn't want to, I would ..." Using a coding system, these responses will be scored by two independent coders (blinded to the randomization group) for the presence or absence of effective forceful physical resistance and forceful verbal resistance strategies and their frequencies (e.g., punch, kick, and bite are all examples of forceful physical resistance).

  8. Acceptance of Sexualized Aggression

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    Increases or decreases in acceptance of sexualized aggression will be assessed as measured by the 15-item Acceptance of Sexualized Aggression scale.

  9. Sexual and Reproductive Empowerment Scale

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    The Sexual and Reproductive Empowerment Scale assesses sexual and reproductive empowerment among adolescents and young adults. Investigators will use 13 items from the four subscales of sexual safety; self-love; sense of future; and sexual pleasure.

  10. Self-Blame Following Sexual Assault

    Time frame: Baseline, 1-week post-intervention, 6-months and 12-months after randomization

    Behavioral self-blame subscale from the Rape Attribution Questionnaire will be used to assess the extent to which women who are sexually assaulted in the follow-up timeframe of the trial blame themselves for the incident(s).

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

Charlene Y Senn, PhD

CONTACT

[email protected]

519-253-3000 ext. 2255

Sarah M Peitzmeier, PhD

CONTACT

[email protected]

301 405 2526

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Maryland, College Park

Other

Collaborators

  • Tufts University
  • University of Central Florida
  • University of Guelph
  • University of Michigan
  • University of Nebraska
  • University of Windsor

Registry information

Official study title

A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Efficacy of IDEA3 - An Evidence-based Sexual Assault Resistance Intervention for Undergraduate Women Adapted for Internet Delivery

Acronym: IDEA3

Important dates

Study start
2023
Primary completion
2027
Study completion
2027
First posted
Sep 28, 2023
Registry last updated
Oct 21, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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