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Psychology: Research and Review

Table 1 General overview of the intervention

From: Efficacy of a bystander intervention for preventing dating violence in Brazilian adolescents: short-term evaluation

Session

Objectives

Activities

Content

1. The two faces of dating

Discuss the relationship’s characteristics, differentiate healthy and unhealthy relationships.

Raise awareness about the nature, dynamics, prevalence, causes, and consequences of dating violence in health.

Dynamic, playful, and interpretational reading of a comic book story.

Evaluation of the relationship’s quality.

(Murta et al., 2011, p. 40–46 e 59).

Modalities of intimate relationships between friends: one-night stands, flings, long-term relationships.

Characteristics of dating relationships: intrinsic rewards (intimate self-revelation, care noticed from the partner), standards of influence and interaction (time spent with the partner, sexual intimacy, perceptions of balance and power), and problematic characteristics (jealousy, betrayal, lack of support to the partner, conflicts).

Warning signs for dating violence.

2. Friendship network

Map the network of close friendships to name and visualize the friendship network as well as make it more tangible, improving the odds of mobilizing the help network.

Identify positive and negative peer influences in the friendship network.

Foster the functions of social/emotional support, cognitive guidance, and counseling in the friendship network.

Construction of the network map focused on close friendships

The role of friends in the emergence, development, and maintenance of dating relationships and in protection in cases of violence.

Changes in the peer network and in the nature of relationships with friends as the relationship emerges.

- Network structural characteristics: size, density, composition, dispersion, homo/heterogeneity.

- Functions in the network: social company, cognitive and counseling guidance, social regulation, material help, help from services, and access to new contacts.

- Attributes of the connection: predominant function, versatility, reciprocity, intensity/commitment, frequency of contact, and history.

- Friendship functions: help, reliable alliance, self-validation, companionship, intimacy, and emotional security.

Rules of peers that oppose the bystander’s intervention and associated gender roles.

3. Bystander approach

To undermine the myth that “a couple’s fight is no one else’s business,” encourage the adolescents to adopt attitudes favorable to intervening.

To boost the modeling of helping behaviors in the friendship network, and to mobilize helping behaviors in the friendship network.

To teach empathy skills to incentivize the adoption of empathetic communication and taking the other’s perspective in response to dating violence.

Video debate about the bystander approach intervention

Exercising empathy

Friends as potential bystanders in dating conflict situations and as preferred sources of help.

Roles (victim, aggressor, bystander)

Stages of the bystander’s intervention:

1. Awareness

2. Definition

3. Responsibility

4. Plan/self-efficacy

5. Action

Obstacles to the intervention

How to stop being a “passive bystander” and start being an “active bystander.”