Citation

Edwards KM, Waterman EA, Kagunda J, Bikeri C. J. Interpers. Violence 2019; ePub(ePub): 886260519861654.

Affiliation

Lifeskills for Behavior Change Center, Nairobi, Kenya.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0886260519861654

PMID

31328613

Abstract

Gender-based violence (GBV) occurs at alarmingly high rates among college students in a number of countries, including Kenya. To comprehensively address GBV and co-occurring public health issues (e.g., problem drinking), the nonprofit organization Elim Trust has begun to develop a student-led university outreach program (i.e., Vunja Kalabash Campus Project [VKCP]) in Kenya. The purpose of the current study was to examine the perspectives of popular opinion leaders (POLs) on GBV and related public health issues, and on the perceived effectiveness of the VKCP. We conducted a focus group with 16 POLs who lead prevention efforts on their campuses (62.5% women). Content analyses of the focus group suggested that GBV is a serious problem among Kenyan college students; GBV intersects with other problematic health behaviors like problem drinking, and despite some challenges (e.g., resources, time), VKCP is perceived to be effective at preventing GBV and supporting survivors of GBV. These data suggest that peer-led programming holds promise in preventing and responding to GBV.

Language: en

Keywords

alcohol and drugs; cultural contexts; dating violence; domestic violence; prevention; sexual assault