Evaluation of a Sexual Violence and Intimate Partner Violence Primary Prevention Program Implemented in Drinking Establishments in Sacramento County, California

PROJECT SUMMARY The overarching goal of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness of Safe Night Out (SNO), a community-level primary prevention program offered in drinking establishments in Sacramento County, California. Developed and implemented in 2019 by WEAVE, Inc., Sacramento County’s primary domestic violence (DV) provider, SNO aims to train nightlife staff on how to recognize warning signs of sexual violence (SV) and intimate partner violence (IPV), and how to respond through active bystander skills to keep patrons safe. SNO has been tailored for drinking establishments in predominantly LGBTQ+ neighborhoods given the disproportionate rates of SV and IPV among sexual and gender minorities. SNO, a single session education and bystander skills training, is to our knowledge, the only program implemented in LGBTQ+ drinking establishments. Guided by Social Cognitive Theory, Social Norms Theory, and the Bystander Education Model, and in collaboration with our Research Advisory Board, our community-academic team will conduct a quasi-experimental mixed methods evaluation study using a comparative time-interrupted series design to Aim 1: Determine the effectiveness of SNO on increasing bystander intervention and reducing SV and IPV at the individual-level (e.g., patrons, staff) and population-level (e.g., census block). Individual-level primary outcomes among patrons include past 6-month SV and past 6-month IPV victimization and perpetration; secondary outcomes among staff include past 6-month increase in bystander intervention and safety checks in drinking establishments. We will also determine the effectiveness of SNO on 2-year average rates of rape, domestic violence assault and domestic violence police calls. Aim 2: Examine moderators (e.g., age, sex, history of SV/IPV) and mediators (e.g., self-efficacy, social norms) impacting the effectiveness of SNO on reducing SV and IPV and increasing bystander intervention among patrons and staff, respectively. Aim 3: Assess implementation processes based on the RE-AIM framework, on SNO reach, integration, fidelity, and engagement as well as costs associated with SNO program implementation. We will enroll 25 drinking establishments in the queue at WEAVE to receive SNO training and identify 25 drinking establishments who will not receive the SNO training during the study period. This will allow for comparison between the two groups based on individual-level and staff-level outcomes, before (3 months prior) and after SNO program training (6, 12, and 18-month follow-up) using quantitative survey data (n=500 patrons, 10 per establishment and n=75 staff, 3 per establishment). We will also examine the annual rates of reported sexual assault and domestic violence calls before implementation of SNO training that was tailored to LGBTQ+ communities (2019-2021) and after SNO training implementation (2022-2025). Finally, we will use quantitative survey and qualitative data (n=9 patron focus groups [FG], and n=9 staff FG, 5 per FG) to evaluate implementation outcomes and conduct cost analysis. If effective, SNO will serve as an evidence-based program that can be scaled up in other LGBTQ+ drinking establishments in the U.S.