More than half of college students who report experiencing intimate partner violence said it occurred in college, and the majority of college students in abusive relationships failed to realize that they were in one because they did not know how to identify abuse (Knowledge Networks, 2011). To address this issue, an instructional module was designed and developed to teach college students how to identify healthy, unhealthy, and abusive dating relationships. Guiding the design is Horton’s (2012) Absorb, Do, and Connect model, which combines direct and indirect instruction. The instructional module included scenario-based activities for practice, as well as a group discussion board to provide an opportunity for reflection.
Methods to evaluate the instruction included usability testing, pre and post-assessments, qualitative analysis of student discussions, and a survey of student attitudes. Results from 17 college students (n = 17) indicated that the instruction was effective, with 91 percent of students meeting the instructional goal. The greatest gains were seen among students with no prior training or coursework on the topic and students who reported having experience with an abusive relationship. The usability and attitudinal results indicated that the instruction needed clearer reminders that the practice activities were not graded, fixes to address issues loading the branching scenario, and ways to ensure anonymity during the group discussion. The instruction’s greatest strengths were its content, level of engagement, and learning effectiveness, particularly with new knowledge about unhealthy relationships. Future work includes addressing participant concerns, continued use of scenario-based learning, and sharing this work with colleagues.
Eunice Leung Brekke