Listening to UC Survivors

During phase one of UC Speaks Up (2019-2020) we learned that students overwhelmingly viewed sexual violence as a problem on their UC campus. While a few students said they were engaged in efforts to address sexual violence and sexual harassment (SVSH), the majority were completely unaware of services and programs available to SVSH survivors on their campus and in the local community.

We did not ask questions about or focus on personal experiences of SVSH in phase one of our study. Despite this, many participants shared opinions and knowledge about exposures and responses to violence on their UC campus. In so doing, students consistently shared a belief that SVSH cases are rarely reported to formal support systems (e.g., campus security, administrators, counselors, Title IX officers). Instead, students felt it was more common for survivors to confide in friends. While talking to a friend can be a critical first step in SVSH response, the healing process can be significantly stalled (or stopped, altogether) if the friend or survivor does not know where to access available resources.

The goal of Listening to UC Survivors is to hear and learn from UC students who experienced sexual violence during their time at college. We believe students who have experienced trauma and violence on their UC campus are in the best position to advise on how the University’s response and prevention systems could be changed or scaled up to create safer, survivor-centered environments that are well equipped to handle SVSH. We are conducting virtual, in-depth interviews with up to 50 survivors of sexual assault, sexual harassment, stalking, dating and/or intimate partner violence with students from all 10 UC campuses.

Participate in the Study

We are conducting in-depth interviews (IDIs) with survivors of sexual violence from the UC community to better understand their experiences with on-campus sexual violence services and to identify areas in which the university can improve their response to and prevention of sexual violence. IDIs will be 60-90 minutes, conducted online and in private by trauma-informed researchers via password protected Zoom calls. Information shared by participants will remain as confidential as possible, and every participant will be offered campus and community support and referrals if needed. Engaging in this study  is voluntary and participants are free to leave the study whenever they please. All participants will be compensated with a $50 gift card for their time.

To find out if you are eligible, please click on this link: https://uclahs.azi.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/sv_8pm5bsco2vinf2d or email info@ucspeaksup.org

If you have questions, please email info@ucspeaksup.org. Please explore the rest of our website for more information.