Prevention and Education

At SDSU, we emphasize to students the importance of affirmative consent and how it can play out in real-time situations. There is nuance to every circumstance, but affirmative consent lends itself to the following principles:

Freely Given: there is no coercion, manipulation, or pressure to participate in a sexual activity.

Reversible: consent can be revoked at any time, even when in the middle of sexual activity.

Informed: everyone involved is on the same page and has all the information about what they're agreeing to do.

Enthusiastic: everyone involved is actively agreeing and excited about what they're doing.

Specific: agreeing to one specific activity, like kissing, does not necessarily mean agreeing to participate in other sexual activities.

When in a pinch, just remember FRIES.

Socio-Ecological Model
The Social Ecological Model explains that sexual violence is influenced by factors at multiple levels of a person’s environment. These levels include the individual, interpersonal relationships, community settings, and broader societal norms. The model shows that sexual violence is not caused by a single factor, but by the interaction of influences across these layers. Because of this, effective prevention strategies must address people, relationships, institutions, and culture simultaneously.

Primary/Secondary/Tertiary Prevention Framework
Primary prevention focuses on stopping sexual violence before it occurs by addressing root causes and risk factors. The intent is to prevent sexual violence from happening in the first place.

Secondary prevention focuses on responding soon after violence occurs to reduce immediate harm and prevent further violence. The intent is to address the violence quickly and reduce short-term harm.

Tertiary prevention focuses on long-term support and preventing further harm after violence has occurred. The intent is to support healing and prevent re-victimization or repeated harm.

Bystander intervention is a prevention strategy that empowers individuals to recognize potentially harmful situations and choose safe ways to respond. It shifts the focus from only the people directly involved to the broader community, reinforcing that everyone has a role in preventing harm, supporting survivors, and promoting a culture of respect on campus.

Intervention does not mean putting yourself in danger; it means taking action in ways that are safe and appropriate for you. Some approaches include:

Being Direct
Address the situation in the moment. This might look like checking in (“Are you okay?”), interrupting inappropriate behavior, or clearly naming that something isn’t okay.

Distracting
Create a diversion to interrupt the situation without confrontation. This could be starting a new conversation, spilling a drink (strategically!), asking for directions, or pulling someone away.

Delegating
Ask for help from someone else. This might include contacting a friend, a roommate, a resident advisor, event staff, security, or another trusted person who can step in.

Remember, how you step in is up to you. Be the person you would want looking out for you.

Not every relationship is the same. Different factors with different partners contribute to the overall health and well-being of the relationship. Review some of the common factors of healthy and unhealthy relationships in the graphics below, with the understanding that one single factor doesn’t always tell the full story.

Abuse comes in many forms and doesn’t look the same in every relationship. Common types of abuse to be aware of include:

• Emotional/verbal abuse
• Financial abuse
• Stalking
• Physical abuse
• Sexual abuse
• Digital abuse

Domestic violence means physical violence or threats by a spouse, partner, co-parent, or cohabitant (roommate/housemate).

Stalking means engaging in activity directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to:

• fear for their safety or the safety of others
• suffer substantial emotional distress

Digital spaces are part of everyday campus life here at SDSU, and they can also be places where sexual violence, harassment, and stalking occur. Harmful behaviors can include:

• unwanted sexual messages
• pressure to share images
• nonconsensual sharing of photos or videos
• repeated monitoring
• using technology to control or intimidate someone

These experiences are taken seriously, even when they happen online rather than in person.

Digital harm is never a survivor’s fault. Abuse can happen in dating relationships, friendships, casual connections, or after a relationship ends, and recognizing these behaviors as harmful can be an important first step toward seeking support.

Digital Safety Tips

Trust Your Instincts
If a message, request, or interaction feels uncomfortable, that feeling matters. You do not owe anyone a response or continued access to you.

Set and Revisit Privacy Settings
Social media and apps change often. Reviewing who can see your posts, location, stories, and contact information can help you maintain control over your digital presence. It’s okay to adjust settings at any time, even if they’ve been public before.

Be Mindful of Location Sharing
Location-sharing features can be helpful, but they can also be misused. Consider turning off location access for apps you don’t need it for, and regularly check who can see your location.

Keep Accounts Secure
Using strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, and logging out of shared or public devices can help protect your accounts. If you think someone may have access to your account, consider changing your password.

Save Evidence (If You Want To)
If you experience harassment, threats, or unwanted messages, saving screenshots or call logs may be useful later. This is always your choice; you do not need documentation to deserve support.

Block, Mute, or Report When It Feels Right
Using block or report tools can be one way to create space and reduce contact. Some students choose to do this right away; others don’t. There is no “correct” response, only what feels safest for you.

Support Is Available
If you’re unsure what steps to take or just want to talk things through, our confidential advocates can help you explore options, safety planning, and next steps without pressure or expectations.

It can be difficult to know if survivor advocacy is right for you because everyone’s experience is unique.

There Is No “Right” Way to Feel. Survivors experience a wide range of emotions, and those feelings can change over time. Some survivors feel fear, anger, sadness, or confusion, while others feel numb, disconnected, or unsure what to feel at all. It’s also possible to experience moments of self-doubt or to minimize what happened. All of these responses are normal reactions to trauma.

Trauma Can Affect People Differently. Sexual and relationship violence can impact survivors emotionally, physically, academically, and socially. On campus, survivors may notice changes in sleep, concentration, attendance, motivation, or relationships. Trauma doesn’t always look dramatic or visible, and struggling doesn’t mean someone is weak or “not coping well enough.”

It’s Common to Question What Happened. Many survivors spend time wondering if what they experienced “counts” or blaming themselves for not reacting a certain way. Freezing, complying, or not saying “no” out loud are common trauma responses.

Healing Is Not Linear. Recovery is not a straight path. Survivors may feel okay one day and overwhelmed the next, especially when encountering reminders like certain places, classes, or conversations. Taking time to heal, asking for help, or needing breaks are all valid parts of the process.

You Are Not Alone, Even If It Feels Like It. Many students on college campuses are impacted by sexual violence, dating violence, harassment, or stalking. While experiences are deeply personal, survivors are not alone in what they feel. Support from campus resources and trusted friends can make a difference.

Support Looks Different for Everyone. Some survivors want to talk about what happened; others don’t. Some want formal support or reporting options, while others prefer informal or confidential spaces. There is no one “right” way to seek help, and survivors deserve control over what support looks like for them.

You Deserve Care, Respect, and Choice. No matter when the experience happened or how you responded, survivors deserve support and to have their boundaries respected. Learning about survivor experiences can be a first step toward understanding these feelings or supporting someone else.

For those supporting a survivor, if someone has shared their experience with you and you aren’t sure how to react or what to say, you can refer to our “Supporting a Survivor” page for helpful tips.

Learn more on our Supporting a Survivor webpage.