Men’s participation in anti-violence activism: Frequency and relationships with demographic characteristics and history of sexual harassment perpetration

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine men’s engagement in anti-sexual violence activism, including the frequency of their participation, whether demographic correlates, as well as a history of sexual harassment perpetration, relate to frequency, and the extent to which those correlates explain variation in frequency. Design/methodology/approach Data for this cross-sectional study were collected in 2020; participants were 474 men, 18–40 years of age, who live in the USA. Findings Descriptive findings show that in the past year, about two-thirds of the men engaged in at least one of the behaviors related to anti-violence activism examined here but with relatively low frequency. Hierarchical regression modeling showed that several of men’s demographic characteristics were significantly related to an increase in frequency, including sexual minoritized identity, education, mother’s education and being a father/parent, as well as past year sexual harassment perpetration in a fourth model. Overall, these variables explained approximately 22% of the variance in frequency of activism. Research limitations/implications The sample is not representative of the US population. There is potential for the frequency of activism and engagement to be explained by individuals’ access to opportunities for activism. Practical implications This paper discusses implications for practitioners who want to engage men in anti-violence activism. Social implications Engaging men in anti-violence activism is critical to end sexual violence. Originality/value This study responds to the call for investigations of bystander intervention to include pro-active helping, outside of intervention in high-risk situations for violence and to examine such beyond college students.