Bystander Intervention: The Opportunity to Help People Understand How To Intervene

Recently, a man raped a woman on public transportation in Philadelphia and outrage has focused on the people on the train who did not intervene.

Jane Stapleton, President of Soteria Solutions, was interviewed about this sexual assault and the role of a bystander. Specifically what, if anything, can be done in our society to help people understand the important role that bystanders can play in diffusing situations, and to educate people so they know what to do and feel comfortable taking action.

As Jane Stapleton and Alan Berkowitz, Soteria Solutions contractor, point out, there are many nuances that affect people taking action, or not, in such situations. Read the article here.

Soteria Solutions helps organizations create and maintain safe and respectful learning, living and working environments through customized solutions and evidenced-based programs including Bringing in the Bystander®. Bringing in the Bystander is a prevention program based on the concept that all community members have a role to play in ending incivility, harassment, violence and discrimination. The important role that a bystander has in intervention is the basis for this unique and effective program.

For more information about bystander intervention programs based on decades of bystander intervention research, contact Soteria Solutions.