Discussion
voice, Ntombi
This paper presents findings implicating the potential benefits of the Ntombi Vimbela! intervention at one-year post the implementation of a single arm pilot feasibility study conducted among first year female students on South African campuses. The study findings indicate promising evidence of NV!’s benefits that adds to previous preliminary post-intervention qualitative data that demonstrated that NV!’s content was relevant, acceptable and the delivery methods were feasible among first year female students who have sex with men studying on South African campuses [The findings suggest that after attending NV! workshops, participants improved their knowledge and capability to assess situations that could increase vulnerability for sexual victimisation, and these were often described as social situations where alcohol was present or consumed in high quantities. They explained that practicing self-protective behaviours helped them navigate situations where they perceived themselves vulnerable to intoxication and sexual victimisation. Evaluations of other sexual violence risk reduction interventions have found that when women can acknowledge that situations where alcohol is present or consumed exacerbate sexual assault risks, they are more likely to avoid, remove themselves or devise protective strategies such as limiting their consumption to avoid intoxication and minimise vulnerability to sexual assault [There has been much scholarly debate around the harms and benefits of implementing interventions that train women on self-defense skills [Findings from this pilot-follow up study also show NV!’s promise as a sexual empowerment education and gender transformative intervention. The study findings indicate potential enduring attitudinal and behavioural benefits of NV! that impacted on intimate relationship dynamics and intimate partner violence. Participants explained pathways from positive shifts in gender equitable attitudes, improved assertive communication skills to increased sexual relationship power and voice in intimate relationships as well as challenging less desirable sexual and other relationship dynamics after going through NV! workshops. Shifts in gender equitable beliefs and ted reduction in rape victim blaming and myth acceptance have been identified as primary outcomes in other campus sexual empowerment interventions [As much as NV! and other women focused sexual violence risk reduction interventions implemented to small groups have shown benefits, it is pertinent to acknowledge that they do not suffice in of themselves to reducing the prevalence of sexual violence on campuses. It is important to acknowledge that the problem of sexual violence on campuses is perpetuated through campus climate and culture that tolerates its occurrence through the lack of or poor implementation of anti-sexual violence policies, protocols, and practices [Less traction will be made by sexual violence prevention interventions on South African campuses without the direct involvement of male students in other individual or relational level violence perpetration prevention programs applying strategies such as by-standerism, alcohol or other substances harm reduction or social norm change, gender transformative and behavioural interventions [Our pilot study was limited by a small sample size, a non-randomised design and there could have been bias among female students that self-selected to participate in the NV! pilot. While we have reported enduring outcomes of change one year post intervention among a small sample of pilot participants without a control group, NV! effectiveness and pathways to change can only be confirmed through evaluating it in a randomised control study that recruits a larger, fully powered sample and measure outcomes quantitatively and qualitatively. This will be the focus of the research team’s future research agenda.Our work also reflects on the feasibility of collecting violence related data among cohorts of tech-savvy young people in African campus settings by employing remote and digital methods. Scholars in the field have been skeptical about the safety risks that are elevated when participants living with abusive partners are exposed to remote data collection methods such as surveys and IDTIs [