Rape Prevention and Education (RPE) Program

Background of the Program

Sexual violence is a significant public health problem in the United States (U.S.). According to CDC’s National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, nearly 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men in the United States have been raped at some time in their lives. Additional information on sexual violence is available on-line.

Sexual violence, including rape, is preventable. Recognizing this, Congress passed the Violence Against Women Act in 1994. This landmark legislation established the Rape Prevention and Education (RPE) program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The goal of the RPE program is to strengthen sexual violence prevention efforts. It operates in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and six U.S. territories

Program Concepts

Primary prevention is the cornerstone of the RPE program. Program activities are guided by a set of prevention principles that include:

• Preventing first-time perpetration and victimization;
• Reducing modifiable risk factors while enhancing protective factors associated with sexual violence perpetration and victimization;
• Using the best available evidence when planning, implementing, and evaluating prevention programs;
• Incorporating behavior and social change theories into prevention programs;
• Using population-based surveillance to inform program decisions and monitor trends; and
• Evaluating prevention efforts and using the results to improve future program plans.

Prevention requires understanding the circumstances and factors that influence violence. CDC uses a four-level, social ecological model to better explain sexual violence and potential strategies for prevention. This model considers the complex interplay between individual, relationship, community, and societal factors, and allows us to address risk and protective factors from multiple domains.

The RPE program encourages the development of comprehensive prevention strategies through a continuum of activities that address all levels of the social ecological model. It is important that these activities are developmentally appropriate for the audience and are conducted at different life stages. This approach is more likely to prevent sexual violence across a lifetime, than any single intervention or policy change.

Current Activities

Currently funded grantees are:

• Implementing a variety of evidence-informed and culturally relevant prevention strategies such as educational seminars, professional training, coalition building, and changing social norms. Prevention strategies are conducted by state health departments, rape crisis centers, state sexual assault coalitions, and other public and private nonprofit entities;
• Operating statewide and community hotlines;
• Building state and local capacity for program planning, implementation, and evaluation;
• Implementing their state sexual violence primary prevention plan; and
• Assessing state system and local organization evaluation capacity and development action plans to improve capacity.

Publications

RPE At-a-Glance

Sexual Violence Prevention: Beginning the Dialogue [PDF 210 KB]

References

Basile KC, Chen J, Black MC, Saltzman LE. Prevalence and characteristics of sexual violence victimization among U.S. adults, 2001–2003. Violence and Victims 2007; 22(4):437–448.