Effects of time and an educational presentation on student attitudes toward wife-beating

To determine if a public outreach educational presentation on domestic violence would produce change in attitudes toward wife-beating and if the attitude change would persist over time, 36 female and male university students were quasi-randomly assigned to groups. Half of the subjects received a 20-minute presentation on domestic violence (Group P), and half did not receive a presentation (Group NP). Groups were then tested on their responses on the Inventory of Beliefs about Wife Beating (IBWB). Three weeks later, groups were retested on their responses to the scale. MANOVA revealed that attitudes of Group P were significantly more negative toward wife-beating than attitudes of Group NP on three of the five IBWB subscales and on three of the 31 IBWB items subsumed under the subscales. Data supported the prediction that public outreach efforts would produce more negative attitudes toward wife-beating and that attitude change would not deteriorate over time.