Empowerment Self-Defense
Theory, Research and Practice
- 1st Edition - August 1, 2026
- Latest edition
- Editors: Lindsay M. Orchowski, Jocelyn A. Hollander
- Language: English
Empowerment Self-Defense: Theory, Research, and Practice brings together scholarship on the theory, research, and practice of empowerment self-defense (ESD). ESD is an eviden… Read more
Empowerment Self-Defense: Theory, Research, and Practice brings together scholarship on the theory, research, and practice of empowerment self-defense (ESD). ESD is an evidence-based and transformative approach to violence prevention grounded in feminism and social justice. This book assembles leading researchers and practitioners to clearly define ESD and assess its effectiveness.
The contributors to this volume frame ESD as a part of a comprehensive approach to sexual assault prevention and document the worldwide implementation of ESD as a part of a larger gender justice movement. This book begins by outlining the fundamental concepts, elements, and theoretical underpinnings of ESD and situates ESD within the long history of feminist collective activism. The second section considers the role of ESD in violence prevention, including its effectiveness for survivors of trauma and its implementation around the world. The third section focuses on the research behind ESD, including an assessment of measurement tools. The fourth section focuses on applications of ESD within specific communities, including indigenous, sexual and gender minority, and disabled populations. The final section of the book addresses the future of ESD, including implementation, dissemination, and future directions for research. Together, these chapters present a compelling case for the essential role of ESD training in violence prevention efforts.
The contributors to this volume frame ESD as a part of a comprehensive approach to sexual assault prevention and document the worldwide implementation of ESD as a part of a larger gender justice movement. This book begins by outlining the fundamental concepts, elements, and theoretical underpinnings of ESD and situates ESD within the long history of feminist collective activism. The second section considers the role of ESD in violence prevention, including its effectiveness for survivors of trauma and its implementation around the world. The third section focuses on the research behind ESD, including an assessment of measurement tools. The fourth section focuses on applications of ESD within specific communities, including indigenous, sexual and gender minority, and disabled populations. The final section of the book addresses the future of ESD, including implementation, dissemination, and future directions for research. Together, these chapters present a compelling case for the essential role of ESD training in violence prevention efforts.
• Defines ESD and its goals, philosophy, and pedagogy
• Traces the historical development of ESD as a sexual violence prevention approach
• Reviews research assessing the effectiveness of ESD training
• Evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of measurement tools for key constructs
• Discusses the application of self-defense to a broad range of populations across the globe
• Traces the historical development of ESD as a sexual violence prevention approach
• Reviews research assessing the effectiveness of ESD training
• Evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of measurement tools for key constructs
• Discusses the application of self-defense to a broad range of populations across the globe
academics, scholars, and researchers exploring sexual assault risk reduction efforts, as well as practitioners engaged in sexual assault prevention work undergraduate students, graduate students, and practitioners in the field
PART 1: Introduction – The Theory and Practice of Empowerment Self Defense
1. Introduction to the Volume
2. Defining Empowerment Self Defense: What it is and What it isn’t
3. History of Empowerment Self-Defense as a Feminist Rape Prevention Approach
4. Empowerment Self-Defense: Common Elements
5. Empowerment Self-Defense as a Trauma Informed Approach to Healing
6. What Does It Mean to Defend Yourself in a Space Where the Resistance of Women is Criminalized?
7. Empowerment Self-Defense: A Global Effort for Change
8. Empowerment Self-Defense as a Component of the Gender Justice Movement: Personal Perspectives from the Founders
PART 2: Researching Empowerment Self-Defense – How We Know it “Works”
9. Positioning Empowerment Self-Defense as a Part of Rape Prevention Efforts
10. It Works! Outcomes of Empowerment Self-Defense Programs
11. Processes of Change in Empowerment Self-Defense
12. Assessing the Impact of Empowerment Self-Defense
PART 3: Empowerment Self-Defense for Targeted Population
13. Indigenous Populations and the Implementation of Empowerment Self-Defense
14. Empowerment Self-Defense for Individuals with Disabilities
15. Empowerment Self-Defense for Vulnerable Populations
16. Empowerment Self-Defense for Sexual and Gender Minority Populations
17. Varying Approaches to Including Men in Empowerment Self-Defense Programs
PART 4: Implementation and Dissemination of Empowerment Self-Defense
18. Recommendations for Teaching Empowerment Self-Defense in the Classroom
19. Future Directions: Charting a Path forward for Empowerment Self-Defense
1. Introduction to the Volume
2. Defining Empowerment Self Defense: What it is and What it isn’t
3. History of Empowerment Self-Defense as a Feminist Rape Prevention Approach
4. Empowerment Self-Defense: Common Elements
5. Empowerment Self-Defense as a Trauma Informed Approach to Healing
6. What Does It Mean to Defend Yourself in a Space Where the Resistance of Women is Criminalized?
7. Empowerment Self-Defense: A Global Effort for Change
8. Empowerment Self-Defense as a Component of the Gender Justice Movement: Personal Perspectives from the Founders
PART 2: Researching Empowerment Self-Defense – How We Know it “Works”
9. Positioning Empowerment Self-Defense as a Part of Rape Prevention Efforts
10. It Works! Outcomes of Empowerment Self-Defense Programs
11. Processes of Change in Empowerment Self-Defense
12. Assessing the Impact of Empowerment Self-Defense
PART 3: Empowerment Self-Defense for Targeted Population
13. Indigenous Populations and the Implementation of Empowerment Self-Defense
14. Empowerment Self-Defense for Individuals with Disabilities
15. Empowerment Self-Defense for Vulnerable Populations
16. Empowerment Self-Defense for Sexual and Gender Minority Populations
17. Varying Approaches to Including Men in Empowerment Self-Defense Programs
PART 4: Implementation and Dissemination of Empowerment Self-Defense
18. Recommendations for Teaching Empowerment Self-Defense in the Classroom
19. Future Directions: Charting a Path forward for Empowerment Self-Defense
- Edition: 1
- Latest edition
- Published: August 1, 2026
- Language: English
LO
Lindsay M. Orchowski
Associate Professor (Research) at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and a Staff Psychologist at Rhode Island Hospital. She completed her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Ohio University, where she studied under the apprenticeship of Dr. Christine A. Gidycz in the Laboratory for the Study and Prevention of Sexual Assault. In concert with collaborators, she has published three prior evaluations of sexual assault prevention programs for college women (Gidycz et al., 2006; Orchowski et al., 2008; Gidycz et al., 2015), as well as prevention approaches for college men (Orchowski et al., 2018; Gidycz et al., 2011), and has authored work on the implementation of sexual assault prevention programs for men (Gidycz et al., 2011), and the supervision of such work (Orchowski et al., 2011). As a Principal Investigator, she completed a NIAAA-funded research examining sexual assault prevention with college men, and is currently the Principal Investigator of two CDC-funded evaluations of sexual assault prevention, risk reduction, and bystander intervention programming among high school and middle school students, and a Department of Defense Funded evaluation of sexual assault prevention for men in the military. She has previously published Sexual Assault Risk Reduction and Resistance: Theory, Research and Practice with Elsevier, as well as Engaging Boys and Men in Sexual Assault Prevention: Theory, Research and Practice with American Psychological Association.
Affiliations and expertise
Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USAJH
Jocelyn A. Hollander
Dr. Jocelyn Hollander is Professor of Sociology at the University of Oregon. For the past 20 years, her research has focused on the effectiveness of empowerment self-defense training for preventing gender-based violence, as well as its potential to empower women and challenge inequalities. She is the author of articles on these topics in Gender & Society, Psychology of Women Quarterly, Revue des Sciences Sociales, Sociology Compass, Violence Against Women, Feminism & Psychology, as well as in the volume Sexual Assault Risk Reduction and Resistance, edited by Lindsay Orchowski and Christine Gidycz. In addition, Professor Hollander has taught empowerment self-defense for over 30 years, including at Stanford University and the University of Oregon.
Affiliations and expertise
University of Oregon, Department of Sociology, Eugene, USA