THURS-105 - From Hashtags to Help: Tiktok's Impact on Sexual Assault Resource Sharing
Thursday, April 17, 2025
5:30 PM – 6:30 PM PST
Location: Pacific I/II, 2nd Floor
Area of Responsibility: Area VI: Communication Subcompetencies: 6.4.2 Select communication channels and current and emerging technologies that are most appropriate for the audience(s) and message(s)., 6.5.4 Use current and emerging communication tools and trends (e.g., social media). Research or Practice: Research
Graduate Teaching and Research Assistant/Graduate Student University of Arkansas Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States
Learning Objectives:
At the end of this session, participants will be able to:
Recognize the role of TikTok for sharing resources related to sexual assault (SA) and sexual harassment (SH), and analyze the primary contributors to this content.
Identify the types of resources disseminated on TikTok concerning SA and SH, such as hotlines, counseling, medical care, and legal assistance.
Evaluate the lack of health professionals' contributions to the online conversation surrounding resource sharing for sexual assault (SA) and sexual harassment (SH).
Brief Abstract Summary: Learn how TikTok has become a critical platform for sharing resources and raising awareness about sexual assault (SA) and sexual harassment (SH). Discover key findings from a content analysis of 643 videos using the hashtags #sexualassaultawareness and #sexualharassmentawareness. The analysis revealed that 40 videos referenced vital resources such as hotlines, counseling, medical care, legal support, and advocacy services, with the vast majority (38) created by individual users. Gain insight into how these peer educators are playing a central role in spreading awareness and coping strategies, but also recognize the potential risk of misinformation. This underscores the importance of public health professionals, such as Certified Health Education Specialists (CHES), engaging on platforms like TikTok to provide accurate, evidence-based information and enhance the credibility of the discourse surrounding SA and SH, ensuring safer and more informed conversations.
Detailed abstract description: Background
Social media has become a vital platform for survivors of sexual assault (SA) and sexual harassment (SH) to share narratives, resources, and strategies for reporting and coping. In 2024, TikTok emerged as one of the most popular social media platforms. This study aimed to examine the resources shared on TikTok related to SA and SH and to identify the individuals and entities responsible for disseminating these resources.
Methods
A content analysis was conducted using the Apify TikTok scraper to collect 1040 videos posted in English that utilized the hashtags #sexualassaultawareness or #sexualharassmentawareness. Videos featuring duet or greenscreen functions were excluded along with videos that were duplicates or unavailable to the public. Three independent coders employed a grounded theory approach to analyze the content, identifying themes related to coping mechanisms and awareness, as well as categorizing the sources of the videos—individual users, healthcare and legal professionals, small businesses, and organizations.
Results
Out of 643 included videos, 40 of the analyzed videos referenced resources related to SA, defined as content raising awareness of support services, including hotlines, counseling, medical care, legal assistance, and advocacy organizations. Notably, the majority (38) of these videos were produced by individual users.
Conclusion
The predominance of SA resources on TikTok from peer educators raises concerns about potential misinformation. However, this offers an opportunity for public health professionals, such as Certified Health Education Specialists (CHES), to deliver accurate information in engaging ways, enhancing the credibility of the discourse surrounding SA and SH on the platform.
