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ESAS research

Since 2016, the University of Glasgow has been working with Rape Crisis Scotland to develop a theory-informed intervention approach. We have also been carrying out research on gender-based violence, with a focus on sexual harassment with some of the ESAS pilot schools.

Research and activities to date

Our small-scale study aims to contribute to closing the data gap in Scotland and the UK more widely. We have been looking at both the prevalence of sexual harassment in schools among young people 13-17 years, as well as collecting views of young people and school staff on sexual harassment. We asked whether they thought it was a problem in their school, how it took place, and what they thought of the response when there was disclosure and/or reporting by a student.

To address these questions, we did an online survey and participatory mapping workshops with students (S2, S4, S6) and staff; and interviews with school leaders.

We used the key findings from our research to design the following products that are available on this website: a video about sexual harassment in schools, a school systems map and a Theory of Change. Three academic papers are also underway and will be added to this page when published.

By sharing these research findings we aim to improve awareness and understanding of school-level factors key to addressing sexual harassment in schools. Our research has also helped identify the factors key to successful implementation of ESAS (see the Theory of Change) and has provided evidence to support continual improvement to the intervention.

Interested in using some of our research tools in your school?

To enable ESAS schools to gain a better understanding of students’ and staff’s views on gender-based violence, we have developed simple data collection tools that can be self-administered by schools. These include:

Schools will be able to find these tools in the ‘monitoring and evaluation’ section of My ESAS after they have registered an account.

More information

If you wish to discuss ESAS research in more detail, please contact us at:

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