Evaluation of a Virtual Course to Increase Knowledge in Sexual Harassment, Prevention and Sanction Policies of Cayetano Heredia Peruvian University in Pupils of the Faculty of Public Health and Administration: a Randomized Controlled Trial

Sexual harassment is the behavior of sexual or sexist connotation unwanted by the affected person. Despite being considered as gender-based violence, victims of sexual harassment can be of both sexes. The university is the most frequent place where university students suffer sexual harassment. Law No. 27942 - "Ley de Prevención y Sanción del Hostigamiento Sexual" and its amendments, includes training and prevention in sexual harassment. The Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH) has a regulation for the prevention and punishment of sexual harassment. Education through the use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) is presented as an alternative to face-to-face classes, optimizing resources and achieving greater scope. The early, mandatory and massive dissemination at the university of a training in sexual harassment could be achieved through a virtual course. However, there is little research on the evaluation of the effectiveness of prevention programs in sexual violence in university students. The objective is to prove that taking a virtual course about sexual harassment, prevention and sanction policies of the UPCH can achieve a greater or same knowledge of the subject in the students of the UPCH, compared to a face-to-face course. The study design is a randomized controlled trial to assess the level of knowledge in this subject, whose control group is provided classes in face-to-face mode. Also, both modalities of the course will include a survey with Likert scale to measure the degree of satisfaction with the course taken. And finally, it includes a qualitative study through focus groups with the university students of the classroom and virtual classes to know their appreciations of both modalities of the course.