What is the purpose of consent education and bystander intervention?

• A. To enable coercion.
• B. To reduce risk, promote safety, and encourage reporting.
• C. To remove the need for consent.
• D. It has no impact on safety.

Answer: (B)

Consent education and bystander intervention aim to prevent harm by fostering respectful, communicative relationships and giving people practical ways to act when they notice risky situations. By teaching what enthusiastic, ongoing consent looks like and equipping people with steps to safely intervene, these approaches reduce the likelihood of coercion or assault. They also encourage reporting to authorities or trusted individuals when something unsafe happens, which helps protect others and prevent similar incidents in the future. That combination—reducing risk, promoting safety, and encouraging reporting—captures the true purpose of these programs.

The other options miss the core intent: intentionally enabling coercion contradicts what these programs stand for; removing the need for consent would eliminate essential protections and rights; and saying there’s no impact on safety ignores the practical benefits these interventions provide in real situations.