Biography
Individually tailored consultations, lectures and trainings to enhance well-being,
promote social justice, and increase program effectiveness by a noted scholar,
researcher and public speaker
Alan Berkowitz is an independent consultant who helps colleges, universities, public health agencies, military organizations, and communities design programs that address health and social justice issues. His expert opinion is frequently sought after by the federal government, the United States military, and professional organizations and he is well-known for scholarship and innovative programs which address issues of substance abuse, sexual assault, gender, and diversity. He is the Editor and founder of The Report on Social Norms and is a highly regarded, award-winning speaker and trainer.
Dr. Berkowitz has over forty years of experience in higher education as a trainer, psychologist, faculty member, and Counseling Center Director. At Hobart and William Smith Colleges he developed one of the first rape prevention programs for men in the United States for men, was co-director of the college's highly regarded Men and Masculinity Program and chaired the Prejudice Reduction Task Force. More recently, he has been a central figure in the development of Social Norms Theory, is a leader in research and implementation of the model, and has been a consultant for a number of highly successful social norms programs. He also works with the military, state sexual assault coalitions, non-profit organizations, and higher education institutions. His lecture and workshop topics include: changing campus, community and base culture, effective drug and sexual assault prevention strategies, reducing prejudice, racial identity theory, multicultural issues, alcohol and sexual assault, men's responsibility for preventing sexual assault, developing alliances across differences, and understanding today's youth. His workshops are designed to increase the personal and professional effectiveness of faculty, staff, student leaders, athletes and coaches, health professionals, military leaders and service members, and community members.
Dr. Berkowitz received the Ph.D. in Psychology from Cornell University in 1981 and is a New York State licensed Psychologist. He has received awards from a number of national organizations, including the "Outstanding Service Award" from the Network of Colleges and Universities Committed to the Elimination of Alcohol and Drug Abuse (for his significant lifetime contribution to the field of alcohol and drug prevention) and the Miguel Garcia-Tunon Memorial Award for Human Dignity from the American College Health Association (which is given to an individual whose life, writing, research, or way of living has promoted the cause of human dignity and the appreciation of human differences.) In addition, he is a Fellow of the American College Health Association, has been recognized by the American College Personnel Association for his "Outstanding Contributions to Men's Issues and for "Outstanding Alcohol prevention and Education Initiatives," and is a sexual assault prevention Subject Matter Expert for the United States Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and National Guard. His work has been implemented internationally as well as throughout the United States.
Alan lives in Mt Shasta, CA with his wife, Beatriz Berkowitz
Selected Publications (Recent)
Preventing Sexual Aggression among College Men: An Evaluation of a Social Norms and Bystander Intervention Program. (2011). Violence Against Women: 17(6): 720-742 (with Christine Gidycz and Lindsay Orchowski).
How College Men Feel about Being Men and "Doing the Right Thing." Chapter 10 in: TL. Davis and J. Laker: Masculinities in Higher Education: Theoretical and Practical Implications. Routledge, Kegan & Paul Publishers (2011).
Fostering Healthy Norms to Prevent Violence and Abuse: The Social Norms Approach. Chapter 8 in Keith Kaufman, Ed: The Prevention of Sexual Violence: A Practitioner's Sourcebook, NEARI Press (2010).
Response Ability: A Complete Guide to Bystander Intervention. Chicago: Beck and Company. www.lulu.com (2009).
An interview with Alan Berkowitz. In C. Kilmartin and J. Allison (Eds). Men's Violence Against Women: Theory, Research and Activism. Mahwah, NJ. Lawrence Erlbaum. P. 190-197. (2007)
Berkowitz, A. (2007) Overcoming the obstacles to campus safety: Developing a comprehensive approach to prevention. Academic Impressions. Available from www.alanberkowitz.com or www.academicimpressions.com.
Coming Out to My Homophobia and Heterosexism: Lessons Learned in the Journey of An Ally. Chapter 3 (p 29-34) in: JM Croteau, JS Lark, MA Lidderdale, and YB Chung, (Eds). Deconstructing Heterosexism in the Counseling Professions: Multicultural Narrative Voices. Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage Publications. (2005).
Sexual Assault in Context: Teaching College Men about Gender. (with Christopher Kilmartin) Mahwah, NJ. Lawrence Erlbaum & Associates (2005).
Working with Men to Prevent Violence Against Women (In two parts), Part 1: An Overview, and Part II: Program Modalities and Formats. National Resource Center on Domestic Violence Electronic Network Applied Research Forum (VAWnet): www.vawnet.org (2004).
An Overview of the Social Norms Approach. Chapter 13 (p.187-208) in L Lederman, L Stewart, F Goodhart and L Laitman (Eds). Changing the Culture of College Drinking: A Socially Situated Prevention Campaign, Hampton Press. (2004).
The Social Norms Approach: Theory, Research and Annotated Bibliography. Posted on the HEC Social Norms website www.edc.org/hec/socialnorms/ (2004).
Men and Rape: Theory, Research and Prevention Programs in Higher Education. New Directions for Student Services #65, San Francisco: Jossey Bass (2004)
An Overview of the Social Norms Approach. Chapter 13 in L Lederman, L Stewart, F Goodhart and L Laitman: Changing the Culture of College Drinking: A Socially Situated Prevention Campaign, Hampton Press. (2004)
Engaging Men as Social Justice Allies in Ending Violence Against Women: Evidence for a Social Norms Approach. (with PM Fabiano, HW Perkins, J Linkenbach, and C Stark. Journal of American College Health, 52(3):105-112, 2003.
Applications of Social Norms Theory to Other Health and Social Justice Issues. Ch 16 in H. Wesley Perkins (Ed). The Social Norms Approach to Preventing School and College Age Substance Abuse, San Francisco, Jossey-Bass. 2003.
Fostering Men's Responsibility for Preventing Sexual Assault. Chapter 7 in Paul A. Schewe. (Ed). Preventing Intimate Partner Violence: Developmentally Appropriate Interventions Across the Lifespan. Washington, American Psychological Press. 2002