Gender-based violence (GBV) is on the rise in Ontario. From 2018 to 2024, intimate partner violence (IPV) rose from 233 to 278 incidents per 100,000 people, a 19% increase that outpaced Canada’s national average. Women in Canada experience violence twice as often as men, are 3.5 times more likely to experience IPV, and are five times more likely than men to be victims of sexual assault.

There is a key distinction to be made: while most GBV is perpetrated by men, most men do not perpetrate GBV. Intervention efforts increasingly focus on engaging men and boys directly — not as passive bystanders to GBV, but as active participants in shifting the attitudes and behaviours that allow this violence to continue.

In this vein, Digital Public Square (DPS), with the support of Ontario’s Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services, sought to empower men and boys in Ontario to prevent and stop GBV. What resulted were two digital interventions designed to educate and equip men and boys across Ontario with strategies to intervene safely when they see harmful behaviour among peers, and model healthier norms in their relationships, workplaces, and communities.

To inform the development of these interventions, DPS conducted a survey with 500 Ontario men and a series of focus groups with 41 Ontario boys. Insights from this research were published earlier this year in a report that explored Gen Alpha perspectives on masculinity and taking action against GBV (accessible here).

Through user testing and iterative experimentation, we assessed the efficacy of the interventions, which included monitoring increases in self-reported confidence to intervene in a situation of GBV. This article shares our lessons learned for building bystander skills for men and boys in Ontario to stand up to GBV.

How we developed the interventions

We applied five key principles derived from our research in developing the interventions:

1. Take masculinity seriously – without demonizing it – by naming the pressures boys feel and suggest strength-based alternatives that align care, responsibility, and courage with masculinity.
2. Teach skills and frameworks rather than relying on awareness-raising alone, recognizing that boys want to intervene when they see harm but fear, uncertainty, and lack of direction often stop them.
3. Centre safety by validating concerns such as conflict escalation, social backlash, and becoming a target, and encourage prevention efforts that prioritize self-protection alongside harm reduction.
4. Reflect diverse and situated realities in the interventions by recognizing different levels of readiness, confidence, and risk.
5. Meet boys where they are at, online and offline, by using short and engaging formats that feel like conversations, not lessons at school.

Through this process, we developed our first digital bystander intervention, Lean Forward, which leveraged the “5Ds of active bystandership framework” in a choose-your-own-adventure-style scenario. Users could select one of the 5Ds in response to the scenario they encountered, and roll virtual dice to determine the outcome. After completing Lean Forward, 69% of users reported increased confidence intervening in a situation of GBV (n=592).

Early user feedback identified opportunities to simplify the experience, particularly the dice roll mechanic. These learnings informed subsequent iterations and, ultimately, the development of the second intervention, It’s Your Move, where we streamlined interactions and expanded users’ exposure to different scenarios. Following these refinements, 77% of users reported increased confidence (n=630).

Although we initially planned separate products for youth aged 13–15 and 16+, user testing showed that both age groups benefited from both experiences. We therefore made both products available across the full target age range, providing multiple pathways for learning and skill development.

Intervention impacts

We conducted a longitudinal evaluation between January 2026 and May 2026 to assess the impacts of Lean Forward. In this study, 500 Ontario men were asked questions before and after playing through Lean Forward. They were recontacted between three and six weeks after this initial intervention to answer additional questions, with the purpose of assessing knowledge retention over time.

Our findings suggest that Lean Forward provided meaningful knowledge gains over time. Familiarity with the 5Ds of active bystandership increased from 26% at baseline to 82% immediately after the intervention. At the 3-6 week recontact, 54% remained familiar with the framework — more than double the baseline level. Overall, 55% of participants demonstrated increased familiarity with the 5Ds compared with baseline knowledge, with improvements observed immediately after the intervention, at follow-up, or at both time points.

What we learned about engaging men and boys on GBV

Through developing, deploying, and assessing our digital bystander interventions, we learned important lessons for engaging boys and young men to take action against GBV.

1. Young men want help to learn how to intervene, and need practical tools to help them get there.

Our research found that boys and young men in Ontario are not disengaged from GBV prevention. They care about harm, want to be good people, and recognize the importance of intervening. The primary barriers are confidence, practical knowledge, and uncertainty about how to intervene safely. Designing interventions that build on these existing values – and provide tangible ways to navigate them – may be more effective than approaches that assume resistance or apathy.

1. Interactive digital experience can provide safe spaces to rehearse difficult situations.

Rather than simply teaching the 5Ds framework, our interventions allowed users to practice applying different strategies in realistic scenarios. The goal of this approach was to reduce the perceived social risk of making mistakes in relatable social settings, both online and offline, while helping users understand that there are multiple ways to intervene. Among those who completed one of our two digital interventions, 73% reported increased confidence in being able to intervene against GBV, reflecting the effectiveness of this approach.

1. User feedback should shape both the learning experience and implementation strategy.

Early testing of the first intervention, Lean Forward, validated the overall concept while identifying opportunities to improve usability. Feedback about the dice roll mechanic informed a simpler interaction model in the second product, It’s Your Move, allowing users to focus more on learning than on game mechanics.

User research also challenged assumptions about audience segmentation. Rather than developing separate products for younger and older demographics, findings showed that participants across the target age ranges (13-15 and 16+) benefited from both experiences, leading us to make both products available to all users.

1. Knowledge alone is not sufficient to make a meaningful difference: learning experiences need to effectively reduce uncertainty and increase self-efficacy.

People who learn about GBV may have increased knowledge about the issue, but not feel confident intervening in practice. Exposing users to various scenarios helps them practice applying the 5Ds framework in different situations, as opposed to attempting to memorize a single “correct” action. Overcoming behavioural barriers, such as anxiety, fear, uncertainty, as well as low self-efficacy, should underpin the design of digital prevention tools as much as knowledge gaps.

1. The success of the digital interventions depends as much on distribution and partnerships as it does on product design.

Reaching youth audiences requires sustained investment in intervention dissemination, testing distribution strategies, and working through trusted partners. Our discussions with the Sex Information and Education Council of Canada (SIECCAN) demonstrated how complementary organizations can increase impact: evidence-based educational guidance should be paired with interactive implementation tools, while established educator networks can provide pathways to reach classrooms at scale.

Empowering men and boys to stop GBV

Findings from our interventions point to the need to engage men and boys to meaningfully and holistically combat GBV. Involving them should not be a peripheral strategy, but core to addressing GBV.

Young men and boys care about harm and want to do the right thing. Supporting them can turn a large, often under-utilized segment of the population into active participants in prevention, rather than passive bystanders.

By prioritizing confidence building and practical skills, not just awareness, these interventions aim to change behaviour at a critical moment: when someone has the opportunity to intervene. Pairing prevention-focused resources like our interventions alongside existing survivor-informed support services will help to support Ontarians in need while simultaneously working towards reducing the prevalence of GBV in the province.