Dr. Angela Tiura (Co-I) is working with Dr. Antonia Abbey (PI, Psychology) on a new project funded by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) entitled, “Alcohol’s Effects on Affective, Cognitive, and Behavioral Responses in a Virtual Reality Dating Simulation” (R01AA028815). The overall goal is to develop and validate a 3-dimentional virtual reality (3D VR) dating simulation of a potential sexual assault situation and examine alcohol’s acute effects on men’s behaviors. Drs. Tiura and Abbey have a robust history of examining alcohol’s relationships with sexual violence experiences using both survey and experimental methodology. However, experimental methods have been limited to dating or sexual scenario proxies such as written vignettes or videos, and have relied on assessing participant perceptions and intentions following the proxy. The current project, in collaboration with researchers at Texas State University, uses those proxies as a starting point for developing and testing a 3-D virtual dating simulation, allowing for in the in-the-moment assessment of male participants’ behaviors with a simulated female dating companion – both sexually aggressive behaviors as well as nonaggressive behavior. The 5-year grant includes 3 phases: first, to iteratively develop the VR simulation and evaluate its ecological validity though focus groups and cognitive interviews; second, to experimentally manipulate and examine situational cues within the simulation that are expected to increase the likelihood of sexually aggressive behavior among men who are predisposed to acting aggressively; and third, to examine alcohol’s acute effects on men’s behavior within the simulation, in combination with manipulated cues and preexisting attitudes and beliefs. The long-term goal is to utilize this VR dating simulation in combination with identified modifiable risk and protective factors to decrease the incidence of sexual violence.