Sexual victimization may impair adolescents’ ability to recognize and respond to unsafe situations. This study examined the effectiveness of Behavioral Skills Training (BST) in improving personal safety skills (PSS) among junior high school students in Gunungkidul, Indonesia, with histories of sexual victimization. A randomized pretest-posttest control group design with follow-up was used. Of 51 students screened with the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire–Sexual Victimization module (JVQ-SV), 36 eligible students were randomized to BST (n = 18) or a no-intervention control group (n = 18). BST comprised five 60-minute sessions delivered in one day, using instruction, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback to target three components: Recognize, Resist, and Report (3R). PSS was measured with the What If Situations Test (WIST-III) at pretest, posttest, and 1-month follow-up (experimental group only); baseline knowledge was assessed with the Personal Safety Questionnaire (PSQ). Groups were comparable at baseline on both PSQ and WIST-III. At posttest, the experimental group outperformed the control group, t(34) = 9.12, p < .001, mean difference = 8.11. Within the experimental group, scores rose from pretest (M = 10.11) to posttest (M = 18.83), t(17) = 14.56, p < .001, d ≈ 3.67, and further improved at follow-up (M = 19.33, p = .008). Interviews (n = 4) indicated improved recognition of warning signs, greater assertiveness in refusing inappropriate contact, and increased willingness to disclose to trusted adults. BST is an effective, durable intervention for strengthening PSS among sexually victimized adolescents and is relevant for school-based prevention programs in low- and middle-income countries.
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