Measuring help-seeking barriers and healing for LGBTQ survivors of interpersonal violence
Advancing help-seeking and recovery measures for sexual minority survivors of interpersonal violence
This project will create and try out short questionnaires to better understand what keeps LGBTQ people from getting help and how they recover after intimate partner violence, sexual assault, or childhood abuse.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Temple Univ of the Commonwealth NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Philadelphia, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11374086 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would be helping researchers build two short, easy-to-use scales: one about barriers to seeking help and one about recovery and healing for LGBTQ survivors. The team will use an exploratory mixed-methods plan, starting with 40 existing narrative interviews and feedback from a 10-person community advisory board to draft items. They will run cognitive interviews with about 20 LGBTQ survivors to refine wording and confirm the questions make sense. Finally, they will perform psychometric testing to check that the scales reliably measure barriers and healing and can be used in future services and studies.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults who identify as LGBTQ or sexual minorities and who have experienced interpersonal violence such as intimate partner violence, sexual assault, or childhood abuse.
Not a fit: People who have not experienced interpersonal violence or who do not identify as sexual minorities are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, these questionnaires could help clinicians and programs identify and address specific obstacles LGBTQ survivors face and better track recovery over time.
How similar studies have performed: Previous work has documented disparities and used interviews with sexual minority survivors, but there are currently no validated measures focused specifically on help-seeking barriers and healing for this group, so this approach is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
Philadelphia, United States
- Temple Univ of the Commonwealth — Philadelphia, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sinko, Laura Marie — Temple Univ of the Commonwealth
- Study coordinator: Sinko, Laura Marie
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.