Recovery after sexual assault for sexual minority women
Sexual Assault Recovery Among Sexual Minority Women: A Longitudinal, Multi-Level Study
This project follows lesbian, bisexual, and other sexual minority women ages 18–35 for 2.5 years to learn how local laws and community climate shape recovery after sexual assault.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Washington NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Seattle, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11370847 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would join a group of about 2,400 sexual minority women (with extra invitations to Black women) and answer questions about experiences, symptoms, and supports every six months for 2.5 years. The researchers will link your survey answers to public data about local policies, laws, and community presence to describe the social climate where you live. By comparing people across different cities and states, they aim to see how community and policy environments relate to depression, PTSD, and other recovery outcomes after sexual assault. Participation is remote and based on self-report surveys collected over time.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are sexual minority women aged 18–35 who are willing to complete online surveys every six months for 2.5 years, with outreach specifically encouraging Black sexual minority women to join.
Not a fit: People under 18, men, those who do not identify as sexual minority women, or anyone unwilling to complete repeated surveys are not eligible and would not directly benefit from participating.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the findings could help shape policies and community programs that better support sexual minority women’s mental health after sexual assault.
How similar studies have performed: Previous research links community climate to mental health in sexual minorities, but no prior study has directly tested climate-level policies and laws in a large longitudinal study of sexual assault recovery, so this is a novel direct test.
Where this research is happening
Seattle, United States
- University of Washington — Seattle, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Bedard-Gilligan, Michele a — University of Washington
- Study coordinator: Bedard-Gilligan, Michele a
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.