Negotiating Participatory Research Processes With Domestic Violence Program Staff to Obtain Ecologically Valid Data.

The choice of research design affects not only internal and external validity but ecological validity as well. Ecological validity refers to the extent to which data are based in and relevant to real-world settings. One way for researchers to maximize the likelihood of achieving ecological validity is to design studies with community partners that use participatory approaches. Engaging deeply with community partners in determining what to study, how to measure constructs of interest, interpreting results, and using findings to create change is one means of conducting research that is likely to produce findings that are meaningful to communities. Conducting in-depth, participatory research within agencies providing crisis supports to individuals who have experienced trauma creates an additional level of complexity in the research process. This article presents a case example of how academic researchers and staff members of a nonprofit organization working with survivors of intimate partner violence collaborated on an evaluation of the community partner agency. As part of this process, the team members had to be continually aware of and responsive to the nature of crisis-focused work. We provide a reflexive account of the lessons learned and recommendations for future research.

The influence of low-barrier and voluntary service policies on survivor empowerment in a domestic violence housing organization.

The purpose of community-based domestic violence crisis housing programs (e.g., shelters) is to provide a safe setting that promotes empowerment for survivors of intimate partner violence. For staff to reach this aim, the program must have formal structures and processes in place to support such efforts. This study explored how low-barrier and voluntary service policies influenced staff practices and survivor empowerment. Low-barrier policies require that programs remove barriers that prevent survivors, particularly those who have mental health concerns and/or addictions, from being able to access services. A voluntary service policy states that survivors have the right to choose which services, if any, they would like to engage in during their stay at the program. Survivors' ability to stay at the housing program is not contingent on their participation in program services. This exploratory-sequential (QUAL→ quan) mixed-method study examined how low-barrier and voluntary service policies influenced staff behavior and how these behaviors then related to survivor empowerment. Qualitative results revealed that low-barrier and voluntary service were guided by cultural values of justice and access, encouraged survivor-centered practices among staff, and were believed to promote survivor autonomy. Quantitative results suggested that when survivors perceived they had a choice to engage in program services or meet with an advocate, their empowerment increased. This study has implications for domestic violence organizational practice and provides evidence about the contextual factors that support individual empowerment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

[Incontinentia pigmenti. A rare disease with many symptoms]. / Incontinentia pigmenti. En ovanlig sjukdom med många symtom.

Incontinentia pigmenti, also known as Bloch-Sulzberger syndrome, is a rare multi-systemic disorder. The disease is characterised by abnormalities in ectodermal tissues including the skin, eyes, central nervous system and dentition. It is inherited as an X-linked dominant trait and is usually fatal for male fetuses. Thirty-eight Swedish patients from 16 families were identified. Thirty patients were examined clinically and their DNA were analysed for deletions in the NEMO-gene. The disease showed a large clinical variability even within families and the common deletion in the NEMO-gene was found present in 70% of the families.