Developing Trauma-Informed Research Methods: Using Proxy Respondents to Assess Sexual Assault Survivors' Experiences Seeking Medical Forensic Exams.

In research on sexual assault victims' help-seeking, proxy data sources are often utilized because outreach to survivors immediately postassault may increase a study's risk-to-benefit ratio. Victim advocates and services providers are common proxy respondents, but empirical research comparing the accuracy of their information is needed. We collaborated with seven sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) programs to collect de-identified, paired data from nurses and advocates regarding the help-seeking experiences of N = 744 adult victims. Using pairwise McNemar tests, we found statistically significant agreement on victim demographics, assault characteristics, and victims' decisions regarding medical forensic exams, sexual assault kit (SAK) collection, and release of SAKs for forensic DNA testing. Nurses and advocates had different information regarding victims' disclosure histories and their reasons for seeking SANE care.

The Intersection of Human Trafficking and Natural Disasters: A Scoping Review.

Natural disasters have increased in frequency and severity in recent years. Emerging research also suggests that natural disasters increase the risk of human trafficking. This confluence of phenomena makes it critically important to better prepare communities for preventing and responding to human trafficking during and after a natural disaster. Yet, there is no available synthesis of the extant research to inform these preparations. The present scoping review aims to fill this gap by outlining the existing literature on the nexus of disasters and human trafficking. The review follows the Preferred Reporting Items of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis-Scoping Review guidelines. Sources were identified through manual reference checking and in four databases: PubMed, Web of Science, APA PsychINFO, and EBSCO Discovery Service. In total, 46 sources met the inclusion criteria, that is, they focused on the nexus between human trafficking and natural disasters, demonstrated scientific rigor, and were published after 2000 and in English. Overall, the reviewed literature provided initial evidence on the association between natural disasters occurrences and increases in national and transnational human trafficking activity, understanding of the compounding vulnerabilities conducive to trafficking following disasters, and recommendations for the prevention and response to human trafficking in the wake of disasters. Future studies should evaluate prevention initiatives, including awareness campaigns and interventions that mitigate trafficking vulnerabilities. In practice, it is crucial to integrate anti-trafficking efforts into disaster relief protocols, empower vulnerable populations, and advocate for enhanced legal protections for displaced and migrant individuals.

Can This Provider Be Trusted? A Review of the Role of Trustworthiness in the Provision of Community-Based Services for Intimate Partner Violence Survivors.

While there is a growing literature on intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors and service providers, it is limited by its largely atheoretical and descriptive nature, and its emphasis on individual-level survivors' help-seeking. We seek to broaden our understanding by shifting the focus onto organizations and service systems and introducing the concept of these providers' trustworthiness toward survivors. Provider trustworthiness in delivering services includes benevolence (locally available and caring), fairness (accessible to all and non-discriminatory), and competence (acceptable and effective in meeting survivors' needs). Guided by this conceptualization, we conducted an integrative review drawing on four databases: PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Science, and Westlaw. We identified studies for inclusion that were published between January 2005 and March 2022, and we examined the trustworthiness of community-based providers serving adult IPV survivors in the United States, including domestic violence services, health and mental health care, the legal system, and economic support services (N = 114). Major findings include (1) many survivors live in communities with no shelter beds, mental health care, or affordable housing; (2) many services are inaccessible because they lack, for example, bilingual staff, sliding fees, or telehealth options; (3) too many providers are harmful or discriminatory toward survivors, especially those who are, for example, sexual or gender minorities, immigrants or non-English-speaking, poor, or Native, Black, or Latinx; (4) many providers appear to be incompetent, lack evidence-based training, and are ineffective in meeting survivors' needs. We call on researchers, advocates, and providers to examine provider trustworthiness, and we offer an introduction to measuring it.

An Exploratory Study of Financial Health as an Antecedent of Economic Abuse Among Women Seeking Help for Intimate Partner Violence.

Economic abuse is a common component of intimate partner violence (IPV). This study explored whether IPV victim and perpetrator financial health at relationship outset are associated with two types of economic abuse-restriction and exploitation-during the relationship. With a sample of 315 women seeking services for male-perpetrated IPV, the study showed increased use of economic restriction when perpetrators were advantaged in terms of assets or disadvantaged in terms of debt. There was increased use of economic exploitation when victims were advantaged in terms of assets or credit and when perpetrators were disadvantaged in terms of assets, debt, or credit. Implications for research and intervention are discussed.

Youth Service Provision and Coordination among Members of a Regional Human Trafficking Task Force.

Trafficked youth have numerous needs that must be addressed to give them opportunities to rebuild their lives. Few organizations offer comprehensive services to meet all these needs, which forces survivors to seek out services from multiple organizations and puts them at risk for not receiving important services. This study highlights the needs of organizations in an interagency task force that serve trafficked youth to identify barriers and generate potential solutions to service provision challenges. We conducted a mixed-methods needs assessment by conducting interviews with 15 service providers belonging to a regional human trafficking task force, which revealed a need for more services for trafficked youth, particularly in criminal justice and gender-based violence organizations. Implications of these findings include a need for centralized referral processes and more prevention services, such as a youth drop-in center and educational interventions.

Supporting sexual assault survivors with disabilities: Tracing disclosure and referral pathways to postassault health care services.

National epidemiological data indicate that nearly 4 in 10 victims of recent sexual assaults have physical, cognitive/developmental, or mental health disabilities, which can make navigating postassault help seeking more challenging. To streamline services, many communities have created sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) programs for comprehensive health care, crisis intervention, medical forensic evidence collection, victim advocacy, and legal referrals. SANE programs are recommended as the national best practice for postassault care, but there is virtually no U.S.-based research on whether survivors with disabilities seek these services. The present study sought to identify the disclosure and referral pathways that successfully connected sexual assault survivors with disabilities to SANE programs for postassault care. Forensic nurses in one midwestern state recorded information about all adult sexual assault patients (N = 755) who sought care during a 9-month window of data collection. Survivors with disabilities were significantly less likely than those who did not have disabilities to disclose to informal support providers (e.g., family, friends) and those individuals were unlikely to suggest to survivors with disabilities that they seek postassault health care. Survivors with disabilities were significantly more likely than survivors who did not have disabilities to disclose to formal help sources and to be referred to SANE programs by other formal community services, typically the police. A strong referral network from law enforcement to SANE programs is important, but survivors who do not wish to pursue criminal investigation need reliable pathways to postassault health care. Strategies for promoting community awareness of SANE services are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The Right to Say No: Why Adult Sexual Assault Patients Decline Medical Forensic Exams and Sexual Assault Kit Evidence Collection.

INTRODUCTION: The International Association of Forensic Nurses (2018) affirms the importance of evidence-based, trauma-informed, patient-centered forensic nursing services that engage patients as autonomous decision makers. Past research indicates that forensic nurses consistently respect patients' choices and control as they navigate the decisions of medical forensic examinations (MFEs) and sexual assault kit (SAK) collection. Building on that work, this study examined which options patients decline and what factors are associated with those declination decisions. METHOD: We collected prospective data from seven state-funded sexual assault nurse examiner programs. Forensic nurses recorded information about all adult sexual assault patients (N = 783) regarding four primary decisions: whether to have a MFE, whether to consent to all parts of the MFE or to decline specific services, whether to have a SAK collected, and whether to release the SAK to law enforcement for forensic DNA testing. RESULTS: Most patients consented to a MFE (95%), to all parts of the MFE (81%), to SAK collection (99%), and to release the SAK for forensic DNA testing (80%). Younger patients and those with disabilities were more likely to decline some options. Patients who had not disclosed the assault to others before seeking sexual assault nurse examiner care were also more likely to decline a MFE. Whether patients sought post assault care for more health-focused reasons or legally focused reasons was associated with declination decisions. CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare providers should communicate clearly about each step in post assault care and allow patients to decline services as they choose.