Intimate Partner Violence and the LGBT+ Community Understanding Power Dynamics

Intimate Partner Violence is a serious social problem affecting millions in the United States and worldwide. The image of violence enacted by a male aggressor to a female victim dominates public perceptions of intimate partner violence (IPV). This volume examines how this heteronormativity influences reporting and responding to partner violence when those involved do not fit the stereotype of a typical victim of IPV. Research and theory have helped us to understand power dynamics about heterosexual IPV; this book encourages greater attention to the unique issues and power dynamics of IPV in sexual minority populations. Divided into five distinct sections, chapters address research and theories associated with IPV, examining the similarities and differences of IPV within heterosexual and gender minority relationships.

 Among the topics discussed:

• Research methodology and scope of the problem
• Primary prevention and intervention of IPV among sexual and gender minorities
• Barriers to help-seeking among various populations
• Promoting outreach and advocacy
• Criminal justice response to IPV

With recommendations for intervention and prevention, criminal justice response and policy, Intimate Partner Violence and the LGBT+ Community: Understanding Power Dynamics will be of use to students, researchers, and practitioners of psychology, criminal justice, and public policy.  

Part 1: The Scope of the Problem: Methodological and Theoretical Perspectives.- 1.      Introduction: A Call to Action.- 2.      Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence in LGBTQ Individuals: An Intersectional Approach.- 3.       On the Importance of Feminist Theories: Gender, Race, Sexuality and IPV.- 4.      Identifying Influences on Interpersonal Violence in LGBTQ Relationships through an Ecological Framework: A Synthesis of the Literature.- 5.      Who’s the Victim Here? The Role of Gender, Social norms and Heteronormativity in the Gender Symmetry Debate.- Part 2: A Broader Understanding of Partner Violence and Barriers to Help-Seeking.- 6.      Trans Prejudice and its Potential Links to IPV Among Trans People.- 7.      Understanding Power Dynamics in Bisexual Intimate Partner Violence: Looking in the Gap.- 8.      Help-Seeking Barriers Among Sexual and Gender Minority Individuals Who Experience Intimate Partner Violence Victimization.- Part 3: Intervention and Prevention of IPV among Sexual Minorities.- 9.      Primary Prevention of Intimate Partner Violence among Sexual and Gender Minorities.- 10.  Learning What You Need: Modifying treatment programs for LGBTQ perpetrators of IPV.- 11.  Beyond Gender: Finding Common Ground in Evidence-based Batterer Intervention.- Part 4: Outreach and Advocacy.- 12.  Lessons Learned: One Researcher’s Same-sex IPV Journey.- 13.  Intimate Partner Violence Among Older LGBT Adults: Unique Risk Factors, Issues in Reporting and Treatment, and Recommendations for Research, Practice, and Policy.- Part 5: Criminal Justice Response.- 14.  Identifying and Responding to LGBT+ Intimate Partner Violence from a Criminal Justice Perspective.- 15.  Policing Transgender People and Intimate Partner Violence (IPV).

Dr. Brenda Russell is a Professor of Psychology at The Pennsylvania State University, Berks. Her scholarly interests include psychology and law, perceptions of victims and perpetrators of domestic violence, homicide defendants, and the social psychological and cognitive aspects of jury decision making. She is particularly interested in how gender and sexual orientation play a role in evaluating and responding to perpetrators and victims in cases of intimate partner violence, rape, sexual coercion, and sexual harassment. She is a fellow at the Midwestern Psychological Association and received the Eisenhower Award for distinguished teaching at Penn State University. Dr. Russell also provides expert testimony in homicide cases and serves as consultant and program evaluator for various federal and state educational, law enforcement, justice, and treatment programs.