Human Trafficking in Correctional Institutions: A Survey of Correctional and Anti-Trafficking Leaders.

Growing awareness of the overlap between justice involvement and human trafficking victimization has led to calls for correctional institutions to prevent, identify, and respond to trafficking. However, it is unclear how correctional facilities (i.e., jails and prisons) are responding to such calls to action. To examine current efforts to address human trafficking in U.S. correctional facilities, this study surveyed correctional and anti-trafficking leaders (n = 46) about their perceptions and experiences with human trafficking screening, response, and training in correctional facilities. Although the majority of leaders (89%) agreed individuals in their state's correctional facilities have experienced human trafficking, they generally did not perceive that correctional staff were prepared to respond. Bivariate tests revealed that correctional and anti-trafficking leaders differed on their perceptions regarding correctional staffs' knowledge about human trafficking risk factors (p = .014), identification ability (p = .006), and response knowledge (p = .036), with anti-trafficking leaders perceiving correctional staff to be less prepared in these areas. Approximately 16% of leaders reported strategies to identify and respond to trafficking in correctional facilities, and about 27% reported human trafficking training for corrections staff. To promote a just society, study findings offer preliminary guidance for anti-trafficking correctional initiatives and future research.

A Systematic Review of Conceptualizations and Operationalizations of Youth Polyvictimization.

Violence against youth is a global issue impacting millions each year. Increasingly, research has focused on studying those impacted by multiple forms of violence, or polyvictims. Evidence strongly suggests that polyvictimized youth tend to have worse physical and mental health outcomes than those who have experienced single forms of violence. Moreover, minoritized youth (i.e., racial and/or sexual minority youth, youth with disabilities) are more likely to experience polyvictimization, making this a social justice and equity concern. To date, there is no universal consensus on what exactly constitutes polyvictimization. This systematic review aims to examine the ways in which polyvictimization is being studied to inform both research and practice. As such, relevant databases were searched to amass the extant literature related to youth polyvictimization internationally. Empirical studies published since 2006 that focused on youth (under age 18) polyvictimization were included. After the review process, 264 studies met eligibility criteria, however 55 studies employed person-centered/finite mixture analyses and were removed for a separate review, resulting in 209 featured in the current systematic review. Results demonstrate that researchers are defining and operationalizing polyvictimization in different ways: (a) using individual victimization event counts; (b) employing domain-based counts; and (c) taking a "highest-victimized" percentage of their sample. The most used measurement tool was the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire, though other validated tools and researcher-constructed questions were frequently utilized. Research on polyvictimization is burgeoning worldwide; however, this research is being conducted in disparate ways, making it difficult to compare findings and further advance the field.

Researcher-Practitioner Partnerships to Implement and Evaluate Sexual and Relationship Violence Prevention Programs for Boys and Men.

Although male-focused sexual and relationship violence (SRV) prevention programs are widely promulgated, limited guidance concerning how programs should be implemented for rigorous evaluation exists. To help develop evidence for such guidance, this paper reports on 20 interviews with leaders at youth-serving community-based organizations (CBOs) and educational institutions, which are sites for male-focused SRV prevention programs. This study examined: (1) how programs can be designed to engage male participants; and (2) how youth-serving CBOs and educational institutions can partner with researchers for evaluations. Findings underscore the importance of attending to the unique needs of program participants, their parents/guardians, and host organizations.

Exploring Perceived Legal and Organizational Support and Attitudes on the Decision to Mediate or Arrest in Domestic Violence Cases: A Study Among Community and Criminal Justice Professionals in China.

This study investigates factors related to the decision to (a) arrest or (b) mediate in domestic violence (DV) situations-nonmutually exclusive but highly differing decisions chosen a priori as being outcomes of interest. The sample included three types of professionals handling domestic violence cases in China: (a) Women's Federation (WF), (b) police, and (c) judicial personnel. The participants (n = 817) responded to a vignette describing a DV incident. Logistic regression revealed that legal, organizational, and attitudinal factors were associated with decision-making and varied by group. The findings suggest training and detailed instructions on handling DV.

Characteristics of and Circumstances Associated With Female Intimate Partner Problem-Included Suicides: Analysis of Data From the National Violent Death Reporting System (2003-2019).

Intimate partner problems (IPP)-which include divorce, breakups, arguments, jealousy, conflict, discord, and violence-have been robust precipitating factors associated with an increased risk for suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Although research on suicide related to IPP is growing, efforts to explore the circumstances surrounding suicidality among female victims struggling with IPP remain insufficient. To address this gap, this exploratory study sought to understand the circumstances surrounding female IPP-related suicide in the United States. We conducted a secondary analysis of data from the U.S. National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS, 2003-2019) which includes 43 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Of the final analytical sample of 58,545 female suicide cases in the United States, we delineated IPP-included suicide cases (13,496, 23.1%) and non-IPP-included suicide cases (45,049, 76.9%). Two-sided Pearson chi-square tests and standardized difference (SD) tests identified significant differences in the surrounding circumstances between IPP-included suicide and non-IPP-included suicide. IPP-included female suicide was more common among younger women, those involved in an intimate relationship, and women who were pregnant or postpartum (p < .001; SD > .10). IPP-included suicide victims were more likely to have experienced depression, substance abuse, and previous interpersonal trauma than non-IPP-included suicide victims (p < .001; SD > .10). Compared to non-IPP-included suicide, IPP-included suicide was more likely to occur at the victim's house or apartment during evening and nighttime by firearm or hanging (p < .001; SD > .10). Our findings also showed that IPP-included suicide victims had previous suicidal thoughts and were more likely to have disclosed their suicidal ideation with others before committing suicide than non-IPP-included suicide victims (p < .001; SD > .10). Findings identified unique circumstances and characteristics possibly associated with IPP-included female suicide. Our understanding of suicide may be enhanced by exploring the causal pathway behind these relationships.

Placebo Effects: The Meaning of Care in Medicine by Pekka Louhiala.

Pekka Louhiala crosses disciplines and decades to present a remarkably detailed review of the existing literature on placebos, placebo effects, and related concepts. The problem at hand-and Louhiala does aptly frame it as a problem-is a striking lack of consensus among researchers, scholars, and clinicians regarding virtually all aspects of the placebo topic. In capturing the complexity of this problem, Louhiala expertly compiles an extensive catalog of placebo literature that effectively gives the reader both a map of the territory and a legend to decipher it. He does not, however, give us clear directions to find our way out of the conceptual maze. The focus is often more on the problems than their solutions, which is simultaneously the most notable weakness and the greatest strength of the book.

A Scoping Review of Human Trafficking Screening and Response.

Service providers are increasingly asked to identify individuals who are experiencing trafficking and to connect them with resources and support. Nonetheless, identification is complicated by the reality that those who are experiencing trafficking may rarely self-identify, and providers may fail to identify individuals who are experiencing trafficking due to lack of guidance on how to screen for trafficking capably and sensitively. With the aim of guiding practice, we undertook a scoping review to search for and synthesize trafficking screening tools and response protocols. Following the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR), we located 22 screening tools contained in 26 sources. We included any documents that described or tested human trafficking screening tools, screening or identification protocols, response protocols, or guidelines that were published in any year. All documents were abstracted using a standardized form. Key findings showed that most tools were developed by practice-based and non-governmental organizations located in the U.S. and were administered in the U.S. Few screening tools have been rigorously evaluated. The common types of screening questions and prompts included (a) work conditions; (b) living conditions; (c) physical health; (d) travel, immigration, and movement; (e) appearance and presentation; (f) mental health, trauma, and substance abuse; (g) associations and possessions; and (h) arrests and prior involvement with law enforcement. We were not able to locate specific response protocols that provided step-by-step guidance. Nonetheless, the review revealed available practice-based and research-based evidence to help inform guidance concerning how screening and identification of human trafficking may be administered.

Sexual and Relationship Violence Among LGBTQ+ College Students: A Scoping Review.

Although there has been increased attention to campus sexual and relationship violence (SRV) because of Title IX and the #MeToo movement, much of that attention has focused on victimization of cisgender heterosexual women. This scoping review uncovers information from empirical studies on what is known about LGBTQ+ (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and nonbinary) students' experiences of campus SRV. Using rigorous scoping review methods (i.e., searches of 15 databases, searches of expert websites, hand searching, reference harvesting, and forward citation chaining), we identified 60 documents published since 2000 that contained findings from empirical studies related to LGBTQ+ students and SRV on U.S. college and university campuses. Through content analysis, we summarized findings around five key themes: (1) extent and types of victimization, (2) negative outcomes, (3) knowledge of and attitudes about SRV, (4) perspectives on SRV services and prevention education programs, and (5) recommendations from study authors based on their findings. Implications for research, practice, and policy based on these findings are discussed.

LGBTQ+-Affirming Campus Sexual and Relationship Violence Prevention: A Qualitative Study.

LGBTQ+ (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary, queer) people are often left out of campus sexual and relationship violence (SRV) prevention efforts despite experiencing higher rates of SRV. To inform LGBTQ+-affirming prevention efforts, we use a practice-to-research approach to aggregate wisdom from 32 LGBTQ+ professionals working to address campus SRV among LGBTQ+ college students garnered through semi-structured interviews. Participants shared four approaches to including or excluding LGBTQ+ students in campus SRV prevention programs as well as recommendations to cultivate more LGBTQ+-affirming campus SRV prevention efforts. We summarize recommendations for possible action steps at individual, relationship, community, and policy levels of the social ecological model for LGBTQ+-affirming campus SRV prevention.

Understanding Intimate Partner Violence Service Delivery for Latinx Survivors in Rural Areas.

Using a statewide survey, this exploratory, cross-sectional study examined 78 domestic violence (DV) service organizations' service delivery practices and perceived challenges to serving Latinx survivors in the context of rurality. Findings showed that DV organizations in rural areas perceived more challenges to delivering culturally appropriate services for Latinx survivors compared to those in other geographic settings even after accounting for client characteristics, service provision characteristics, and community resources. The study finding offers critical insights to ensure and enhance the provision of linguistically and culturally accessible services for rural Latinx survivors of intimate partner violence.

Web-Based Delivery of a Family-Based Dating Violence Prevention Program for Youth Who Have Been Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence: Protocol for an Acceptability and Feasibility Study.

BACKGROUND: Children exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) between caregivers are at an increased risk of becoming involved in dating violence during adolescence. However, to date, few adolescent dating violence (ADV) prevention programs have been developed for and evaluated with youth exposed to IPV. An exception is Moms and Teens for Safe Dates (MTSD), an evidence-based ADV prevention program for mothers or maternal caregivers (mothers) exposed to IPV and their teenagers. The MTSD program comprises a series of booklets that families complete together in a home that includes activities to promote positive family communication and healthy teenager relationships. We developed a web-adapted version of the MTSD program-entitled eMoms and Teens for Safe Dates (eMTSD)-to provide a delivery format that may increase program appeal for digitally oriented teenagers, lower dissemination costs, lower reading burden for low-literacy participants, and incorporate built-in cues and reminders to boost program adherence. OBJECTIVE: This protocol is for a research study that has the following three main objectives: to assess the acceptability of eMTSD; to identify the feasibility of the research process, including program adherence and participant recruitment and assessment; and to explore the acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of 2 features-text reminders and the creation of an action plan for engaging with the program-that may increase program uptake and completion. METHODS: Approximately 100 mothers and their teenagers will be invited to complete eMTSD, which includes six 30-minute web-based modules over a 6-week period. Mothers will be recruited through community organizations and social media advertising and will be eligible to participate if they have at least 1 teenager aged 12 to 16 years living with them, have experienced IPV after the teenager was born, are not currently living with an abusive partner, and have access to an internet-enabled device. Using a factorial design, enrolled dyads will be randomized to the following four adherence support groups (n=25 dyads per group): text reminders and action planning, text reminders only, action planning only, and no adherence supports. All participants will complete brief web-based assessments at enrollment after each module is completed, after the full program is completed, and 90 days after enrollment. Program adherence will be tracked using website use metrics. RESULTS: The data collected will be synthesized to assess the acceptability of the program and the feasibility of the study procedures. An exploratory analysis will examine the impact of adherence support on program completion levels. In November 2021, ethical approval was received and recruitment was initiated. Data collection is expected to continue until December 2022. CONCLUSIONS: The web-based delivery of a family-based healthy relationship program for teenagers exposed to IPV may offer a convenient, low-cost, and engaging approach to preventing ADV. The findings from this study are expected to guide future research. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/35487.

Intimate partner violence victimization and perpetration as precursors to suicide.

It remains unclear how often and under what circumstances intimate partner violence (IPV) precedes suicide. Available research on IPV and suicide focuses largely on homicide-suicide, which is a rare event (<2% of suicides). We focus instead on single suicides (i.e., suicides unconnected to other violent deaths), which are the most common type of fatal violence in the US. Unfortunately, information about IPV circumstances is often unavailable for suicides. To address this gap, we sought to identify the proportion of single suicides that were preceded by IPV in North Carolina (NC), to describe the prevalence of IPV victimization and perpetration as precursors to suicide, and to explore how IPV-related suicides differ from other suicides. We used data from the NC Violent Death Reporting System (2010-2017, n = 9682 single suicides) and hand-reviewed textual data for a subset of cases (n = 2440) to document IPV circumstances. We had robust inter-rater reliability (Kappa: 0.73) and identified n = 439 IPV-related suicides. Most were males who had perpetrated nonfatal IPV (n = 319, 72.7%) prior to dying by suicide. Our findings suggest that IPV was a precursor for at least 4.5% of single suicides. Next, we conducted logistic regression analyses by sex comparing IPV-related suicides to other suicides. For both men and women, IPV was more common when the person who died by suicide had recently disclosed suicidal intent, was younger, used a firearm, and was involved with the criminal legal system, even after controlling for covariates. We also found sex-specific correlates for IPV circumstances in suicide. Combined with homicide-suicide data (reported elsewhere), IPV is likely associated with 6.1% or more of suicides overall. Results suggest clear missed opportunities to intervene for this unique subpopulation, such as suicide screening and referral in IPV settings (e.g., batterer intervention programs, Family Justice Centers) that is tailored by sex.

Explanatory Theories of Intimate Partner Homicide Perpetration: A Systematic Review.

Theories play an important role in guiding intimate partner homicide (IPH) prevention research and practice. This study is the first systematic review of theories employed to explain why someone might kill their intimate partner. This review used rigorous methods to locate and synthesize literature that described explanatory theories of IPH perpetration. Using set search terms, we systematically searched 15 databases and repositories for theory-focused documents (i.e., theory papers or analyses) published in English from 2003 to 2018. Eighteen documents met these inclusion criteria and identified 22 individual theories that seek to explain why people might kill their intimate partners. These theories fell within four broader theoretical perspectives: feminist, evolutionary, sociological/criminological, and combined. Key tenets and focal populations of these 22 theories were identified and organized into a compendium of explanatory theories of IPH perpetration. Potential strengths and limitations of each of the four perspectives were described. Review findings underscored the likely importance of addressing gender as well as risk and protective factors at all levels of the social ecological model in efforts to understand IPH perpetration. The review findings highlighted the need for both integrated theories and a broader conceptual organizing framework to guide work aimed at IPH perpetration prevention to leverage the strengths of disparate theoretical perspectives. With the goal of informing future research, a preliminary iteration of such a framework is presented.

Intimate Partner Violence Survivors' Housing Needs and Preferences: A Brief Report.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization contributes to homelessness and housing insecurity for survivors and their children. Despite growing interest in expanding strategies for addressing the housing needs of survivors, there is a dearth of knowledge regarding survivors' preferences and recommendations. To begin to address knowledge gaps, this article reports findings from a qualitative study examining the housing needs of IPV survivors and survivors' preferences and recommendations for addressing their housing needs. In-depth interviews with 19 adult IPV survivors in a southeastern community determined three key themes: (a) IPV housing needs and challenges, (b) domestic violence shelter strengths and concerns, and (c) recommendations for addressing survivors' housing needs. The findings highlight the need for flexibility and variability in housing services as opposed to a one-size-fits-all strategy, and stress the importance of centering the voices of survivors as the field explores new housing directions.

The Prevalence of Sex Trafficking of Children and Adolescents in the United States: A Scoping Review.

TOPIC: This scoping review investigated research regarding the magnitude of minor sex trafficking (domestic minor sex trafficking and/or commercial sexual exploitation of children) in the United States, summarizing estimates, methodologies, and strengths and weaknesses of the studies. METHOD: Using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, peer-reviewed articles and the gray literature were accessed via databases searches, reference harvesting, and expert advice. Articles were included if they provided a count or prevalence proportion estimate of trafficked or at-risk minors across or within a region of the United States. Six empirical studies, published from 1999 to 2017, were included in the review. RESULTS: Included studies produced count estimates (n = 3) or prevalence proportion estimates (n = 3) for youth at risk of minor sex trafficking (n = 2) or reporting victimization (n = 5). Studies examined sex trafficking risk and victimization in different geographical areas, including across the United States (n = 2), in New York City (n = 1), and in Ohio (n = 1). Further, several studies focused on particular populations, such as street and shelter youths (n = 1) and adjudicated males (n = 1). Sampling methodologies of reviewed estimates included traditional random sampling (n = 1), nationally representative sampling (n = 2), convenience sampling (n = 1), respondent-driven sampling (n = 1), purposive sampling (n = 1), and use of census data (n = 2). CONCLUSION: Little research has estimated the prevalence of minor sex trafficking in the United States. The existing studies examine different areas and populations and use different categories to estimate the problem. The estimates reviewed here should be cited cautiously. Future research is needed on this important topic, including methodologies to produce more representative estimates of this hard-to-reach population.

A Scoping Review of Vicarious Trauma Interventions for Service Providers Working With People Who Have Experienced Traumatic Events.

Health and human service providers who aid traumatized individuals frequently experience vicarious trauma (VT). Although VT plays a critical role in service providers' mental health and well-being, as well as in the quality of their service provision, little information is available concerning the development and implementation of VT interventions for service providers. To advance the development of evidence in this area, we undertook a scoping review in which we reviewed existing interventions intended to address VT among service providers working with traumatized clients. Searches of electronic databases were conducted to identify studies published in peer-reviewed journals, with no date restrictions. Over 1,315 citations were reviewed, and a total of 27 studies were included in the final review. The findings show that VT interventions in the literature can be divided broadly into four categories: psychoeducation, mindfulness intervention, art and recreational programs, and alternative medicine therapy. The VT interventions reviewed generally showed promise in their key outcomes, including reductions in secondary trauma stress, compassion fatigue, burnout, and other mental health outcomes. However, the current body of research is lacking both in rigor and in specificity regarding the definition of VT. Furthermore, existing VT interventions are generally self-care based and tend to focus on general stress management rather than addressing the specific effects of VT. Therefore, we call for an increase in efforts to tailor VT interventions to different service settings and participant characteristics, as well as greater attention to developing primary VT interventions at the organizational level.

From "Homegrown" to Research-Ready: Converting an Existing Practitioner-Developed Violence Prevention Intervention Into an Evaluable Intervention.

There is an increased call for research on promising prevention programs already embedded in communities ("homegrown interventions"). Unfortunately, there is limited guidance to help researchers prepare these types of interventions for rigorous evaluation. To address this need, this article presents our team's process for revising a promising community-based sexual violence prevention intervention for rigorous research. Our extensive and iterative process of reviewing and revising the intervention was guided by evaluability assessment (EA) approaches, implementation science, and a close collaboration with our community partners. Our EA process allowed us to specify the intervention's core components and develop a "research ready" standardized curriculum with implementation fidelity assessments. We offer four lessons learned from our process: (1) even with existing materials and an extensive history of community-based delivery, community-developed programs are not necessarily research-ready; (2) close collaboration and a trusting relationship between researchers and community partners throughout the revision process ensures the integrity of core program components are maintained and implementation in diverse community settings is feasible; (3) observations of program implementation are a crucial part of the revision process; and (4) it is important to budget adequate time and resources for such revisions.

Study protocol for an evaluability assessment of an anti-human trafficking program.

BACKGROUND: Human trafficking is a serious global challenge associated with a complex array of health inequities for individuals, families, and communities. Consequently, in addition to a conventional criminal justice approach, anti-trafficking scholars have increasingly called for a public health approach to address this global challenge. Such calls have emphasized that a comprehensive, robust, and social justice-informed public health strategy for anti-trafficking must include services to facilitate survivors' HT exit and recovery, and to prevent their re-victimization. Fortunately, many community-based organizations and non-governmental organizations worldwide have heeded these calls and developed anti-trafficking programs for survivors. Unfortunately, despite the growing numbers of organizations providing anti-trafficking services, research concerning these programs' effectiveness remains nascent overall, and even more scant when filtered through an equity focus. METHODS: To advance the field by developing guidance concerning how best to evaluate anti-human trafficking programs, an ongoing research project aims to conduct a mixed methods evaluability assessment of a prominent anti-trafficking program using a social justice framework. Guided by well-established evaluability assessment frameworks, the study activities include four sequential steps: (a) focusing the assessment, (b) developing the program theory and logic, (c) gathering feedback, and (d) applying the assessment findings. Activities will include qualitative interviews and focus groups, observations, and quantitative analysis of program data among others. Human subjects and ethical review for the evaluability assessment has been granted by the Office of Human Subjects Research at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. DISCUSSION: Once completed, evaluability assessment results will provide evidence and products that have the potential to guide both evaluation research and service provision not only for the specific organization under study, but also for other anti-human trafficking programs worldwide. Findings will be developed into a variety of dissemination products tailored for both practice professionals and researchers. In the interim, this protocol manuscript offers research strategies and recommendations that can help inform the development of other studies in the developing field of anti-trafficking program evaluation research.