Creating Academic-Community Partnerships to Jointly Enhance Advocacy and Research on Violence and Disability: Two Case Examples

Abstract

Objective: This article describes the use of community-based participatory research (CBPR) to foster bidirectional and equitable academic-community partnerships in two studies related to interpersonal violence and disability. Method: We analyzed our methods and experiences in conducting these studies to focus on the ways in which CBPR methodology was used to jointly promote and enhance research and advocacy surrounding violence and disability in the research processes themselves and the resulting assessment and intervention products. Results: Our use of CBPR methodology allowed us to identify and address critical issues related to violence in the disability community, such as disability-related forms and experiences of violence, concerns and barriers linked to mandated reporting laws, and inaccessible measures and interventions, and to address them in research products. Additionally, our bidirectional academic-community partnerships led us to address overall accessibility of the research process itself as a means by which to amplify advocate voices in science. Conclusions: Full, meaningful, and equitable participation of people with disabilities at every stage of the research process allows for the creation of partnerships that jointly advance research and advocacy around violence and disability. Clinical Impact Statement Despite being at higher risk for violence, people with disabilities are often left out of academic conversations around violence, and their experiences and concerns go unheard. To address this, academic researchers partnered with community members with disabilities to create accessible assessments and interventions that addressed the lived experiences of violence in disability communities. Community members and academic researchers were equally involved throughout all parts of both studies, and both community members and researchers felt that the studies themselves and the assessments and interventions that came from them benefited both research and advocacy around violence and disability.

Description
Keywords
violence, disability, community-based participatory research (CBPR), accessibility, advocacy, ASSISTED SELF-INTERVIEW, PARTICIPATORY RESEARCH, INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE, ABUSE, WOMEN, ADULTS, PEOPLE, HEALTH, PREVALENCE, STRATEGIES, Psychology, Clinical, Psychiatry
Citation
Lund, E. M., Hughes, R. B., McDonald, K. E., Leotti, S., Katz, M. R., Beers, L. M., & Nicolaidis, C. (2022). Creating academic-community partnerships to jointly enhance advocacy and research on violence and disability: Two case examples. In Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy (Vol. 14, Issue 6, pp. 956–963). American Psychological Association (APA). https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0001135