Analysis co-authored by University of Kentucky College of Social Work Assistant Professor Keith J. Watts, Ph.D., offers specific guidance for social work educators to help alleviate the burden experienced by LGBTQ+ students and adapt their program environments to improve these students’ well-being and ability to learn. The study, published in the Journal of Social Work Education, was recently chosen as the 2022 award recipient of the journal’s Best Qualitative Paper for 2021.

Earlier research indicates that social work programs do not adequately prepare students to work with LGBTQ+ people. Further, it has been found that LGBTQ+ social work students do not receive enough administrative support in their higher education journeys. To identify ways to bridge these support gaps, study researchers conducted five focus group interviews with LGBTQ+ students in the U.S. and Canada who were either enrolled in or had recently graduated from accredited social work programs and had engaged in efforts to increase inclusion. The authors’ analysis found that the students used individual and collective strategies to increase programmatic inclusion of LGBTQ+ people and content; however, there were serious burdens associated with doing this identity work.

“Some individual strategies that participants reported included explicitly identifying themselves as LGBTQ+ during the application process to ensure their visibility and, hopefully, preempt potentially exclusionary experiences in their programs. Some also talked about selecting LGBTQ+ topics for class assignments or bringing up LGBTQ+ issues in class discussions to promote inclusion without necessarily outing themselves. Collectively, they reported engaging in community building with other LGBTQ+ students, organizing educational programming and events on campus, and advocating for support and resources within their institutions and social work programs,” Watts said.

“Participants also shared the heavy toll of these efforts. Many reported that by engaging in inclusion efforts they became tokenized and expected to be the spokesperson for all LGBTQ+ people, including in classrooms by instructors,” Watts said. “Not surprisingly, these experiences often led to or exacerbated feelings of isolation and the desire to detach and lessen the burden of this work.”.

The study also provides recommendations for the efforts that individual faculty and staff can engage to support LGBTQ+ students and promote inclusion, as well as those pertinent to the broader programs. Such endeavors would enable social work programs to live the values and principles that the profession is called to exhibit in the university environment.

Other authors on the study include principal investigator M. Alex Wagaman, associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, Edward J. Alessi, associate professor at Rutgers University, Jacob Goffnett, assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, De’Shay Thomas, Ph.D. candidate at Arizona State University, Megan S. Paceley, assistant professor at University of Kansas, and Shelley L. Craig, professor and Canada Research Chair in Sexual and Gender Minority Youth at the University of Toronto.

About 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States, more than 10 million people annually, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

Dr. Kathryn Showalter, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at the University College of Social Work whose research is focused on domestic violence, related workplace issues, and public policy to address intimate partner violence.

The conversation that follows has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Dr. Showalter, what brought you to UK College of Social Work, and why did you decide to research intimate partner violence (IPV)?

As far as joining the field, that happened early. I took a social work class in college, and I thought it was so awesome that social workers get to help people in a very practical way. I came to realize that intimate partner violence was something I was passionate about during my practicum course, which was an internship at the Women’s Employment Network in Kansas City. It is a wonderful organization that helps women find jobs. There, I realized I had a lot of clients that were experiencing intimate partner violence, and I could see the way that it had this ripple effect on their lives. I really wanted to know more about that and the way that abuse had not only been traumatic but had this lasting effect on their career and their well-being.

I knew when I started at the UK College of Social Work that I wanted to understand the types of jobs that women who experience intimate partner violence have, and the ways that we can potentially help in those different positions. Jobs or employment is a very big field of research. I wanted to look at work strategically and see if there were differences by sector and role. Domestic violence is mainly perpetrated against women, and so I thought it was logical to start with a female-dominated sector, specifically nursing. I think a lot of people have used the term domestic violence to refer to same-sex couples and couples who are married. Intimate partner violence is a little bit more inclusive because it covers different types of relationships. It includes anything from physical to economic to psychological abuse.

What is economic sabotage in a relationship, and what might that look like in the workplace?

Strategic work sabotage can look like calling your phone all day long to try to distract you while you’re working. It can look like hiding your car keys so you can’t drive to work, or you are late. It could be disconnecting the Internet or starting a fight before somebody goes to work so they feel upset and it’s hard to concentrate.

There were not previously measurements for those kinds of experiences, so that is a big area of focus for my current work, which is supported by the UK Center for Research on Violence Against Women. And it was important to include technology because it is unfortunately a big tool now that abusive partners can use against someone, and much of that impact has not been studied.

We live in a digital age, where most people have internet-connected cellphones with cameras, and many participate in online platforms. What are some things people should be aware of when using social media and other online tools, especially regarding IPV?

I think it’s virtually impossible to just turn it off. Your data and your online presence and everything that is inside of our smartphones can’t be easily erased. Everyone has an online digital footprint now. Abusive partners can use that in a million different ways, even if I were to throw my phone in the trash. My abusive partner can still destroy me. They can harass my friends and my coworkers through digital platforms. They can post things about me or photos that I don’t want other people to see to hurt me.

And this can happen even if I don’t have contact with them through my phone–everything from GPS tracking to software hacking. Someone can take control of your computer or look at all of your emails or your calendar. They can find out where somebody is located or planning to be. I think that it’s very scary and makes people more vulnerable to cyberstalking.

To protect yourself, I think documentation is the best thing anyone can do. You have to build the evidence. Here are some ways to do that: https://www.techsafety.org/documentationtips

What are some of the biggest misconceptions about domestic violence?

In my research, I’ve asked participants what are things you wish people understood about your situation? Two things that they say the most are, first, that I can’t just leave. I can’t. I can’t just pack a suitcase and leave. It’s not that simple. And I think the reasons behind that can be different. But of course, people’s lives are complex. And it’s important to trust survivors in that judgment call of is this the right time to leave or is it not? The second one that survivors tell me is that abuse is not just physical–there is an impact on self-esteem and mental health. There are many ways that abusive partners have strategically undermined their victims to try to just destroy and control them.

As a researcher, I would add that this is truly also an issue of race–particularly in the workplace or maybe even social settings in general. People are less helpful to women of color who are experiencing domestic violence. They are less likely to give them the same opportunities, the same level of understanding, the same patience that they would a white woman and I think that that goes back to stereotypes. Unfortunately, there is a lot less understanding for women of color who experience domestic violence.

How does your work help inform better policies and approaches for organizations and businesses?

I don’t think that this research is meaningful if it doesn’t have an impact on policy. I think you must use the information you have to try to better people’s lives. There is a lot of growth that we need to do–states have taken dramatically different approaches to addressing domestic violence, and we really have no idea what the effect of those policies have been on the state level because many have not been studied and many are not based in evidence. For example, there are 28 states that allow people to take time off of work without getting fired if you are experiencing domestic violence. But it is very haphazard–some states offer an unlimited number of days to take off for addressing the situation. Other states give you three days. Three days available to uproot your entire life and maybe change jobs and or change your home—it is very difficult to do this.

Businesses lose millions of dollars every year because of domestic violence, but it’s not something that many business leaders necessarily think they should be involved in or create a plan to handle. In some workplace cultures, there’s an attitude of whatever happens to you at home happens to you at home, it’s not our place to do anything. But it does have an impact on workers and the way they come to work (or can’t) and are able to be productive. Unfortunately, we usually see employers come up with a policy to support domestic violence victims and help them access resources after something terrible has happened at that workplace. It’s a reactive policy instead of a proactive policy.  

I want to communicate that there is hope. For people who want to help victims find stability for themselves and their families, it can be as simple as asking if they are OK and keeping what they tell you confidential.

Dr. Kathryn Showalter, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at the University College of Social Work, whose research focuses on domestic violence intimate partner violence and the employment stability of survivors of abuse, abusive workplace disruptions and strategic economic sabotage by romantic partners, and family financial well-being and employer support of intimate partner violence survivors. Her work has been published in the Journal of Family Violence and Journal of Interpersonal Violence. She is currently working on several research projects related to public policy for intimate partner violence and workplace issues. Dr. Showalter received a Bachelor and Master of Social Welfare from the University of Kansas and a PhD in Social Work from The Ohio State University. To learn more about her work, please visit her University of Kentucky Scholar page.

New analysis from the College of Social Work at the University of Kentucky examined the reasons why women decided to obtain abortions and assessed views surrounding abortion access, as shared via social media testimonials. The article is published in the journal of Social Work in Public Health.

Using a public post by a well-known social media influencer who asked her followers to share their experiences with abortion, and the accompanying responses, researchers examined feelings and experiences related to women’s decisions to obtain an abortion. The researchers identified three main themes related to reasons for abortion (i.e., relationship issues, not being ready for pregnancy, and other reasons) and one supporting theme of bystander support. The findings also highlight the efforts of many respondents to normalize abortion as an issue of women’s health and women’s rights.

In response to the original post, most respondents remarked that any reason for obtaining an abortion is valid. The overwhelming conclusion voiced by followers who posted responses indicating they obtained an abortion was that it was the best decision for their circumstances. The only regret mentioned by respondents was in reference to not obtaining an abortion.

“Given the stigma regarding the topic, it can be challenging to access abortion experiences outside of a traditional health clinic survey. This analysis provided insight into the abortion beliefs of women, both who have and have not experienced an abortion.” said lead researcher Aubrey Jones, Ph.D., of the University of Kentucky College of Social Work.

“While the results are in line with previous studies which found that multiple reasons are often cited for obtaining an abortion, the posts revealed a more supportive climate than the divisive discourse typically portrayed in the media.”

Other authors on the study include Melody Huslage, MSSW, and Miranda Dalton, Graduate Research Assistant, of the College of Social Work, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee.