Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence and Subsequent Police Reporting Among Lesbian,Gay,Bisexual,Transgender,and Queer Adults in Colorado

Abstract

Research indicates that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals are at high risk of victimization by others and that transgender individuals may be at even higher risk than their cisgender LGBQ peers. In examining partner violence in particular, extant literature suggests that LGBTQ individuals are at equal or higher risk of partner violence victimization compared with their heterosexual peers. As opposed to sexual orientation, there is little research on gender identity and partner violence within the LGBTQ literature. In the current study, the authors investigated intimate partner violence (IPV) in a large sample of LGBTQ adults (N = 1,139) to determine lifetime prevalence and police reporting in both cisgender and transgender individuals. Results show that more than one fifth of all participants ever experienced partner violence, with transgender participants demonstrating significantly higher rates than their cisgender peers. Implications focus on the use of inclusive language as well as future research and practice with LGBTQ IPV victims.

Keywords

intimate partner violence LGBTQ victimization transgender cisgender

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Ard

K. L.

Makadon

H. J.

(2011). Addressing intimate partner violence in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender patients. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 26, 930-933. doi:10.1007/s11606-011-1697-6

Balsam

K. F.

Szymanski

D. M.

(2005). Relationship quality and domestic violence in women’s same-sex relationships: The role of minority stress. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 29, 258-269. doi:10.1111/j.1471-6402.2005.00220.x

Bartholomew

Regan

K. V.

White

M. A.

Oram

(2008). Patterns of abuse in male same-sex relationships. Violence & Victims, 23, 617-636. doi:10.1891/0886-6708.23.5.617

Berrill

(1992). Antigay violence and victimization in the United States: An overview. In Herek

Berrill

(Eds.), Hate crimes: Confronting violence against lesbian and gay men (pp. 19-45). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Black

M. C.

Basile

K. C.

Breiding

M. J.

Smith

S. G.

Walters

M. L.

Merrick

M. T.

. . .Stevens

M. R.

(2011). The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2010 Summary Report. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/pdf/NISVS_Executive_Summary-a.pdf

Bornstein

D. R.

Fawcett

Sullivan

Senturia

K. D.

Shiu-Thornton

(2006). Understanding the experiences of lesbian, bisexual and trans survivors of domestic violence: A qualitative study. Journal of Homosexuality, 51(1), 159-181. doi:10.1300/J082v51n01_08

Brown

(2008). Gender-role implications on same-sex intimate partner abuse. Journal of Family Violence, 23, 457-462. doi:10.1007/s10896-008-9172-9

Carvalho

A. F.

Lewis

R. J.

Derlega

V. J.

Winstead

B. A.

Viggiano

(2011). Internalized sexual minority stressors and same-sex intimate partner violence. Journal of Family Violence, 26, 501-509. doi:10.1007/s10896-011-9384-2

Clements-Noelle

Marx

Katz

(2006). Attempted suicide among transgender persons: The influence of gender-based discrimination and victimization. Journal of Homosexuality, 51(3), 53-69. doi:10.1300/j082v51n03_04

10.

Conron

K. J.

Scott

Sterling Stowell

Landers

S. J.

(2012). Transgender health in Massachusetts: Results from a household probability sample of adults. American Journal of Public Health, 102, 118-122. doi:10.2105/ajph.2011.300315

11.

Courvant

Cooks-Daniels

(n.d.). Trans and intersex survivors of domestic violence: Defining terms, barriers, & responsibilities. Survivor Project. Retrieved from http://www.survivorproject.org/defbarresp.html

12.

Cramer

R. J.

Kehn

Pennington

C. R.

Wechsler

H. J.

Clark

J. W.

III Nagle

(2013). An examination of sexual orientation-and transgender-based hate crimes in the post-Matthew Shepard era. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 19, 355-368. doi:10.1037/a0031404

13.

Edwards

K. M.

Sylaska

K. M.

(2013). The perpetration of intimate partner violence among LGBTQ college youth: The role of minority stress. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 42, 1721-1731. doi:10.1007/s10964-012-9880-6

14.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2010). FBI releases 2009 hate crime statistics. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/2009hatecrimestats_112210

15.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2011). FBI releases 2010 hate crime statistics. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2010-hate-crime-statistics

16.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2012a). FBI releases 2011 hate crime statistics. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2011-hate-crime-statistics

17.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2012b). Hate crimes accounting: Annual report released. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2012/december/annual-hate-crimes-report-released/annual-hate-crimes-report-released

18.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2013a). 2012 hate crime statistics: Table 4—Offenses. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2012/tables-and-data-declarations/4tabledatadecpdf/table_4_offenses_offense_type_by_bias_motivation_2012.xls

19.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2013b). 2012 hate crime statistics: Table 13—Colorado. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2012/tables-and-data-declarations/13tabledatadecpdf/table-13-state-cuts/table_13_hate_crime_incidents_per_bias_motivation_and_quarter_by_colorado_and_agency_2012.xls

20.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2013c). Uniform Crime Report, hate statistics, 2012: Incidents and offenses. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2012/topic-pages/incidents-and-offenses/incidentsandoffenses_final.pdf

21.

Finneran

Stephenson

(2013). Intimate partner violence among men who have sex with men: A systematic review. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 14, 168-185. doi:10.1177/1524838012470034

22.

Gates

G. J.

(2011). How many people are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender? The Williams Institute. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/09h684x2

23.

Goldberg

N. G.

Meyer

I. H.

(2013). Sexual orientation disparities in history of intimate partner violence: Results from the California Health Interview Survey. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 28, 1109-1118. doi:10.1177/0886260512459384

24.

Grant

J. M.

Mottet

Tanis

J. E.

Harrison

Herman

Keisling

(2011). Injustice at every turn: A report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey. National Center for Transgender Equality. Retrieved from http://www.thetaskforce.org/downloads/reports/reports/ntds_full.pdf

25.

Greenwood

G. L.

Relf

M. V.

Huang

Pollack

L. M.

Canchola

J. A.

Catania

J. A.

(2002). Battering victimization among a probability-based sample of men who have sex with men. American Journal of Public Health, 92, 1964-1969. doi:10.2105/AJPH.92.12.1964

26.

Herek

(1998). Hate crimes against lesbians and gay men: Issues for research and policy. American Psychologist, 44, 948-955. doi:10.1037/0003-066x.44.6.948

27.

Herek

Gillis

Cogan

(1999). Psychological sequelae of hate crime victimization among lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67, 945-951. doi:10.1037/0022-006x.67.6.945

28.

Houston

McKirnan

D. J.

(2007). Intimate partner abuse among gay and bisexual men: Risk correlates and health outcomes. Journal of Urban Health, 84, 681-690. doi:10.1007/s11524-007-9188-0

29.

Kaiser Family Foundation. (2001). Inside-OUT: A report on the experiences of lesbian, gays, and bisexuals in America and the public’s view on issues and politics related to sexual orientation. Menlo Park, CA: Author. Retrieved from http://kaiserfamilyfoundation.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/new-surveys-on-experiences-of-lesbians-gays-and-bisexuals-and-the-public-s-views-related-to-sexual-orientation-chart-pack.pdf

30.

Kulkin

H. S.

Williams

Borne

H. F.

Bretonne

Laurendine

(2007). A review of research on violence in same-gender couples: A resource for clinicians. Journal of Homosexuality, 53(4), 71-87. doi:10.1080/00918360802101385

31.

Landers

Gilsanz

(2009). The health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Massachusetts. Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Retrieved from http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/docs/dph/commissioner/lgbt-health-report.pdf

32.

Baker

J. J.

Korostyshevskiy

V. R.

Slack

R. S.

Plankey

M. W.

(2012). The association of intimate partner violence, recreational drug use with HIV seroprevalence among MSM. AIDS and Behavior, 16, 491-498. doi:10.1007/s10461-012-0157-6

33.

Lombardi

E. L.

Wilchins

R. A.

Priesing

Malouf

(2001). Gender violence: Transgender experiences of violence and discrimination. Journal of Homosexuality, 42(1), 89-101. doi:10.1300/J082v42n01_05

34.

Martin-Storey

(2015). Prevalence of dating violence among sexual minority youth: Variation across gender, sexual minority identity and gender of sexual partners. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 44(1), 211-24. doi:10.1007/s10964-013-0089-0

35.

Messinger

A. M.

(2011). Invisible victims: Same-sex IPV in the National Violence Against Women Survey. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 26, 2228-2243. doi:10.1177/0886260510383023

36.

Meyer

(2010). Evaluating the severity of hate-motivated violence: Intersectional differences among LGBT hate crime victims. Sociology, 44, 980-995. doi:10.1177/0038038510375737

37.

Meyer

I. H.

(2003). Prejudice, social stress, and mental health in lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations: Conceptual issues and research evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 129, 674-697. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.129.5.674

38.

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. (2003). Costs of intimate partner violence against women in the United States. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/IPVbook-a.pdf

39.

National Center for Transgender Equality. (2014). Transgender terminology. Retrieved from http://transequality.org/Resources/TransTerminology_2014.pdf

40.

National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs. (2000). Anti-lesbian, gay, transgender, and bisexual violence in 1999: A report of the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs. San Francisco, CA: Author.

41.

National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs. (2013). Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and HIV-affected intimate partner violence. Retrieved from http://www.avp.org/storage/documents/ncavp_2012_ipvreport.final.pdf

42.

Ortega

Busch-Armendariz

(2013). In the name of VAWA. Affilia, 28, 225-228. doi:10.1177/0886109913495644

43.

Saltzman

L. E.

Fanslow

J. L.

McMahon

P. M.

Shelley

G. A.

(2002). Intimate partner violence surveillance: Uniform definitions and recommended data elements (Version 1.0). Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/pub-res/ipv_surveillance/intimate%20partner%20violence.pdf

44.

Schilt

Westbrook

(2009). Doing gender, doing heteronormativity: “Gender normals,” transgender people, and the social maintenance of heterosexuality. Gender & Society, 23, 440-464. doi:10.1177/0891243209340034

45.

Sloan

L. M.

Gustavsson

N. S.

(1998). Violence and social injustice against lesbian, gay, and bisexual people. New York, NY: Haworth.

46.

Thompson

M. P.

Basile

K. C.

Hertz

M. F.

Sitterle

(2006). Measuring intimate partner violence victimization and perpetration: A compendium of assessment tools. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/pub-res/IPV_Compendium.pdf

47.

Tjaden

Thoennes

(2000). Extent, nature, and consequences of intimate partner violence. National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/181867.pdf

48.

U.S. Department of Justice. (1998). Hate crime statistics in 1997: Uniform crime reports. Washington, DC: Federal Bureau of Investigation.

49.

U.S. Senate. (2013). 113th congress, 1st session, S.47: Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

50.

Waldner-Haugrud

L. K.

Gratch

L. V.

Magruder

(1997). Victimization and perpetration rates of violence in gay and lesbian relationships: Gender issues explored. Violence and Victims, 12, 173-184.

51.

Walters

M. L.

Chen

Breiding

M. J.

(2013). The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2010 findings on victimization by sexual orientation. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

52.

West

C. M.

(2012). Partner abuse in ethnic minority and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender populations. Partner Abuse, 3, 336-357. doi:10.1891/1946-6560.3.3.336

53.

Willis

D. G.

(2004). Hate crimes against gay males: An overview. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 25, 115-132. doi:10.1080/01612840490268090

54.

Xavier

J. M.

(2000). The Washington transgender needs assessment survey. Retrieved from http://www.gender.org/vaults/wtnas.html