New research identifies sociodemographic predictors of depression for a rural population in the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to enhance mental health disaster preparedness. This research used t-tests to differentiate between gender and ethnicity groups regarding depression status; binary logistic regression to identify socio-demographic characteristics that predict depression status; and t-test to differentiate between average depression scores, measured by the PHQ-9, pre-COVID-19 pandemic (2019) and after it’s start (2020).

Published in the American Psychology Association's Traumatology journal this month, our research identifies whether there were statistically significant changes in depression severity for rural residents in the United States before the COVID-19 pandemic and after its start in 2020.

Few studies investigating disaster have examined the risks associated with surviving both disaster and intimate partner violence (IPV). IPV is psychological or physical abuse in a personal relationship. Using an intersectional approach, the purpose of this study is to investigate contributions to and differences in perceived stress and personal resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic among a sample of predominantly female-identified IPV survivors (n = 41) to examine risks associated with this vulnerable population during disaster.

New peer reviewed research published in the journal, Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, & Policy.

In this new peer-review journal article entitled  "A survey of IPV perpetrator treatment providers: Ready for evidence-based practice?", we find that a debate persists regarding the effectiveness of batterer intervention programs, the predominant form of intervention for individuals who have perpetrated intimate partner violence (IPV).  Social science research has identified some promising research trends – e.g., the effectiveness of Motivational Interviewing and process factors that maintain an effective therapist-client alliance, what clients