Newsletters & Reports

Impacts of Peer Support for Women Affected by Domestic Violence

Women who have experienced domestic violence and who struggle with symptoms of depression and lowered self-esteem can benefit from group-based interventions. Peer support groups may address and reduce negative impacts of domestic violence and coercive control on self-reported wellness, coping with stress and family conflict and perceptions of social support. We conducted a one-group, pretest-posttest quasi-experimental study to evaluate the effectiveness of Growth Circle, a 14-week peer support group that was offered at Sagesse Domestic Violence Prevention Society in Calgary, Alberta. A convenience sample of 97 women 18 years and older who experienced domestic violence was recruited from all programs running at Sagesse and from partner agencies across Calgary. Hair cortisol samples were collected prior to program enrollment and following completion of the program to determine stress hormone levels. Participants’ self-reported levels of coping, perceived stress, social support from a romantic partner or primary person who provides social support, and participant wellness and positive alliance between participants, facilitators, and other group members were also assessed during these timepoints. Results will be published soon.

Principal Investigator: Nicole Letourneau

Co-Principal Investigators: Carrie McManus & Andrea Silverstone, Sagesse Domestic Violence Prevention Society

Community Partner: Sagesse Domestic Violence Prevention Society

Responding to Women Who Experience Intimate Partner Violence in Rural Municipalities Across the Prairies

This research looks at how women living in rural communities across the prairie provinces (Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba) are affected by intimate partner violence (IPV). IPV is a type of gender-based violence where intimate partners inflict physical, emotional, sexual, financial, and or spiritual abuse. Women in rural communities experience IPV at a level 1.8 times higher than women living in urban areas, representing one of the highest levels of IPV in Canada. They face many unique challenges in seeking and accessing help, such as limited resources, isolation, lack of transportation, lack of childcare, and the responsibility to take care of the family farm. Despite this, there is very little research that explores their unique challenges. In order to better understand women’s lived experiences and find opportunities for future research, RESOLVE researchers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta looked at current social services and conducted interviews with survivors and victims. Their work confirms and identifies the challenges that are specific to women in rural locations. Additionally, it finds that these challenges are even greater when women try to leave abusive relationships and seek help, and that women across provinces experience very similar barriers. Future research could further explore other experiences of IPV, such as Indigenous women from rural areas seeking help in urban areas, immigrant women seeking help in rural areas, and male IPV victims/survivors seeking help in rural areas. 

Click here to view the Literature Review

Click here to view the Environmental Scan

Click here to view the Practice Brief

Click here to view the Policy Brief

Click here to view the Summary Report

Click here to view the Final Report

Click here to view the Accessibility of IPV-related Services in the Prairies Story Map

Click to view the Infographic

Examining the Nature and Context of IPV in the 2SLGBTQ+ Community

Click here to view the Literature Review

Click here to view the Environmental Scan

Click here to view the Practice Brief

Click here to view the Policy Brief

Click here to view the Summary Report

Click here to view the Final Report

click here to view the Examining IPV in 2SLGBTQ+ Communities Webinar recording 

Click here to view the Examining IPV in 2SLGBTQ+ Communities Webinar PowerPoint slides

Click here to view the Rainbow Resource Centre's PowerPoint slides

Click here to view the Infographic

​Stefan Kurbatfinski, Kendra Nixon, Susanne Marshall, Jason Novick, Dawn McBride, Nicole Letourneau. “That was terrifying!”: When 2SLGBTQQ+ individuals and rural women experiencing intimate partner violence are stalked[J]. AIMS Medical Science, 2024, 11(3): 265-291. doi: 10.3934/medsci.2024020. Publication available here.

First Pathways Study

2021-2022 First Pathways

Vulnerable families such as those with low incomes experience additional barriers to accessing programs that can support their child's development. This study attempted to review how the First Pathways study recruited and retained its participants and how participant social factors impacted retention. The First Pathways study recruited 48 vulnerable families from community agencies. 52 additional families were recruited by the initial 48 families. In total 100 families participated in the study. The study observed that families recruited from community organizations often experienced greater levels of vulnerability than those from outside the community organizations. The study found that participants with higher levels of vulnerability were more likely to reschedule. To promote the participation and retention of vulnerable families, researchers need to focus on building rapport by creating safe and non-judgemental spaces, using trauma-informed approaches, and taking steps towards minimizing participant burden like offering in-personal or online meetings.

Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART)

2019-2020 Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART) 

This study explored the effectiveness of the Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART) in Alberta Canada. The DART team is a program of six hospital staff who are available 24 hours a day to visit and support patients in the emergency department (ED) within an hour. The program aimed to provide immediate and timely support to those in crisis, help people access appropriate community support, and reduce the load on ED staff in cases of domestic violence. Patients were later followed up with three and six months later. To measure the impact of the DART program, statistical demographic data for those accessing the services were reviewed. In total 60% of ED patients were screened for domestic violence, and of that 1% were referred to the DART program. In total, 133 patients were referred to the DART program from April 1st, 2019 to March 31st, 2020. Of that, females (86.5%) were the majority of DART recipients and the majority of reports involved a mix of emotional and physical abuse (74.4%). In addition, feedback was obtained from ED staff and DART staff in the form of questionaries. Overall, the DART program appeared to offer immediate support and resources to patients in crisis while encouraging ED staff to screen for and feel better equipped to address domestic violence. Limitations of the study include the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, causing DART to shift to a digital service. Regardless, this study demonstrated the effectiveness of having programs such as DART to support patients and frontline healthcare workers to address domestic violence. 

Kurbatfinski, S., Letourneau, N., Luis, M. A., Conlin, J., Holton, M., Biletsky, R., Hanrieder, R., Hansen, J., & Barber, B. (2023). The Evaluation of a Domestic Abuse Response Team Program in an Emergency Department. Journal of family violence, 1–14. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-023-00562-2

Click here to view

Infographic available here

Harassment and Violence in Canadian Workplaces: It’s [Not] Part of the Job

This report provides a summary of the main findings from our Canadian national study exploring the prevalence of harassment and violence, its multiple forms, its consequences, the impact of COVID-19, and respondents’ experiences with reporting. 

Click here to view/download the report

Click here to learn more

Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative

The Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative (CDHPI) is a knowledge hub for information garnered through domestic violence death review committees, coroners' investigations, inquests, inquiries or research studies related to domestic homicides with the aim of helping to inform promising practices in homicide prevention.

Jeffrey, N., Fairbairn, J., Campbell, M., Dawson, M., Jaffe, P. & Straatman, A-L. (November 2018). Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative with Vulnerable Populations (CDHPIVP) Literature Review on Risk Assessment, Risk Management and Safety Planning. London, ON: Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative. ISBN: 978-1-988412-27-6 Phase 1, Literature Review Report: Click here to view

Saxton, M., Straatman, A.L; Poon, J., Jaffe, P., Dawson, M. (2021). National survey and interviews with domestic violence service providers on risk assessment and safety planning with victims, perpetrators and children living with violence. Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative with Vulnerable Populations. Phase 2 Report: Click here to view

Straatman, A.L., Poon, J., Jaffe, P., Dawson, M. (2022). Survivors Voices: Navigating risk and moving to safety in domestic violence relationships in Canada. Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative with Vulnerable Populations. Phase 3 Report: Click here to view

One is Too Many: 10 Years of Domestic Homicides in Canada. Report prepared by: Myrna Dawson, Danielle Sutton, Peter Jaffe, Anna-Lee Straatman, and Julie Poon. Click here to view

One is Too Many: Trends and Patterns in Domestic Homicides in Canada 2010-2015. Report prepared by: Myrna Dawson, Danielle Sutton, Peter Jaffe, Anna-Lee Straatman, Julie Poon, Meghan Gosse, Olivia Peters & Gursharan Sandhu. Click here to view

National & Provincial Initiatives: Click here to view an interactive map in which you can click on individual provinces and territories to view resources and initiatives by region.

Click here to view the Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative Briefs

View the infographic here

Experiences of Albertan Families with Young Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Authors: Dr. Sheila McDonald, Dr. Sarah Edwards, Dr. Erin Hetherington, Dr. Nicole Racine, Melissa Mueller (MSc), Dr. Brae Anne McArthur, Dr. Sheri Madigan, Dr. Deborah Dewey, Dr. Gerald Geisbrecht, Dr. Nicole Letourneau, Dr. Suzanne Tough

Click here to view

The Multi-Faces of IPV Across the Prairies: Men as Victims 

Fraehlich, C., Leeman, H., Ursel, J. Wood, K., Letourneau, N. Babbins-Wagner, R., & Bender, A. (2020) The multi-faces of IPV across the Prairie provinces: Men as victims. Final Report. RESOLVE Manitoba, University of Manitoba.

Click here to view the Infographic

Click here to view the Final Report

Working 4 Kids

2017-2020 Working4Kids

Children who grow up experiencing social stressors such as low incomes are more likely to struggle with healthy brain development in their early years. This study tested a new program called Working for Kids (W4K) for preschool children (ages 3-5) that involved teaching parents and childcare workers to address developmental needs. The study aimed to teach adults to understand brain development, how to promote a child's learning, and how to teach social-emotional, language, and problem-solving skills to children. First, child demographic information was collected for a baseline. Then the caregiver would either participate in learning through the W4K group or the control group. The control group was provided general information about child development. After receiving the education, children were assessed 6 months and 1 year after the study. To measure the program's effectiveness, stress was measured by observing a child's sleep, behaviour when playing, brain function through computerized tests, and the amount of stress chemicals in their urine. Caregivers would also complete a demographics questionnaire 6 months and 1 year after the study which would be compared to the results of the baseline questionnaire. 

Working for Kids: Building Skills™ is a "train-the-trainer" educational program that teaches social service providers, teachers and practitioners to provide educational information to parents to best support their children’s brain development. Dr. Nicole Letourneau, worked closely with Dr. Judy Cameron and the Palix Foundation to implement this program in Calgary as part of a multi-national study.

More information about Working for Kids is available in the RESOLVE Network February 2019 newsletter here and the June 2019 newsletter here.

View the Working for Kids Communique Summer 2020 here

View the Working for Kids Alberta information sheet here

Intimate Partner Violence in Rural, Remote, Northern populations (2016-2017)

Letourneau, N., McBride, D. L., Barton, S. S., & Griggs, K. (2023). Service Providers' Perspectives: Reducing Intimate Partner Violence in Rural and Northern Regions of Canada. The Canadian journal of nursing research = Revue canadienne de recherche en sciences infirmieres, 55(2), 165–175. https://doi.org/10.1177/08445621221128857

Read the Summary Report here

Click to view the infographic here

Domestic Abuse in the Jewish Communities of the Canadian Prairie Provinces

This study examined the perspectives of Jewish community members and service providers across the Canadian Prairie provinces regarding domestic abuse.

Authors: Nicole Letourneau , Jordana Linder, Andrea Silverstone , Nela Cosic, Jason Novick, Jane Ursel, Mary Hampton, Cyril Kesten, Linda Duffett-Leger, Karen Wood, Suhad Bisharat, Alexis Zederayko

Click here to view

View the infographic here

A summary of this project is available here