Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Individuals and Intimate Partner Violence Resources in LGBTQ+ Organizations

A meta-analysis reporting on the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization of transgender populations found transgender people were two to three times more likely to experience IPV than cisgender people (Peitzmeier et al., 2020). The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP) (2012) found transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) people, particularly transgender women and transgender Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), were more likely to be threatened and harassed by their abusive partners than cisgender people. TGNC people may be at a high risk of IPV due to the lack of services designed for TGNC victims of IPV. Once in an abusive relationship, TGNC people have few mental health and safety service providers with the knowledge and skills to aid them. The goal of this research is, through interviewing mental health and safety providers from LGBTQ+ organizations, to understand the benefits and shortcomings of LGBTQ+ organizations for TGNC survivors of IPV in hopes such organizations can further their positive actions and understand and address their limitations. The primary researcher interviewed five participants and analyzed themes within them including stigma, intersecting identities, physical health support, mental health support, support from housing services, TGNC specific spaces/services, employees’ calls to action, organization size, training, and communication