Interdisciplinary nature of King's assists in gender-based violence research

Congratulations to Dr. Stephanie Baird, Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work, and Dr. Jordan Fairbairn, Associate Professor of Sociology, on receiving a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Insight Development Grant for their project, Service provider conceptualizations of intimate partner violence and trauma: A critical discourse analysis.

The research project aims to build understanding about the connections between intimate partner violence (IPV) and trauma. Drs. Baird and Fairbairn teamed up on the project due to a shared commitment to gender-based violence work and an interest in identifying and addressing gaps between service-provider expertise and broader public discourse surrounding IPV. Both view multi-disciplinary approaches as essential to preventing and responding to IPV.

“The interdisciplinary nature of King's allowed us to bring our expertise from each of our fields of study (social work and sociology) to this project, which aids in bringing different perspectives to the research process,” says Dr. Baird.

Dr. Fairbairn says she was excited when Dr. Baird approached her. “I am so appreciative for all the hard work [Dr. Baird] put into this application as Principal Investigator.”

Using critical discourse analysis, this project will investigate both how IPV service provider websites discuss and link IPV and trauma. They will identify discrepancies between how service providers view the connections between IPV and trauma and how this information is conveyed to the public on websites.

“We hope this knowledge will help create further understanding of the links between trauma and IPV, while ensuring that the expertise and knowledge of IPV service providers matches the information that survivors of IPV and their friends and family access when seeking support,” says Dr. Baird.