Beyond Pour and Stir: Adapting IPV Interventions in a Research- and Context-Informed Manner for Culturally Diverse Populations

Scholars and practitioners have been working for decades to develop efficacious interventions for intimate partner violence (IPV), although only recently has the role of culture been explored as central to conceptualizing effective strategies for diverse populations. Culture may be defined as the norms, attitudes and values that reflect and shape belief systems of specific populations. Programs to address IPV within specified cultural contexts typically apply surface structure adaptation (e.g., accented language, name choices, foods) to manualized content designed for European Americans. In order to maximize programmatic relevance and impact, however, deep structure adaptations which include an understanding of social, environmental, psychological, and historical influences are required. These include 1.) assessing goodness of fit of existing efficacious IPV interventions in the selection of a program for the targeted group, 2.) co-adapting and validating the intervention with the community of interest, and 3.) piloting the adaptation with continued refinement. This approach holds great potential for developing culturally relevant and research-informed interventions in community settings which support community-driven change.

This roundtable convenes scholars experienced with various stages of program adaptations to address IPV, with three goals: 1) To discuss conceptual issues in defining culture and adaptation with the benchmark of addressing IPV 2) To add to our current knowledge base about culturally-specific research with the aim of guiding IPV program adaptations 3) To share successes and challenges involved with conducting and implementing culturally adapted IPV interventions.

The first presenters will discuss the goodness of fit of existing school-based teen dating violence programs with Mexican American youth populations of the Southern United States. They will discuss how they involved key stakeholders to include school district administrators, personnel, teachers, social workers, police, and diversely acculturated youth in mixed methods TDV research. Finally, they will share key recommendations from their research for deep structure TDV program adaptations with this population.

The second presenters will discuss one agency's journey to provide services to Muslim survivors of IPV and to their families through culturally meaningful and trauma informed program adaptations. This discussion will include an examination of the processes, changes made, and the importance of capturing data in a culturally relevant manner that speaks to the importance of deep structural adaptations for IPV programming.

The third presenter will focus on cultural adaptations for campus sexual violence prevention efforts. This speaker will provide a brief overview and critique of the cultural relevance of existing campus prevention interventions. This will be followed by findings from pilot data and discussion of next steps to include the development of a bystander intervention program adapted for Mexican American college students.

Finally, the last presenter will discuss cultural adaptations pertaining to prevention of harassment in the military with attention to environmental contexts and individualized experiences of the continuum of harm. Stemming from 30 years of research with the Department of Defense and recent research concerning the Millennial Generation's use of technology for sexual predation, this speaker will address cultural adaptations to IPV policies and interventions with the military.