LGBT Domestic Violence

Originally posted on www.lgf.org.uk

Domestic violence is a term we have all heard of and understand as a terrible ordeal for anyone to go through, but it is something that isn't as widely acknowledged as happening within relationships in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGB&T) community.

Much previous research on domestic violence has concentrated on heterosexual relationships, with men widely being considered the perpetrator of the violence and women as the victims, the ordeal suffered by men and women within the LGB&T community is often ignored.

Due to the failure to acknowledge LGB&T relationships in much of the previous research on this subject, it is thought that this has played down the severity of the experience of domestic violence in LGB&T communities, as LGB&T people have only recently become aware of the seriousness of this problem, as their heterosexual counterparts.

A new study aims to find out more about incidents of LGB&T domestic violence.

Manchester Metropolitan University Post-Grad student, Laura M.Chant is looking for volunteers to explore their experiences anonymously.

Laura is a graduate of the University of Bolton is currently working alongside Greater Manchester Police on a research project entitled 'Same Sex Violence, Another Closet: Exploring the Victimisation of Unreported Abuse, and Associated Risk Factors, using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis', which explores domestic abuse within a minority population, with the hope of helping people who are suffering.

The research being conducted will help explore domestic violence in LGB&T relationships through the eyes of the victims themselves, identifying the significant experiences for them, which according to the researcher, does not appear to be the primary focus in previous research carried out. The research will then focus on exploring the experiences in relation to the dynamics of abuse, associated risk factors and reasons for un-reporting, the report uses its pioneering approach to help form the general area for this research.

This work is ultimately setting up the ground work to help members of the LGB&T community and the final report will be used to help inform the police of the risk and prevalence of domestic violence, inform ways that the police can promote awareness and encourage victims to come forward.

The findings of this report will be compiled within a thesis that will be available at the Manchester Metropolitan University and within a review report for the Greater Manchester Police.

The research subjects have been given total anonymity within the research findings.