Temporal Relationships of Partner Violence & Drug Use

(This research was funded by National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse K23 DA019561 to Dr. Sullivan)

The primary aim of this research was to examine the effectiveness of three methodologies used to investigate the temporal relationships of intimate partner violence (IPV) and substance use on a daily basis. A design-driven feasibility study examined telephone data collection (TDC), paper diaries (PD), and monthly retrospective semi-structured interviews (MR) methods among a community sample of women. A secondary aim was to elucidate the temporal relationships between IPV and substance use within a given episode and across multiple episodes over time. Findings from this study were used to inform grant applications proposing a more definitive, full scale examination of the temporal relationship of IPV and substance use among victimized women in the community and determine how these complex interrelationships change over time with particular attention to the role of PTSD (see Relationship Stress Study - R01 DA031275). The broad long-term goal of this program of research is to develop prevention and intervention programs targeted to reduce the co-occurrence of substance use among victims of IPV.