The research and evaluation (r & e) initiative is authorized by 34 USC 12291(b)(7), which permits OVW to set aside up to three percent of available funds from most OVW programs to conduct…

The research and evaluation (r & e) initiative is authorized by 34 USC 12291(b)(7), which permits OVW to set aside up to three percent of available funds from most OVW programs to conduct evaluations of promising practices for combatting domestic/dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, and to research issues emerging in the field. By generating more knowledge about strategies for serving victims and holding offenders accountable, communities that benefit from violence against women act (vawa) funding will be better equipped to align their work with practices that are known to be effective, and they will be more capable of building empirical knowledge on the efficacy of new and promising ways of making communities safer. Given that a growing body of research shows that hope has positive associations with intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors recovery, understanding the dynamics of hope within the daily lives of women who experience IPV remains a critical but underexplored area. This study aims to fill that GAP through a rigorous micro-longitudinal design, capturing real-time data three times per day over two weeks to unravel how and why hope fluctuates. In collaboration with a state domestic violence coalition, a researcher-practitioner partnership will prioritize participant safety through the development of survivor-defined protocols. Findings from this study will inform service provision in formal settings, such as domestic violence victim service organizations, as well as in other community settings and informal support networks including friends, family, and peers. This award will support the first 12 months of the 24-month project. OVW anticipates providing funds for the second year of the project through a supplement in FY 2025.