Blog Archives

Update from LMB Fellow, Dr. RaeAnn Anderson

5/18/2025

Dr. RaeAnn Anderson
Project Update: Empowering Indigenous College Women to Stop Rape: A Treatment Development Study

We have held three Flip the Script with EAAA control groups and one Indigenized Flip the Script with EAAA group (March 8-9th). We are planning to hold 1-2 more Indigenized groups this Fall to have a larger sample because all groups have been small.

We have had hugely positive feedback from participants at every group we have put on.

What has been unexpected is how much our FACILITATORS really enjoying doing this. It is a big-time commitment for our graduate student facilitators who have lots of other things going on, but they LOVE being able to provide this intervention and feel very strongly about it.

In short, things are going pretty well here! But, it is harder to recruit in the current political climate.

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Update from LMB Research Fellow, Kamilla Bonnesen

5/18/2025

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Kamilla Bonnesen, MPH
Project Update: Understanding and Combating Cyber-Sexual Violence

Since our last update, we’ve completed the full analysis of our data and are excited to share very promising results. The Intimate Image Abuse (IIA) Scale we developed has proven to be a reliable and meaningful tool for understanding how people experience online forms of sexual harm—such as having intimate images shared without consent or being pressured to send explicit content. By using a modern approach that looks at how different types of abuse are connected, we found clear patterns showing that these experiences often overlap with other forms of gender-based violence, including dating and sexual violence. These findings confirm that the IIA Scale is a strong and survivor-focused way to capture the real experiences of those affected by image-based abuse.
We are proud to report that two additional manuscripts based on these findings are currently under peer review, expanding the impact of this work across both academic and applied fields.

A major milestone in the translation of this research into practice is our official partnership with Rankin Climate, a consulting firm responsible for administering campus climate surveys nationwide. Rankin Climate has confirmed that the IIA Scale will be integrated into future surveys to better assess experiences of online sexual violence in campus settings. This integration will allow for the systematic tracking of online victimization and will help campuses develop tailored prevention and response strategies for students affected by image-based abuse.

Most notably, this body of work has successfully met all requirements for dissertation completion, marking a personal and professional milestone for our team. We are profoundly grateful to the Lindsey M. Bonistall Foundation for believing in this project and supporting research that centers survivor voices and builds actionable solutions.

Thank you for your support through the completion of this project!

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Update from LMB Fellow, Andrea Mariani

5/18/2025

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Andrea Mariani
Project Update: Development and Validation of the Himpathy Scale:
A Tool for Identification of Bias in Campus Sexual Assault Cases

Since the last update I have been able to present the findings on the development of the himpathy scale at the Association for Women in Psychology 2025 Conference. The presentation was very well received and generated a lot of interest: we’ve received several requests to share the scale with other researchers eager to use it. We will be able to share it as soon as it is published- which we're working on.

I have recently applied to give a presentation on our second himpathy study at The Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality later in the Fall. This study attempts to clarify the influence of preconceived notions of sexual assault and gender roles on the deployment of himpathy when evaluating specific cases.

In other news, we’ve hit a roadblock regarding funding for a project on profiling typologies of intimate partner homicide perpetrators given the recent federal funding freeze, although we are close to getting access to potential study participants currently in correction facilities here in Indiana.

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