Season 4 Episode 12: Research That Puts Survivors at the Center

Historically research hasn’t always involved or benefited the population being studied. Dr. Elizabeth Dalgarno, the Director and Founder of the SHERA Research Group, is a staunch advocate of research that is undertaken by and with the people it concerns rather than “on” them. In this far-ranging interview, Ruth, David, and Dr Dalgarno discuss:  

•  SHERA’s research into health effects on survivors of their family court involvement in Brazil and England (Spoiler Alert: The negative health effects of family court involvement for domestic abuse survivors is significant!) 
• What can practitioners do differently within the current context of family law environment to improve outcomes for child and adult survivors?
• How to use research to help improve the social care and family court response to domestic abuse
• The need for greater accountability and transparency as it relates to systems that impact survivors 
• The need for appropriate credentialing, training, and experience for evaluators in the family court context
• The need for adequate data on the impacts of family law policies & practices on victim-survivors.
• The global need for domestic abuse-informed training for lawyers, children’s representatives, and judges around family violence, custody, and access 

The SHERA Research Group is a collective of multidisciplinary professionals with over 100 years of cumulative experience working in health inequalities, law, finance, social care and domestic abuse research and support organizations. 

Dr. Elizabeth Dalgarno is the Director and Founder of SHERA Research Group and a Lecturer at the University of Manchester, England. Dr. Dalgarno has worked in public and private health and social care for over 20 years and specializes in challenging inequalities and systemic challenges in health and social care. Her work with women who have been through family court focuses on their health-related experiences and the harmful pseudoscience of so-called ‘parental alienation’ and has been featured in a documentary, ‘Mums on the Run’ on the BBC iPlayer, at the UN Human Rights Council and in multiple media outlets.

Related Podcasts 

Season 4 Episode 10: Ensuring The Voice Of The Child Is Heard, And Child’s Best Interests Are Considered In Domestic Abuse Cases

 Season 3 Episode 2: Perpetrators’ Weaponization Of Mental Health And Addiction Against Survivors

Season 2 Episode 19: Using The Concepts Of Collaborative Co-Parenting To Hold Perpetrators More Accountable In Family Court

Episode 29: Family courts are failing the “best interests” of adult and child abuse survivors: An interview with Joan Meier

Download the paper: Ensuring the Voice of the Child is Heard, and Child’s Best Interests are Considered in Domestic Abuse Cases: Safe & Together Model and the Rights of Children

Now available! Mapping the Perpetrator’s Pattern: A Practitioner’s Tool for Improving Assessment, Intervention, and Outcomes The web-based Perpetrator Pattern Mapping Tool is a virtual practice tool for improving assessment, intervention, and outcomes through a perpetrator pattern-based approach. The tool allows practitioners to apply the Model’s critical concepts and principles to their current caseload in real-time.