Follingstad Awarded Saltzman Memorial Intimate Partner Violence Research Award
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 11, 2012) - Dr. Diane Follingstad, the Women's Circle Endowed Chair in the Center for Research on Violence Against Women, has been awarded the Linda Saltzman Memorial Intimate Partner Violence Research Award. Dr. Follingstad received the award during the 17th International Conference on Violence, Abuse, and Trauma, held in San Diego.
The goal of the award is to encourage continued research in the field by recognizing either new or established researchers who have made substantial contributions to the field of intimate partner violence.
“It is such a nice thing to be selected for the Saltzman award at this stage of my career, and I am very grateful to the University of Kentucky and the Center for Research on Violence against Women for providing me with this excellent opportunity to focus on intimate partner violence research," Dr. Follingstad said.
Dr. Follingstad’s research in the area of intimate partner violence has covered issues related to battered women, physical dating violence, and factors impacting jury verdicts in cases where battered women killed a partner. Most recently, her research efforts have led to a more sophisticated measurement of psychological aggression and abuse, and she has published a critique regarding the problems of measurement in this field. She has established a measure of psychological abuse normed on a nationally representative sample and has used this measure to delineate the nature and prevalence, reciprocity, and gender differences of psychological abuse.
Dr. Follingstad - A professor of clinical and forensic psychology in the UK College Of Medicine's Department of Psychiatry - is currently investigating potential mediating factors that explain why some women develop prescription drug problems after exposure to psychological maltreatment. Continuing her forensic interests in the area of intimate partner violence, she is developing innovative approaches to study the less conscious influences that impact decisions to prosecute battered women who have killed their abusers
“Dr. Follingstad’s award is a notable individual achievement about which we are extremely proud," said Carol E. Jordan, director of the Center for Research on Violence Against Women. "And because this particular award is highly coveted in the field, it is also a signal to the nation that the University of Kentucky serves as the academic home for some of the most distinguished scholars in the field."
“At the UK College of Medicine, we understand the degree to which violence against women is a clinical and scholarly concern,” said Dr. Frederick C. de Beer, dean of the College of Medicine. “We are pleased that among our faculty and clinician scientists is a distinguished scholar who contributes to addressing this issue.”
Dr. Saltzman was a scientist and researcher at the Centers for Disease control and Prevention for more than 20 years. She worked tirelessly on the prevention of intimate partner family violence as well as public health surveillance of violence against women. Her work helped define the field, leading to numerous advancements in violence prevention.
The Linda Saltzman Fund is used for the continuation of Dr. Saltzman's work related to the prevention of violence against women.
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