Our Research Goals.
Our goal is to be the leading voice in incest awareness. To support this, the Incest AWARE Alliance Research team seeks to increase incest-related knowledge by providing access to survivor stories and empirical research, as well as lived-experience consultants. Through our research platform, we seek to dismantle historical social and systemic injustices that have left children vulnerable to sexual abuse in the home, survivors and families isolated and without resources in recovery processes, and people at-risk to sexually harm others without the tools needed to prevent and end abuse.
We strive to provide resources to promote safety before and after incest offenses, equipping caregivers and professionals with information that can be used to address cases, support recovery, and empower justice. We also seek to provide a safe space for survivors of all ages to understand and empower them to seek support, solutions, and safety.
Together, with survivors and others passionate about the creation and curation of anti-incest content, we are compiling and conducting relevant research that advances knowledge to prevent and end incest abuse, as well as promotes the healing of participants who have been affected by the issue.
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Our Research Vision.
The Incest AWARE Alliance is the leading voice of research and advocacy to address the intersectional complexities of incest abuse.
The Incest AWARE Alliance Research team commits our first project to a Scope Review of incest-related studies. It will introduce the gaps, strengths, and areas of growth of the current literature, then invite others to produce the next generation of contextual and culturally-affirming anti-incest research. We will publish the review in academic, media, and other digital and print platforms to ensure that our findings reach an audience of individuals, organizations, researchers, and academics.
Our Research Projects.
Incest AWARE's
Research Team.
Dr. Donna
Bulatowicz
Dr. Donna Bulatowicz is a former chair of The Charlotte Huck Award and former president of the Montana Association of Teachers of English Language Arts. She co-founded a graduate student group, helped start Lavender Graduation, and was a founding board member of 406 Pride and the MSU chapter of KDP. Her research focuses on inclusive children’s literature, educational experiences of minoritized groups, and recently on CSA. She is a survivor of educator and child-on-child sexual abuse; both abusers were female. She provides sexual abuse education and prevention training for teachers and is creating body safety curricula.
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Josephine A.
Lauren, MTS
Josephine A. Lauren (she/they) is an internationally recognized queer, author, activist, and anti-incest liberation agent (AILA). They have been published in outlets like Ms. Magazine, Yes!, America, and Spirituality & Health. As the cofounder of Incest AWARE, Jo. serves an alliance seeking to improve methods of incest prevention, intervention, recovery, and justice. Say hello to Jo. on their website or subscribe to their Substack at josephineanne.com.
Dr. Ethan
Levine
Ethan is a sociologist, advocate, and award winning speaker on interpersonal violence and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, & other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ+) issues. He is also the author of, Rape by the Numbers: Producing and Contesting Scientific Knowledge about Sexual Violence. Dr. Levine's background in teaching and research informs and complements his antiviolence advocacy. He has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in sociology, gender and sexuality studies, and criminal justice for more than 10 years. He received a PhD in sociology and graduate certificate in Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies from Temple University in 2018.
Dr. Amira Y.
Trevino
Dr. Mira (she/her) is a Psychologist who provides therapy, conducts research, and facilitates training in areas of complex trauma, survivorhood, and multiculturally- and trauma-informed practices. She is a survivor whose work is driven by the mission to amplify and elevate voices that are often silenced by oppression and relational trauma. Her clinical interests include working with diverse adult survivors of child sexual abuse, incest, and sexual assault. Her research has focused on cultural outcomes of within-group child sexual abuse for multiracial populations. You can find her written work across academic and media outlets.
Learn how to prevent family incest, as well as the causes and consequences of sexual abuse in families.
Learn how to heal after family incest and connect to organizations to support you in your journey.
Learn how to support a family incest survivor through crisis, intervention, and recovery.
Connect with a community leading a movement seeking to end sexual abuse in families.