Title: Chapter 1: Strengthening Community-Based Services and Advocacy for Victims Series: Toolkit To End Violence Against Women Author: Violence Against Women Office Published: October 2001 Subject: Strengthening Community-Based Services and Advocacy for Victims 17 pages 35,500 bytes -------------------------------- Chapter 1: Strengthening Community-Based Services and Advocacy for Victims What Communities Can Do To Make a Difference o Ensure that all victims have a safe place to turn. Identify gaps in services for all victims of sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, and stalking. Educate the public, legislators, and community leaders. Develop strategies to increase the availability of core crisis services where none exist. o Expand services. Expand the services offered to survivors of sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, and stalking, including more long-term counseling, assistance with housing and employment, and culturally specific services. o Seek and use survivor input. Develop a range of mechanisms to ensure survivor involvement in the design, evaluation, and enhancement of outreach strategies and services. Support the leadership role of victim advocates and survivors in coordinated community responses, coordinating councils, task forces, and other collaborative entities. o Increase the cultural and linguistic competence of community programs. With community partners, commit to building a more responsive network of sexual assault and domestic violence programs and services. Institute hiring and recruitment policies and practices to ensure that staff reflect the communities they are serving. o Expand the availability of culturally competent and culturally specific services. Target funds for strategies and services developed by and for underserved and marginalized communities and populations. o Develop new leadership. Support leadership development for women from underserved and marginalized populations to increase their participation in efforts to end violence against women. o Protect privacy and confidentiality. Ensure that staff and volunteers of sexual assault and domestic violence programs take all necessary steps to protect the confidentiality and privacy of their communications with victims, including safeguarding files and records and the informed use of written waivers of confidentiality. o Inform policymakers. Expand efforts to educate local and state policymakers about the impact of proposed policies and legislation on women who have been sexually assaulted, battered, or stalked, and involve survivors in these efforts. o Build partnerships with community groups. Collaborate with community groups that are interested in integrating response to violence against women into their work. Ensure that informal neighborhood networks that women may turn to for support are adequately informed about violence against women and available community resources. o Increase organizational capacity. Adequately fund sexual assault and domestic violence programs to ensure their stability and effectiveness. -------------------------------- Strengthening Community-Based Services and Advocacy for Victims Ensure Quality Services in Dual Programs Meeting the needs of all survivors of violence against women requires collaboration and information sharing between sexual assault and domestic violence service providers. Many communities have created dual programs that address both sexual assault and domestic violence. However, sexual assault services are often disproportionately understaffed, underfunded, and unable to provide even core services to the community. If communities are considering developing dual programs or combining sexual assault and domestic violence services into the same agency, they should first investigate the potential benefits, pitfalls, and unintended consequences of merging or maintaining separate programs. In communities where only one program provides sexual assault and domestic violence services, measures must be taken to ensure that sexual assault programming is equitable and fully developed. Policies and procedures should be carefully structured and monitored to ensure that sexual assault intervention and prevention activities receive equitable support. Strengthen Services and Advocacy for Victims and Survivors The antirape movement organized in the late 1960s laid the political foundation for work that began in the early 1970s against domestic violence and established the model for community-based organizations providing services and advocacy to women and their children. Initially, sexual assault and domestic violence advocates focused on creating crisis hotlines, support groups for victims,[1] and "safe homes" and emergency shelters for battered women. As advocates helped individual women negotiate the courts, health care, and social service systems, disturbing patterns emerged--e.g., institutional responses that were biased, uncoordinated, and confusing; blamed victims for their assault or abuse; and too often endangered women and children. The need for systemic change was identified, and public policy advocacy took on new urgency. Advocates effectively worked with federal and state elected officials to pass and implement more effective sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, and stalking laws; increase funding for services; and provide better training for those involved in ensuring safety, recovery, and justice for survivors. More than 1,300 sexual assault programs and more than 1,900 domestic violence programs now exist in communities across the nation; the number of victim advocacy programs offering support and protection to women who have been stalked is also growing. Sexual assault and domestic violence coalitions exist in every state; national organizations also offer comprehensive training, technical assistance, and systems advocacy on violence against women issues. Although funding has expanded in the past 10 years for both sexual assault and domestic violence programs, and justice agencies have enhanced their ability to protect victims, the availability of services has lagged behind the pressing needs that women and children face.[2] Rural communities, communities of color, tribal reservations, immigrant and refugee groups, incarcerated women, older women, women with disabilities, and others too often remain marginalized and have benefited far less by the advocacy efforts of the past 30 years than women in the mainstream. As programs develop, increased attention is focused on recognizing and responding to women's diverse interests and concerns. A challenge facing all community-based sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking programs is to provide support and leadership while respecting and learning from the women and communities with whom these programs are working. Ensure That All Women Have a Place To Turn Many states have three times as many counties to serve as sexual assault and domestic violence programs to serve them. The problem is particularly acute in rural areas, but many large cities also face chronic shortages of emergency shelter beds and crisis services for battered women and their children. Most sexual assault programs struggle to provide core services such as hotlines, medical and legal system advocacy, and crisis counseling to women in their communities. Few communities have developed services specifically designed to assist stalking victims outside the context of sexual assault or domestic violence. However, more women are reaching out for services than ever before.[3] As the criminal justice, health, welfare, and social service systems more regularly identify sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, and stalking victims and refer them to community-based services, the demand for these programs' services has increased significantly. Public education and awareness efforts have also informed more women how to access services and have encouraged them to seek help. Provide More Comprehensive Services and Advocacy Research and practice have provided a more complete understanding of the incidence, prevalence, forms, and impact of sexual assault, acknowledging the pressing need for a greater range of services and broader expertise. Increases in the number of child sexual assault and acquaintance rape survivors reaching out for help have placed new demands on sexual assault programs. Similarly, domestic violence advocates are challenged by the complexity of issues facing battered women. Different resources and staff/volunteer skills are needed to provide appropriate services and advocacy for immigrant or migrant battered women, poor women, women with substance abuse or mental health problems, and women requiring long-term support. Still, most women who are sexually assaulted, battered, or stalked do not reach out to sexual assault or domestic violence programs. They may not know such programs exist, be able to access them, recognize that what has happened to them is a crime, or find the services provided relevant to their needs or experiences. New outreach strategies must include building new alliances between victim advocacy programs and other community groups that bring services and support closer to the women who need them. Appreciation has deepened in regard to the diversity of women's experiences with sexual and physical violence and the differences in the women's circumstances, resources, and interests. Advocates understand the need to tailor responses to the particular needs of each woman, respecting and supporting her decisions and increasing her understanding of options, and to her sense of control. This approach is more responsive to the complexity of women's lives and more likely to enhance women's safety, recovery, and well-being.[4] Enhance Services and Programs for Marginalized and Underserved Women and Communities Culture has a tremendous impact on the way individual women experience and interpret violence, how and where they look for help, and how they respond to and use formal and informal service systems. Sexual assault and domestic violence programs must continue to make services more relevant and accessible to all women and more culturally appropriate and specific to the communities they serve. Additionally, marginalized and underserved communities are encouraged to create services and programs that are by and for their members. Often, organizations that have traditionally provided services to specific populations (regardless of whether those services specifically targeted violence against women) are in a better position to serve women from that community. Many victims of sexual assault and domestic violence require a continuum of responses and services. Sexual assault or domestic violence programs alone cannot provide all of the services, support, and protection needed by survivors and their children. The effort must be communitywide. Increase Organizational Capacity To Provide Responsive Services and Community Leadership Although many sexual assault and domestic violence programs are currently understaffed and underfunded, they are increasingly being urged to address a broader and more complex range of issues and to assume key leadership roles within coordinated community response efforts. Community-based sexual assault and domestic violence programs have been assigned several critical tasks: o Ensure that every intervention is grounded in being responsive to victim needs and interests and holds offenders accountable for their behavior. o Encourage communication, coordination, problem solving, and collaboration among institutions, community agencies, and the community as a whole. o Help develop a vision and plan for ending violence against women in the community. Meeting the needs of all women dealing with violence also requires collaboration and information sharing between sexual assault and domestic violence service providers, advocates, and experts.[5] To fulfill these roles, community-based sexual assault and domestic violence programs require adequate resources, leadership development opportunities, and technical assistance from within the advocacy movement and support from the justice, health, social service, and other systems. Similarly, state coalitions and national sexual assault and domestic violence organizations, including national hotlines and resource centers, play a critical role in advocating on behalf of women's interests by fostering collaboration; bringing new partners into the movement to end violence against women; changing systems, policies, and laws to protect victims; providing training and technical assistance to guide program development and public education efforts; and guiding and leading prevention efforts. These national and state organizations also struggle to secure adequate resources to meet the demands of their work. Outlined on the following pages are specific actions that local communities, private funding sources, sexual assault and domestic violence programs, state coalitions, and state and national sexual assault and domestic violence organizations can take to eliminate violence against women. Ensure That All Women Have a Place To Turn 1. Increase availability of core advocacy and support services, such as crisis hotlines, information and referrals, support groups and counseling, emergency shelters, and legal, medical, and economic advocacy. o Identify unserved and underserved areas within each state and county, focusing on both rural and urban areas. Target additional resources to areas with the most pressing needs. o Establish new sexual assault and domestic violence programs in unserved communities or counties. o Ensure that funding for dual programs adequately supports the provision of core services to sexual assault survivors. o Expand the capacity of existing sexual assault and domestic violence programs to establish outreach or satellite offices. o Increase transportation networks to enable more women access to existing services. o Train specialized staff to work on violence against women issues in other community- based organizations serving underserved areas. Provide More Comprehensive Services and Advocacy 2. Use advocacy, service delivery, counseling, and safety planning approaches that acknowledge the diversity of each woman's circumstances, resources, and interests. o Provide advocates with the necessary orientation, skill training, and ongoing support to build respectful partnerships with victims and survivors. o Analyze the range of relevant risks and needs each woman faces, as well as options and resources, and offer the most responsive services and advocacy. o Prepare to assist battered women in strengthening and effectively implementing ongoing safety plans. 3. Get and use survivors' input in design, evaluation, and enhancement of program policies and practices. o Develop various mechanisms to ensure ongoing survivor input into policy analysis, program development, systems change, program evaluation, and public education activities. o Solicit input from survivors through surveys, focus groups, intake and exit interviews, and other strategies designed to obtain broad feedback from diverse women. o Invite survivors to participate in analyzing the information and discussing its implications and its applications to policy and program development. 4. Work collaboratively with other community agencies to create an emergency assistance fund to be administered by local and statewide sexual assault or domestic violence agencies. o Provide resources to cover emergency expenses resulting from victimization, including emergency relocation and housing costs, transportation, short-term food and clothing expenses, respite care for children and other dependents, emergency medical care including health care evaluations immediately after an assault, and other crisis costs facing victims. 5. Enhance sexual assault advocacy and services and their responsiveness to the needs of women who have been sexually assaulted. o Expand the types of services offered, including enhanced legal and medical advocacy (such as helping survivors secure forensic exams and long-term evidence storage, treatment for sexually transmitted diseases, and legal accompaniment), long-term counseling, housing and employment advocacy, community outreach and education, grassroots organization, and more effective use of information technology to reach survivors and the community. o Increase program capacity to respond to victims of different forms of sexual assault, including adult and child survivors of child sexual abuse and survivors of acquaintance rape, rape within marriage or cohabiting relationships, and drug-facilitated and same-sex sexual assault. o Provide services that are responsive to survivors who have emergency housing needs, live in remote areas, have been prostituted or trafficked, have chronic mental health needs, have been raped in the context of war, or have also been stalked--including victims whose stalkers have used the Internet to harass or threaten them. o Remove barriers to current services or provide alternative services in special situations. Ensure that services are available to women who may require them for longer than is typically allowed, speak languages other than English, have mental health problems or substance abuse histories, or face criminal charges; undocumented women; women living with HIV/AIDS; and women with disabilities. 6. Enhance domestic violence advocacy and services and their responsiveness to needs of battered women. o Expand the range of services offered to battered women, such as welfare, housing, education, employment, medical and legal advocacy, services and advocacy for nonsheltered women, transitional housing, and followup services to sheltered women and their children. o Provide appropriate referrals to every woman who seeks emergency shelter but is turned away because of lack of space or because her needs fall outside program capacity. Expand emergency housing options in communities by supplementing beds available through battered women's shelters, including hotels/motels, "safe homes," hospital beds, and other emergency housing programs. Develop appropriate operating and referral policies to ensure that such options are responsive and safe. o Ensure that shelter and services are available to women who may require longer stays than are typically allowed, have older children or male children of any age, speak languages other than English, have mental health problems or substance abuse histories, face criminal charges, or are former sex workers or prostituted undocumented women; women living with HIV/AIDS; women with disabilities or who have children with disabilities; and survivors of lesbian battering. 7. Enhance collaborative relationships among sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking programs within the same community. o Provide cross training for sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking program staff and volunteers on violence against women, the services and advocacy provided by other programs, and appropriate referral strategies. o When appropriate, share staff to best meet the needs of women seeking assistance. For example, an interpreter for hard-of-hearing victims or a substance abuse counselor may not be needed full time at any single agency but might be shared among several. 8. Expand efforts to educate local and state policymakers about the impact of proposed policies and legislation on women who have been sexually assaulted, battered, or stalked; involve survivors in these efforts. o As resources allow, monitor and document the response of criminal and civil justice, health care, welfare, and other systems to violence against women, and report both positive and negative results to the community. 9. Investigate and carefully expand the use of new information and communications technology to improve services, outreach, and education related to violence against women. o Institute appropriate safeguards to address privacy and confidentiality concerns.[6] o Explore how the Internet and distance-learning approaches can provide training and education of survivors and advocates. 10. Protect the confidentiality and privacy of staff/volunteer communications with victims, including safeguarding files and records and the informed use of written waivers of confidentiality. o Provide regular and comprehensive training to all staff and volunteers to ensure they are adequately prepared to maintain confidentiality of communications and records under existing state statutes and program policies and procedures. o Reflect a commitment to women's confidentiality and privacy in all program descriptions, in oral and written information, with third parties, and in educational materials. o Help women protect their privacy with private post office boxes, unlisted phone numbers, blocking of caller identification, and flagged records in credit bureau and child support databases. o Develop and implement privacy safeguards for programs with an online presence. o Develop or expand policies within coordinated community responses to protect the confidentiality of survivors and appropriately regulate the flow of information. o Inform community partners about existing laws related to confidentiality and victims' rights, and ensure that information is exchanged in accordance with applicable laws. 11. Build community partnerships to provide survivors with needed services; initiate, participate in, and provide leadership to multidisciplinary community-based efforts addressing violence against women. o Designate staff with the responsibility and time to strengthen collaborative efforts with other sectors of the community. o Build new collaborative relationships with programs addressing child abuse, teen pregnancy, homelessness, poverty, mental health, alcohol and drug abuse (including those providing residential substance abuse or mental health services and those working with communities of color); people with psychiatric, developmental, and physical disabilities; the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities; men and boys; and religious, spiritual, and faith-based organizations. o Convene representatives from all systems that affect survivors' lives, and coordinate the provision of wraparound services that minimize victim trauma. o Partner with academic and research organizations to ensure that policy and practice is informed and strengthened by research evaluation and that research and evaluation initiatives are informed by and responsive to current policy and practice issues and community needs. o Focus on victim concerns and safety within existing collaborations addressing violence against women, such as state, county, and local councils. Increase Responsiveness to Marginalized and Underserved Women and Communities 12. Increase the cultural and linguistic competence of sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking programs. o Engage staff and volunteers at every level of an organization to discuss the meaning and importance of cultural sensitivity and competence; commit to building a more responsive organization. o Recruit and hire staff, volunteers, and board members who reflect the composition of the community the program is responsible to serve. o Articulate in organizational documents a commitment to serve victims and survivors from diverse backgrounds; challenge oppression based on race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and other factors. Review all policies and practices, and modify those that contain bias or create barriers to accessing services. o Provide ongoing training for staff about the populations the program is responsible to serve; provide constructive forums for staff to address the reality and impact of racism, sexism, homophobia/heterosexism, and biases related to age, disability, geographic isolation, and religious beliefs. o Assume responsibility for understanding and speaking out against other forms of oppression and incidents involving discrimination or bias. 13. With community women and other partners, identify natural sources of information and support used by women in the community, and help ensure that these sources are adequately informed about violence against women and available services. o Support organizations, groups, and individuals already working within local communities--such as migrant health clinics, senior centers, lesbian service agencies, disability rights organizations, neighborhood watches, faith-based groups, and parent-teacher associations--to incorporate an understanding and response to violence against women in their work in the community. o Collaborate with leaders from diverse communities to develop culturally and linguistically appropriate brochures, videos, public service announcements, posters, and other materials; distribute them through trusted organizations and community leaders. 14. Support the leadership development of women and men from underserved and marginalized communities and groups to facilitate their ability to fully participate in efforts to end violence against women. o Incorporate the expertise, perspectives, and leadership of underrepresented communities, including communities of color and people with disabilities, in the design and implementation of services and individual advocacy, outreach, public education, training, policy advocacy, and evaluation activities of programs. o Increase representation and leadership on program boards and within membership structures of national, state, and local sexual assault and domestic violence organizations, and ensure meaningful opportunities for participation in policy and program development, planning, and priority setting. o Work collaboratively with government and private funders to expand support for community, state, and nationwide networks, organizations, and alliances of communities of color to end sexual assault and domestic violence. 15. Expand current efforts to develop culturally competent and specific services for victims, and target funds for programs, services, and new approaches to address violence against women. o Ensure that services are designed and implemented by and for underserved and marginalized populations and communities. These new approaches can include expanded definitions of core services, nontraditional response or prevention strategies, and services delivered through nontraditional entry points. Increase Organizational Capacity To Provide Responsive Services and Community Leadership 16. Ensure program staffing that is adequate, well-trained, and reflective of the community. o Provide adequate staff compensation and benefits packages, ongoing staff and volunteer development, programs and support to address secondary trauma and "burnout," safe working conditions, and staff access to specialized consultants, including legal, medical, and mental health specialists, as necessary to meet community needs. o Institute staff hiring and volunteer recruitment and retention policies that result in staffing reflective of the community the organization is responsible to serve. 17. Increase state funding for state sexual assault and domestic violence coalitions. o Expand provision of technical assistance, training, policy advocacy, public education, and organization activities by state sexual assault and domestic violence coalitions. 18. Increase local and state support for local-, state-, tribal-, and national-level meetings, working groups, and conferences. o Provide advocates and allies with more opportunities to meet, network, coordinate advocacy and policy work, devise methods to improve intervention and prevention efforts, and address emerging policy and practice issues. Resources National Hotlines Victim Services Helpline (assistance and referral) National Center for Victims of Crime 2000 M Street NW., Suite 480 Washington, DC 20036 Phone: 1-800-FYI-CALL TTY: 1-800-211-7996 Fax: 202-467-8701 Web site: www.ncvc.org/infolink/main.htm The National Center for Victims of Crime's (NCVC's) mission is to help victims of crime and their families rebuild their lives. NCVC works with local, state, and federal agencies to enact legislation and provide resources, training, and technical assistance. The NCVC Web site provides relevant statistics, links to publications, and referrals to participating attorneys. National Domestic Violence Hotline P.O. Box 161810 Austin, TX 78716 Phone: 512-453-8117 Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE TTY: 1-800-787-3224 Fax: 512-453-8541 Web site: www.ndvh.org The National Domestic Violence Hotline uses a nationwide database to provide crisis intervention, referrals, information, and support in many languages for victims of violence against women. Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network 635-B Pennsylvania Avenue SE. Washington, DC 20003 Phone: 202-544-3059 Hotline: 1-800-656-HOPE Fax: 202-544-3556 Web site: www.rainn.org The Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN) offers a toll-free hotline for free, confidential counseling and support 24 hours a day for victims of rape, abuse, and incest. National Resource Centers and Advocacy Organizations Family Violence Prevention Fund 383 Rhode Island Street, Suite 304 San Francisco, CA 94103-5133 Phone: 415-252-8900 Fax: 415-252-8991 Web site: www.fvpf.org The Family Violence Prevention Fund works to end domestic violence and help women and children whose lives are affected by abuse. The Web site offers free online catalogs, articles and information on abuse and violence, press releases and story archives, information on public policy efforts, and other resource materials. Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community 180 McNeal Hall University of Minnesota 1985 Buford Avenue St. Paul, MN 55108-6142 Phone: 1-877-643-8222 Web site: www.dvinstitute.org The Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community promotes public awareness through public outreach, dissemination of related information and resources, publication of a biannual newsletter, and coordination of conferences and training forums. National Alliance of Sexual Assault Coalitions c/o Connecticut Sexual Assault Crisis Services, Inc. 110 Connecticut Boulevard East Hartford, CT 06108 Phone: 860-282-9881 Fax: 860-291-9335 Web site: www.connsacs.org/alliance.html The National Alliance of Sexual Assault Coalitions Web site provides a listing of sexual assault coalitions across the country, with contact information, URLs, and e-mail links for each. The site includes an online library of relevant articles and information that includes research materials as well as fiction and poetry. National Latino Alliance for the Elimination of Domestic Violence 1730 North Lynn Street, Suite 502 Arlington, VA 22209 Phone: 1-800-342-9908 Fax: 1-800-600-8931 Web site: www.dvalianza.com The National Latino Alliance for the Elimination of Domestic Violence (the Alianza) includes Latino advocates, community activists, practitioners, researchers, and survivors of domestic violence working together to eliminate domestic violence in Latino communities. The Alianza serves as a national forum for ongoing dialogue, education, and advocacy. Publications and the Web site are offered in English and Spanish. National Network to End Domestic Violence 666 Pennsylvania Avenue SE., Suite 303 Washington, DC 20003 Phone: 202-543-5566 Fax: 202-543-5626 Web site: www.nnedv.org The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) is a membership organization for state domestic violence coalitions that offers advocacy, information, referrals, technical assistance, training, and other opportunities for advocates across the country. NNEDV publishes a quarterly newsletter and the Web site includes an "On The Hill" page that tracks the latest legislation and government actions on domestic violence. National Resource Center on Domestic Violence Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence 6400 Flank Drive, Suite 1300 Harrisburg, PA 17112 Phone: 1-800-537-2238 TTY: 1-800-533-2508 Fax: 717-545-9456 Web site: www.pcadv.org The National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (NRC) is a valuable source for information, training, and technical assistance regarding domestic violence issues. NRC is also a clearinghouse for domestic violence resources and statistics that may be used to enhance policies and publications. National Sexual Violence Resource Center 123 North Enola Drive Enola, PA 17025 Phone: 1-877-739-3895 TTY: 717-909-0715 Fax: 717-909-0714 Web site: www.nsvrc.org The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) is a clearinghouse for resources and research about all forms of sexual violence. NSVRC works with its partner agency, the University of Pennsylvania, to provide new policies for establishing sexual violence interventions and prevention programs. Stalking Resource Center National Center for Victims of Crime 2000 M Street NW., Suite 480 Washington, DC 20036 Phone: 202-467-8700 Fax: 202-467-8701 Web site: www.ncvc.org The National Center for Victims of Crime's (NCVC's) mission is to help victims of crime and their families rebuild their lives. The Stalking Resource Center provides resources, training, and technical assistance to criminal justice professionals and victim service providers to support locally coordinated, multidisciplinary antistalking approaches and responses. Endnotes 1. Some victims and survivors chose to identify themselves using one of these two terms. For clarity, we use "victim" through most of this document. 2. Schechter, Susan (1996). Improving the Response to Domestic Violence: Recommendations to Federal Agencies. Iowa City, IA: University of Iowa, School of Social Work and Injury Prevention Research Center. p. 11. 3. One example of this is the increase in calls to the National Domestic Violence Hotline over the past 4 years. In the year 2000, the hotline received an average of 11,000 calls per month, up from 5,000 calls less than 3 years ago. Most calls are from battered women seeking help, although many calls are from family and friends of someone being abused to request information they can pass on. 4. Davies, J., Lyon, E., and Monti-Catania, D. (1998). Safety Planning With Battered Women: Complex Lives/Difficult Choices. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. 5. Promising Practices: Improving the Criminal Justice System's Response to Violence Against Women, compiled by the STOP Violence Against Women Grants Technical Assistance Project (1998). Washington, DC. p. 11. For a copy, contact the National Criminal Justice Reference Service at 1-800-851-3420 or askncjrs.org and reference NCJ 172217. 6. For example, sexual assault and domestic violence programs with an online presence should develop and implement safeguards that preclude the discovery of survivor research and/or contact online through information stored on the survivor's computer. Sexual assault and domestic violence Internet sites should prevent and eliminate the caching of pages and their content and avoid the use of "cookies" whenever possible. Users should be offered warnings and instructions about clearing the cache and the navigational history and the potential dangers of using "bookmarks" or "favorites." Users should be encouraged to use private e-mail, and sexual assault Internet sites should offer links to sites where survivors can set up private e-mail accounts.