Help-Seeking As a Form of Civic Engagement: Resistance, Institutional Mistrust, and Healing Among Rural Black Women Survivors

Background and Purpose: Help-seeking is a deeply personal and intricate process for Black women survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). Often shaped by cultural norms, sociopolitical context, and perceptions of trusted and available support, Black survivors construct adaptive help-seeking solutions outside of the domestic violence provision system due to institutional mistrust, pervasive controlling images, and reproduced harm. However, how Black survivors enact help-seeking in rural communities is largely absent within IPV literature. Rural geography, cultural and infrastructure present additional challenges to help-seeking for Black survivors residing in rural communities. Undergirded by Black Feminist Thought (BFT) (Collins, 2000) and Constructed Agency (Waller & Bent-Goodley, 2023), this study reframes help-seeking as a form of civic engagement among rural Black survivors who exercise their agency within and outside of the confines of the domestic violence provision system.

Methods: A survey design was used to examine the relationships between IPV, help-seeking strategies, and quality of life (QOL) among 64 Black survivors. Regression models were used to estimate the likelihood of help-seeking strategy categories while accounting for the mediating effects of community support and rural-specific variables (e.g., income, access, discrimination, etc.) Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analyses were also used to map IPV resources and transportation burden across rural communities.

Results: Rural Black survivors used an average of 24 strategies during their help-seeking process, employing resistance and placating strategies the most. Despite utilizing these two categories most frequently, informal network strategies were reported as the most helpful. Regression models suggest the likelihood of survivors using formal network and safety planning strategies is a function of higher household income, whereas the likelihood of utilizing informal network strategies is a function of lower household income. Legal strategy utilization is a function of higher community support. Moreover, community support in the form of social support emerged as a significant mediator in the relationship between IPV and help-seeking strategy categories.

Conclusions and Implications: Rooted in resistance and collective community care, rural Black survivors’ help-seeking is intentional, relational, and contextually grounded. By centering Black feminist epistemologies, help-seeking emerged as a form of constricted civic engagement for rural Black survivors, limited by rural infrastructure. Relational pathways to help-seeking that emphasize healing, restorative agency, and social support are critical to prioritize the needs and safety of rural Black survivors.