The Conversation
The Unique Harm of Sexual Abuse in the Black Community was published in The Conversation, which is a news outlet for researchers to translate their work for a non-academic audience of over 10 million users.
"The body of research to date suggests that cultural betrayal may be a unique harm within violence in minority populations, including the black community. As such, the alleged sexual traumas perpetrated by R. Kelly and Clarence Thomas have a cultural betrayal that isn’t found in Woody Allen’s alleged abuse. Moreover, black men’s death threats against Tarana Burke are (intra)cultural pressure that is laced with misogynoir, or sexism in the black community."
The research study featured in this article is Isn’t It All About Victimization? (Intra)cultural Pressure and Cultural Betrayal Trauma in Ethnic Minority College Women (Gómez, 2018).
Also published on the International Society for Research on Aggression (ISRA) Blog, featured on Today@Wayne, and re-published by over 15 other news outlets.
As of 19 May 2019, the article has over 2,600 readers.
May 2019
CNN Business
Interviewed by Julia Carpenter for her CNN Business article, Serena Williams' Nike ad exposes the double standards women face at work.
"Women in the workplace are tasked with the additional work of managing these perceptions, Gómez says.
"So much time is spent worrying adapting your speech and figuring out what to say and how you can say it differently and that is taking away from time and energy and effort for your job," she says. "It's a job for you to figure out 'how can I say this in this meeting without people painting me in this emotion corner?' and I think the trap with that is that it's not in the woman's control."
25 February 2019
Who's Betraying Who? R. Kelly, Sexual Violence, & The Dismissal of Black Women & Girls
New piece:
"The second truth is where it seems we consistently get into trouble: The rape of Black women and girls does matter. . . As a Black female clinical psychologist, I have coined the term cultural betrayal to describe instances where violence happens within the Black community. . . Nevertheless, in these discussions of sexual violence, often what is termed “betrayal” is something quite different. . . We must ask ourselves why."--Dr. Jennifer M. Gómez
31 January 2019
Discrimination, Violence, & Healing in Marginalized Communities
Open Call for this Special Issue of Journal of Trauma & Dissociation: Discrimination, Violence, & Healing in Marginalized Communities
Co-Editors: Jennifer M. Gómez, Ph.D., Robyn L. Gobin, Ph.D., & Melissa L. Barnes, M.S.
Goal: to understand the joint impact of discrimination and interpersonal trauma on minorities
Deadline for Submissions: 1 December 2019
Cultural Betrayal Trauma Video
In this short video, discussion of Cultural Betrayal Trauma Theory and the article, Isn't It All About Victimization? (Intra)Cultural Pressure and Cultural Betrayal Trauma in Ethnic Minority College Women, which was published in Violence Against Women.
January 2019
National Academy of Sciences' 30th Annual U.S. Kavli Frontiers of Science
Invitation from National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to attend the NAS' 30th Annual U.S. Kavli Frontiers of Science Symposium.
This symposium series is the NAS' premiere activity for distinguished young scientists.
Attendees are selected by a committee of Academy members from among young researchers who have already made recognized contributions to science, including recipients of major national fellowships and awards and who have been identified as future leaders in science.
From Today@Wayne Press Release:
“I’m not surprised that Jennifer was invited to this high-level scientific meeting given the quality of her scholarship and her passion for groundbreaking research,” said Ambika Mathur, associate provost for STWD and dean of the Graduate School. “Being part of the Kavli Symposium and her appointment as a Ford Fellow marks an important milestone in the PFT experience at Wayne State, and we are so proud of her impressive accomplishments."
December 2018
Open Essay on Gender Discrimination, Freyd's Lawsuit, & Recommendations for Universities
Open Essay: Gender Discrimination, Dr. Jennifer Freyd's Lawsuit, & Recommendations for Universities
"There are few emotions as potent as those caused by the pain of watching someone you respect, admire, and care for be discriminated against. Understanding how this discrimination, which feels so isolated and personal, actually is endemic of academia’s dirty little secret of systemic gender discrimination—contributing to the leaky pipeline for women—is more painful still."--Dr. Jennifer M. Gómez
December 2018
Black Women & #MeToo
Op-ed comparing Ford/Kavanaugh with Anita Hill/Clarence Thomas: "Black Women & #MeToo: The Violence of Silencing" translates research on cultural betrayal trauma theory to the general public.
"Following a quarter of a century - from the testimonies of Anita Hill, J.D., to Dr. Christine Blasey Ford - the U.S. is still struggling: with both how not to violate women, as well as how not to silence them. More difficult still is attuning to the crosshairs that Black women additional face related to race, class, gender expression, sexual orientation, religion, disability, nation of origin, and the intersection of these and other identities. Through centralizing various forms of oppression in addressing sexual violence against Black women, I can only hope that in 2045 - 27 years from now, we are not still haunted with these same ghosts of violence, silencing, and denial of Black women’s experiences."--Dr. Jennifer M. Gómez
December 2018
CNN Business
Interviewed by Julia Carpenter for her CNN Business article, Minority employees are often asked to work double-duty.
This "double shift" is common in many workplaces. White, cisgender or straight colleagues may be fearful of accidentally saying the wrong thing. So instead, they task employees of different races, backgrounds or sexual orientations with the "diversity work" that otherwise wouldn't get done.
"I don't think people realize how much emotional time it takes and how much physical time it takes," says Jennifer Gómez, . . . Wayne State University. "I believe that oftentimes it's seen as 'It's not my issue. I'm a white person. Racism isn't my issue. It's not about me. It's about those people over there.' and really, diversity and equity is everyone's responsibility."
November 2018
Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship
Awarded the Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship, administered by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, & Medicine
From Wayne State University Graduate School article:
"Being a PFT fellow is truly a dream job for me as a junior researcher who wants to make my career at Wayne State,” says Gómez. The Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship will support her work in developing and validating a culturally sensitive measure of CBTT on black emergent adults. “Known as the Cultural Betrayal Multidimensional Inventory,” she explains, “this measure will engender needed research on mental health and personal growth in black people who experience both violence and discrimination.”
March 2018
United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs
With Help Not Handcuffs, Inc., presented Institutional Betrayal Against People Who Use Drugs as part of the panel, How The Treatment/Recovery Narrative Perpetuates Harm and Human Rights Violations at the 61st Session of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna, Austria.
My portion of the full panel.
March 2018
CNN Money
Interviewed by Julia Carpenter for her CNN Money article, The 'Emotional Tax' Afflicting Women of Color at Work.
This is where offices and managers can step in to lift the burden, experts say. The first step is focusing on retention as well as recruitment.
"Don't just focus on getting people here, but listening when they are here," Gómez says. "Sometimes in the workplace it can be 'OK, we have two women of color on staff, they're gonna be in charge of the diversity committee and they're gonna fix it.' If we want to make this workplace one that isn't rife with racism, sexism, and sexual harassment, then it's all of our jobs."
March 2018
NIH NICHD Trainee Award
Trainee Award for the 2018 Summer Training Institute for Research in Child Abuse and Neglect, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
January 2018
Spotlight
Featured in the Wayne State University Spotlight on Postdoctoral Scholar Series for Cultural Betrayal Trauma Theory
December 2017
Feature
Work featured in article, "New Trauma Theory Examines Cultural Betrayal" in the Wayne State University Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute newsletter, Imprints.
"Dr. Jennifer M. Gómez, MPSI’s new post-doctoral
fellow, has revealed yet another critical factor: cultural betrayal. . . 'If a Black woman is raped by a Black man, the racial loyalty is also disrupted. A member of her ‘group’ has turned on her,' Dr. Gómez said. These effects happen in ethnic minority groups, because years of racial oppression by 'outsiders' can foster deep loyalty between members. Members unite for support, validation and a sense of community. This circle of trust can be protective and secure. When within-group violence between members breaks this (intra)cultural trust, though, the effects of this cultural betrayal trauma can intensify. The victim may feel shunned by the group that used to protect her. She may have no safe haven, no one to trust."
November 2017
Top 10 Most Cited Article of 2016
Are Hallucinations Related to Betrayal Trauma Exposure? A Three-Study Exploration among the top 10 most cited articles of 2016 in Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, & Policy
Authors: Jennifer M. Gómez, Laura A. Kaehler, & Jennifer J. Freyd
August 2017
Outstanding Dissertation in the Field of Trauma Psychology
Awarded by the American Psychological Association Division 56 to Jennifer M. Gómez for Cultural Betrayal Trauma Theory.
June 2017
National Center for Institutional Diversity (NCID): Diversity Scholars Network
Invited Member
"Members of the Network are identified for their commitment and contribution to diversity research and scholarship." - Diversity Scholars Network
March 2017
Best Article of 2016
"Shifting the focus: Nonpathologizing approaches to healing from betrayal trauma through an emphasis on relational care" won the Richard P. Kluft Award for Journal of Trauma & Dissociation 2016 Best Article!
Authors: Jennifer M. Gómez, Jenn Lewis, Laura K. Noll, Alec Smidt, & Pamela Birrell
"This article provides an excellent framework for understanding the complexities of working with survivors of trauma. It successfully describes the danger in pathologizing reactions to extreme stress and discusses an adaptive treatment model, relational cultural therapy, that emphasizes the importance of the relationship when working with survivors. The article incorporates both empirically supported treatment options as well as influences from all spheres of the socioecological model, including the importance of empowerment, in treating individuals who have experienced complex trauma." -JTD Selection Committee
As of 27 December 2018, the article has received over 6,500 views.
March 2017
Cited in Annual Report of the Director of Public Health
The above article was quoted in the Annual Report of the Director of Public Health, Adverse Childhood Experiences, Resilience and Trauma Informed Care: A Public Health Approach to Understanding and Responding to Adversity. (Scotland)
"There is a risk that professionals are seen as placing the ‘pathology of trauma within the
individual - often an individual who has been deeply betrayed - instead of within the person(s) or environment(s) responsible for the betrayal’121. Gomez et al argue that ‘a nonpathologising model of trauma takes the stance that the abnormality is generally in the situation rather than the person. When the trauma is relational, it is the nature of the act that is unhealthy and not the individual who has experienced the act.’"--p. 52
Featured Work
My dissertation on cultural betrayal trauma theory is featured in The Association of Black Psychologists Student Circle Research webpage.
February 2017
Editorial on APA and the Hoffman Report
"Collusion, Torture, and Inequality: Understanding the Actions of the American Psychological Association as Institutional Betrayal" has been published in the Journal of Trauma & Dissociation.
Authors: Jennifer M. Gómez, Carly P. Smith, Robyn L. Gobin, Shin Shin Tang, & Jennifer J. Freyd
As of 12 April 2019, the article has received over 3,000 views.
July 2016
Feature Story
University of Oregon Graduate School ran a feature on my work with cultural betrayal trauma theory, entitled, "A Promising Scholar’s path from ballet to her own theory about culture and betrayal in trauma."
Excerpt:
"Gómez consulted Crenshaw’s Theory of Intersectionality, bell hooks Education as a Practice of Freedom, Audre Lorde’s Sister Outsider, and Freyd’s Betrayal Trauma Theory for her dissertation, which argues that within-group violence for minorities is uniquely harmful because of existing oppression . . . Cultural Betrayal Trauma Theory . . . hypothesizes that the harm of traumas such as physical assault, sexual assault, child abuse, incest, and domestic violence can be exacerbated by a cultural betrayal implicit in within-group violence in minority populations and associated with diverse outcomes, such as PTSD, depression, and internalized prejudice."- University of Oregon Graduate School.
March 2016
Funding
Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship
Work for the development and validation of the Cultural Betrayal Multidimensional Inventory for Black emerging adults (ages 18-29) will be funded by the Ford Foundation Fellowship Programs
through the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, & Medicine.
2018-19
Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship
Work for my dissertation, Cultural Betrayal Trauma Theory, was funded by the Ford Foundation Fellowship Programs
through the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, & Medicine.
2015-16
Resources
