Intimate Partner Violence Among College Students: Service Utilization and Quality of College Campus Mental Health Services

About one in four women and almost one in ten men will experience some form of intimate partner violence (IPV) during their lifetime (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). Individuals aged 18-24 are at higher risk for experiencing IPV, which is a common age for Americans to attend college (Truman et al., 2014). Therefore, college students are at increased risk of IPV, which may add to mental and physical health burdens, in addition to the increased mental, physical, and emotional risks (i.e. substance abuse, anxiety disorders, depression, or eating disorders) that attending college already imposes (Pedrelli et al., 2015). Therefore, it is crucial for college students to have access to mental health support on their college campuses. The current study examines the quality and accessibility of the college campus mental health services at Union College for students who have experienced IPV. The current study is a two-part research project exploring both student perceptions and clinician perspectives of the services offered for victims of IPV. Thematic analysis of the expert interviews with Union College clinicians will provide information on what services Union College’s counseling center offers and clinician perspectives on the accessibility and quality of their services. Data collection is ongoing for the student survey responses to assess student experiences with IPV and with Union College’s counseling center. The results and subsequent conclusions, discussion, and implications drawn from the findings will inform conversations with the counseling center and the general Union College administration to understand how to best support students who have experienced IPV on campus.