The development of trauma-informed community partnerships: A mixed method social network study

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Community Psychology
• Social Network Analysis

Background:

• Trauma-informed communities aim to integrate trauma-informed practices across sectors.
• Effective communication is crucial for the success of these cross-sector coalitions.
• The specific communication dynamics within newly formed trauma-informed communities remain largely unexamined.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate communication patterns within nascent trauma-informed community partnerships.
• To identify different types of communication networks that emerge in these collaborations.
• To understand the role of leadership in shaping inter-organizational communication.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative data collection from six trauma-informed community partnerships in Los Angeles County.
• Social network analysis to map communication flows and structures.
• Analysis of data from partnerships funded to build community capacity for addressing trauma.

Main Results:

• Identification of three distinct communication network sub-types within the partnerships.
• Demonstration of network leadership's influence on the tone and nature of cross-partnership communication.
• Social network data indicated a gap between the goal of enhanced communication and existing strategies.

Conclusions:

• Leadership plays a pivotal role in fostering or hindering cross-organizational communication.
• Specific strategies are needed to actively develop and strengthen communication networks in trauma-informed communities.
• Further research should focus on implementing and evaluating targeted communication strategies.