Hotline Development and Training
A "Paper to Practice" Series
Hotlines provide immediate and anonymous access to resources and services that are imperative to survivors of trauma. In this season, we will learn about the benefits for both web and text based hotlines as well as the necessary training for each.
Dr. Carrie Moylan, Dr. Michelle Munro-Kramer, Kathleen Miller and Logan Forrester of MSU’s Center for Survivors discuss how to develop a hotline and how to navigate inappropriate chatter.
Episode 1:
Web & Text Based Hotlines
Dr. Carrie Moylan, Dr. Michelle Munro-Kramer, and Kathleen Miller discuss the importance of hotlines, the benefits of using web and call based hotlines, and the necessary training for a web based hotline.
Episode 2:
Developing a Web-Based Hotline
Dr. Carrie Moylan, Dr. Michelle Munro-Kramer, and Logan Forrester discuss strategies to develop a web based hotline, inappropriate chatter, and the necessary training to guide responders when experiencing inappropriate chatter. Inappropriate chatter is the use of the hotline outside of its intended purposes.
Series Materials
Crisis hotline advocate burnout panel
This recorded panel of crisis hotline advocates discusses the risk for burnout that hotline advocates often face and how they address those risks in their own work and give advice on how organizational leadership can support the wellbeing of crisis line advocates.
What Is Vicarious Trauma, And What Are Its Long-Term Effects?
This article aims to provide an introduction to vicarious trauma, a description of symptoms, and an explanation of the difference between vicarious trauma and PTSD. We will also explore the potential side effects of vicarious trauma, as well as possible treatments and management strategies.
Language Access: A planning tool for advocacy organizations
If we invest in a comprehensive, proactive approach to providing assistance for individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP), all survivors will have greater access to critical services and greater success in addressing the violence in their lives.
‘Feeling heavy’: Vicarious trauma and other issues facing those who work in the sexual assault field
This paper discusses how individuals and organizations may address vicarious trauma, and the broader social context this work takes place within. While addressing the challenges of this work, the paper also considers some of the uniquely rewarding aspects of working with the issue of trauma and sexual assault.
Guide to Providing Accommodations: Victim Advocates
People with disabilities and Deaf people are victims of violent crime at three times the rate of people without disabilities. They also experience some of the greatest barriers to getting help. Too often, victim services are not accessible to people with disabilities, making it difficult for them to get the help they need to stay safe and heal.
The following research articles were referenced in the series:
MSU Center for Survivors. (n.d.). Michigan State University – Center for Survivors. https://centerforsurvivors.msu.edu/#
Moylan, C. A., Campbell, R., Munro-Kramer, M. L. (2021). Evaluating a Web-Based Crisis Hotline for Sexual Assault Victims: Reducing Barriers, Increasing Help-Seeking, and Improving the Help-Seeking Experience. Office of Justice Programs’ National Criminal Justice Reference Service. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/302775.pdf
Moylan, C. A., Carlson, M. L., Campbell, R., & Fedewa, T. (2021). “It’s Hard to Show Empathy in a Text”: Developing a Web-based Sexual Assault Hotline in a College Setting. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(17-18), NP16037-NP16059. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605211025036
Munro-Kramer, M. L., Moylan, C. A., Carlson, M. L., Campbell, R. M., & Fedewa, T. (2022). Core Skills for Digital Crisis Intervention: Lessons from a University-Based Online Sexual Assault Hotline. Journal of Technology in Human Services, 41(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/15228835.2022.2156654
Nason, J. A., Moylan, C. A., Nelson, A., Munro-Kramer, M. L., Fedewa, T., & Campbell, R. (2024). Pranks, Obscene Chatters, and Ambiguous Content: Exploring the Identification and Navigation of Inappropriate Messages to a Web-Based Sexual Assault Hotline. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 33(2), 183–203. https://doi.org/10.1080/10538712.2024.2319084
Nason, J. A., Moylan, C. A., Nelson, A., Munro-Kramer, M. L., Fedewa, T., & Campbell, R. Pranks, Obscene Chatters, and Ambiguous Content: Identifying and Navigating Obscene/Prank Chats on a Web-Based Sexual Assault Hotline.
Victim Assistance Training Online
This foundational web-based victim assistance training program from the Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center offers victim service providers and allied professionals the opportunity to acquire the essential skills and knowledge they need to more effectively assist victims of crime.
Log in or create an account at MiVAN.org to access to trainings below:
Help for the Helpers: Vicarious Trauma, Burnout, Compassion Fatigue, and Self-care
Victim advocates may experience vicarious trauma, burnout, or compassion fatigue at some point in their career, but experiencing these challenges is treatable and preventable.
Promoting Sexual Assault Healing Services to Men
This webinar from the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) and Just Detention International (JDI) suggests how you can communicate about sexual violence as something that men experience, and about what services are available at your sexual program for men who are survivors.
Meet the Experts
Dr. Carrie A. Moylan is an associate professor in the School of Social Work. Dr. Moylan has over 20 years of experience in the gender-based violence field, both as a practitioner and as a researcher. Currently, Dr. Moylan is engaged in research examining campus sexual assault policy implementation at colleges and universities and identifying campus-level risk and protective factors such as the role of campus climate in shaping sexual assault prevalence. She has partnered with Center for Survivors to evaluate Crisis Chat, a web-based crisis hotline for sexual assault survivors, in an NIJ-funded project.
Dr. Michelle Munro-Kramer is an associate professor at the University of Michigan School of Nursing. Her research focuses on gender-based violence prevention and response, primarily among college-age youth, within domestic and international contexts. As part of the inaugural Johnson & Johnson Nurse Innovation Fellowship, she is interested in leveraging nurses’ creativity to develop innovative solutions to complex health and human rights issues such as intimate partner violence, sexual violence, and human trafficking. Her research projects approach these topics using a trauma-informed and patient-centered lens.
Kathleen received both her undergraduate and law degree from Michigan State University. She is a licensed attorney in the State of Michigan. As the Advocacy Supervisor, Kathleen assists survivors in navigating through the systems that impact their lives, and uses the experiences of survivors to improve those services. Kathleen values multidisciplinary teams that partner together to make survivors’ needs a priority, hold offenders accountable, and increase justice and safety for the community. Kathleen is the former Program Coordinator of the Capital Area Response Effort (CARE), where she advocated for survivors of domestic violence.