Date Available

7-2-2015

Year of Publication

2015

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Document Type

Doctoral Dissertation

College

Education

Department/School/Program

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology

First Advisor

Dr. Pamela Remer

Second Advisor

Dr. Jeff Reese

Abstract

The identification of victims of human trafficking and consequential service provision is characterized by a significant disconnection between the estimated prevalence of this issue and the number of cases identified. The current dissertation introduces the Inclusive Human Trafficking Checklist (IHTC) as a screening measure, evaluates the appropriateness of the instrument, evaluates whether there are differences in assessment based on the participant’s profession, level of knowledge, and training, and assesses if users of the instrument perceive it as useful. A total of 201 participants were asked to rate three vignettes predetermined by experts to qualify as a either human trafficking case or not. The participants were placed in three conditions: business as usual (use of the Rescue and Restore instrument), utilization of the IHTC with and without training. The results revealed a statistically significant level of agreement between the expert’s diagnostic and the application of the IHTC. While there was an improvement in identification in the group with training, the difference was found to have a small effect size. The results also revealed an improvement on identification of cases when utilizing the IHTC. Participants who utilized the IHTC showed an increased ability to identify elements of identity-based vulnerabilities as well as elements of fraud, which according to the results, are distinctive variables in cases of human trafficking. In terms of the perceived utility, the results revealed higher mean scores for the groups utilizing the IHTC when compared to the business as usual condition. These findings suggest that the IHTC improves appropriate identification of cases and that it is perceived as a useful instrument. The application of the IHTC as a counseling and legal instrumentation utilized for conceptualization and intervention of human trafficking cases is discussed as an opportunity for enhancement of victim well-being, engagement and activism.

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