Barriers to Help-Seeking for Intimate Partner Violence (IPV): Lived Experiences of Queer Individuals in Norway

Abstract Objective Intimate partner violence (IPV) constitutes a pervasive global public health issue that impacts victims across all gender identities and sexual orientations. Nevertheless, victims of IPV within the queer community may face specific challenges related to their gender and sexual identity when seeking assistance, and they may have limited pathways for obtaining help. We therefore explore how queer individuals in Norway experience and make sense of the barriers to seeking help for IPV. Method We conducted 26 semi structured interviews with queer individuals in Norway, aged 19 to 70, who had experienced IPV. A reflexive thematic analysis was employed to identify key themes that reflected how participants perceived and related to their experiences of IPV. Results We developed four themes from the participants’ interviews: (1) Struggling with heteronormative IPV discourses: experiences of invisibility; (2) Inadequate queer IPV services: encountering heterosexist bias and exclusion; (3) Fear, insecurity, and community trauma: barriers to informal help-seeking; and (4) Between struggle and healing: navigating mental health support. Conclusions These findings underscore the distinct barriers faced by queer individuals in Norway when seeking support for IPV. It is critical to account for the unique ways in which these barriers manifest and are experienced by queer populations in order to inform and enhance existing policies and services within the Norwegian context.