Service providers to human trafficking (trata) survivors in Guatemala: A participatory action research study

Latin America and the U.S. have shown increasing interest in legislation and services to combat human trafficking (trata) throughout the Americas. Alongside these efforts, the body of professionals working with survivors has grown. Because human trata/trafficking is a transnational issue (Hodge, 2008), research efforts must bridge the gaps between professional borders.;The present study interviewed human service providers to survivors of human trata/trafficking in Guatemala. In phase one, the researcher identified human service professionals through local agencies and professionals. Inclusion criteria involved working in the private or public sector and providing mental health, legal, or other social services to trata/trafficking survivors. The survivors they attended were child, adolescent and adult victims of both labor and sex trata/trafficking in Guatemala and internationally. The researcher conducted individual screening interviews with potential participants.;In phase two, a group of five providers met with the researcher on two separate dates. The researcher adapted the Public Conversations Project's (Herzig & Chasin, 2006) discussion guide to fit the goals of Participatory Action Research (PAR). The guide included questions that stimulated a conversation about participants' work experiences with this population, which led the group to agree on a shared action plan, one of the main goals of PAR research. Participants shared information regarding definitions of trata/trafficking specific to Guatemala, as well as policy issues, systemic challenges and most salient, their accounts of the emotional challenges they endured in their work. The group's action plan addressed several issues related to their work with trata/trafficking survivors in Guatemala, including the impact of witnessing survivors' abuse on providers. Of note, they also engaged in conversations othering the Guatemalan- American researcher, which focused on differences between her and the participants. The researcher and group worked through some of these differences in a manner that potentiated collaborative actions. An important outcome of the study is the development of a guide based on Public Conversations Project methods and adapted to work with chronically stressed providers to trata/trafficking survivors. Other outcomes include a description of processes leading to group action plans and a broader understanding of coercion in cases of human trata/trafficking.