From the Editor

A qualitative exploratory study was conducted to examine the experiences of 20 immigrant Latina women using a culturally specific 11-week curriculum—Sí Yo Puedo—in psychoeducational group settings. The purpose of the program is to provide participants with education about domestic violence and self-esteem. Two follow-up groups were conducted to assess immigrant Latina women’s experiences after completing the program. Findings indicated that participants reported improved self-esteem and knowledge of healthy relationship dynamics, and the women experienced the process of empowerment. Implications for social workers include utilization of the program toward education and the promotion of healthy relationships among Latina women.     

The Public Perception of Female and Male Violence in Marital Relationships

Most studies dealing with intimate partner violence (IPV) investigate situations where the man is the aggressor. The present study examines the participants’ social perception of IPV and the connection between social perception and the severity of the violent act and its justification when carried out by men against women and vice versa. The research is based on a structured, self-reported anonymous questionnaire answered by 240 participants. The questionnaire examined demographic variables, attitudes toward IPV, the severity of the violent act, and its justification. Findings indicate that violent behavior of women is perceived as more justified than that of men and that men’s violent behavior is perceived as more severe by women than by men, but women’s violent behavior is perceived to be equally severe by men and women. The study raises awareness of the lack of gender boundaries in violence and of gender discrimination against males.     

Women’s Strategic Responses to Intimate Partner Violence: A Study in a Rural Community of Bangladesh

The objective of this study was to explore women’s strategic responses to physical violence perpetrated by an intimate partner. Twenty women from a rural area of the Narshingdi district in the Dhaka division of Bangladesh who experienced physical violence at home participated in the study. Development of the interview protocol and data analysis were carried out by applying the consensual qualitative research (CQR) method. The results showed that several themes, such as women’s responses to intimate partner violence, arose from the data. First, coping strategies to pre‐violent events included three themes: (i) leaving the scene; (ii) trying to divert attention; and (iii) preparing to protest. Women’s strategic responses to violent events consisted of four themes: (i) leaving the scene; (ii) remaining silent or no giving response; (iii) seeking help from others; and (iv) protesting against the violence. Lastly, women’s strategic responses to post‐violent events consisted of three themes: (i) temporary abstinence; (ii) verbally abusive behavior to family members; and (iii) going to the parental home. Given the findings of this study, we conclude by suggesting that more work is needed to better understand effective strategies and to draw women to institutional services to prevent violence to a greater extent.     

夫妻相对资源和情感关系对农民工婚姻暴力的影响——基于性别视角的分析

随着中国城市化进程的加快，农民工夫妻间经济权力结构和情感关系的变化将对婚姻暴力产生深远影响。本文引入性别视角，提出了解释农民工夫妻间婚姻暴力的综合分析框架，通过量化方法，分析夫妻相对资源和情感关系对农民工实施冷暴力和肢体暴力的影响及其性别差异。研究发现,农民工家庭中婚姻暴力现象较普遍，以冷暴力为主，女性施暴率显著高于男性；夫妻相对资源因素和情感关系因素对男性和女性实施婚姻暴力都有显著影响，相对资源因素对男性实施婚姻暴力的影响大于女性，夫妻情感关系对女性实施婚姻暴力的影响大于男性。     

Men's Domestic Violence Treatment Groups

A survey of all 13 men's domestic violence treatment groups in North Carolina found that such programs were similar in program philosophy and goals but highly divergent in group struc- ture. All programs utilized a feminist orientation which viewed domestic violence as resulting from socio-cultural and social learn- ing factors. Groups generally focused on the development of anger control, problem solving, and communication skills. Groups dif- fered widely in their agency affiliation, relationship with the court as referral source, degree of structure, leadership patterns, number of members, number of sessions, degree of co-ordination between men's and women's programs; follow-up procedures; and sophisti- cation of program evaluation. The diversity of men's domestic violence group treatment models is a result of grassroots laissez faire program development. This diversity offers opportunities to test the effectiveness of various group approaches. Considerations for men's domestic violence treatment programs are outlined. In addition, the need for systematic program evaluation and a statewide co-ordinating mechanism is dis- cussed.     

Savings for Survivors: An Individual Development Account Program for Survivors of Intimate-Partner Violence

ABSTRACT

Survivors of domestic violence often remain in abusive relationships due to limited economic resources, economic dependence on an abusive partner, and economic abuse. Viewing women who have experienced domestic violence as “survivors” suggests that when provided access to appropriate resources, they will seek help and utilize such resources allowing them to increase their stability and potentially escape an abusive partner. Assets have been shown to have a variety of positive associations with a wide range of economic, social, and psychological outcomes. Economic initiatives, such as financial education and individual development accounts (IDAs), aimed toward survivors of domestic violence are on the rise. However, to date, there are few studies. Data on IDA activity, including savings rates, withdrawals, and asset purchases, for 125 women who participated in an IDA matched-savings program for survivors of intimate-partner violence were examined. Approximately 2/3 of women reached their savings goal and 76% made at least 1 matched-savings withdrawal and asset purchase. Results suggest survivors can be successful savers and purchase assets that may contribute to their economic stability. Implications are discussed, including the need for long-term studies to examine how participation in a matched-savings program affects women's well-being, safety, and future experiences of intimate-partner violence.     

妇女支持小组效果的评估方法

家庭暴力作为一种较普遍的社会现象已引起社会的广泛关注。在家庭暴力中绝大多数受害者是女性。女性难以走出暴力困境的主要原因是缺少社会支持,而小组的核心目标是为她们提供情感支持。妇女在小组中能否感受到支持,可采用一定的方法进行评估。本文对评估的原则、目的、内容和方法进行了探讨。     

Discourses of blame: deconstructing (hetero)sexuality, peer sexual violence and residential children's homes

Little research exists on sexuality and residential care, even less that position gender inequality as a central analytical component. This paper, based on a wider research project that focused on children’s and young people’s experiences of peer violence within residential care, seeks to help redress this disparity. The main aim of this paper is to explore how (hetero)sexuality, discourses of blame and male peer sexual violence are constructed and interrelated in residential child care. Young people’s and staff’s conceptualizations, evaluations and experiences are compared and contrasted to illuminate the range of discourses surrounding sexuality and sexual violence operating within residential settings. Findings relating to female culpability for male violence, normative male violence, female duplicity and challenges to traditional gender roles will be presented, and contextualized, in relation to previous studies. In addition, some broader implications of the research findings for residential practice are explored.     

The power to change: Muslim women’s rights movement and the resistance towards gender-based violence

Abstract

Under transnational migration, migrant women are not confined by the new host society; the unbreakable attachments to the home society constantly affect and shape these women’s perceptions of their gender and position in the host society. As a result of the growing number of Muslim migrant women, both Muslim and non-Muslim communities have begun to be aware of and recognise the rights of Muslim women and the violence that occurs. Yet, unlike international experiences of Islamic feminist groups being established to promote Muslim women’s rights, an increasing number of local women’s rights groups have started to work with Islamic faith-based organisations to disseminate the idea of women’s rights in Muslim communities. With a lack of studies regarding Muslim migrant women in Hong Kong, this article draws on the significance of international studies on culture, religion and migration to understand the situation in Hong Kong. By analysing the social and political influences on minority integration, this article seeks to uncover the capacity of the Muslim women’s rights movement in guarding against gender-based violence in Hong Kong.     

More present than absent: Men who use domestic violence and their fathering

An earlier article referred to the “absent presence” of the perpetrator in the lives of children and their mothers who have lived with domestic violence. It identified the ways in which the shadow of the perpetrator continued and was evidenced in the “symptoms of abuse” that both women and children experienced in spite of his absence. The current article argues that fathers who use violence are actually more present than absent in the lives of children (and women), even following separation. A mixed method approach surveyed men in Men's Behaviour Change Programs (N = 101), and interviewed women who had experienced violence (N = 50). The studies reported that the majority of men in both the quantitative men's study (80%) and the qualitative women's study (77%) had substantial contact with children. The women's interviews highlight the problematic fathering that many of their children experienced, both before and after separation. They reported very high levels of child abuse and poor attitudes to both women and children. The article concludes that the family violence and child welfare systems are poorly configured to address fathers who use violence and continue to hold substantial parenting roles, including following separation.     

Preventing Domestic Violence in the South Asian Context: Men's or Family Involvement?

Globally there is a growing tendency to involve men in preventing domestic violence. Since men are the main perpetrators of violence against women, proponents of men's involvement argue that men must be involved to prevent men's violence against women. Conversely, opponents of men's involvement argue that involving men would not bring about the expected outcome, since men's involvement is challenging, particularly in the cultural context, and men intentionally perpetrate violence against women. In this paper, an attempt has been made to critically justify the suitability of men's involvement and to find a more culturally acceptable alternative for preventing domestic violence against women in South Asia. This article critically discusses theories related to the sociocultural understanding of domestic violence, insightfully presents domestic violence in this regional perspective, argues the pros and cons of men's involvement, and proposes family involvement as a culturally suitable approach to prevent domestic violence.     

Therapeutic management of violence in residential care for severely mentally ill clients: An application of intrapsychic humanism∗

The innovative psychology, intrapsychic humanism, is applied to formulate guidelines for effectively managing violent symptoms of severely mentally ill clients in residential settings, with the aims of: 1) helping staff reduce client violence; and 2) helping clients regulate their violent behavior. Using intrapsychic humanism, staff can understand, anticipate, and respond therapeutically to client violence. Triggers of violence, such as aversive reactions to pleasure and destructive reactions to real losses are described. Residential program structures that strengthen clients’ constructive motives and staff's caregiving motives are outlined.     

Child protection and fathering where there is domestic violence: Contradictions and consequences

Children live in different contexts of protection and vulnerability when exposed to domestic violence. The negative impacts for many children are consistent and widely acknowledged. However, the implication that this requires men who use violence to address their fathering has been slower to emerge. This article draws from 69 in‐depth qualitative interviews with men, women, and workers across four men's behaviour change programmes in rural Victoria, Australia. Particular attention is given to men's attitudes to their fathering and the formal and informal consequences they experienced as a result of their violence and its impact on their fathering. Although most men came to recognize that their violence impacted their children, they failed to make the connection that the involvement of statutory child protection services in their lives was a direct consequence of their abusive behaviour. This article explores this disconnection by fathers who use violence, their attitude to the involvement of statutory child protection services, and identifies the implications for social work practitioners in addressing this issue.     

Women's abuse of their children in the context on domestic violence: reflection from women's accounts

This paper draws upon the findings of a study that looked at women's experiences of mothering in the context of co-occurrence of domestic violence and child abuse, and considers the issue of women's violence towards children – while acknowledging the fact that men are the main perpetrators of violence towards women and children in these families. The paper first explores the relationship between women's victimization and women's violence, and suggests that women's abuse of their children can be seen as a consequence of their own experiences of domestic violence. The findings nonetheless suggest that abused women have agency, and therefore have responsibilities when they chose to use violence towards their children. The paper also considers the feelings of guilt and blame that tend to arise in these circumstances. Implications for research, policy and practice are identified.     

A Study of Battered Women’s Purpose of Life and Resilience in South Korea

The principal objective of this study is to determine whether battered women’s purpose of life (meaning/value) affects resilience (self‐efficacy/communication efficiency/optimism). This purpose is meaningful in that it may help provide battered women with a new perspective of a changeable life, away from the negative perspectives frequently associated with domestic violence sufferers. The subjects of this study were 110 battered women staying at shelters located in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, Korea. The survey was conducted between August 15 and September 20, 2010. The data were collected using questionnaires measuring sociodemographic variables, a purpose‐of‐life scale, and a resilience scale. The collected data were evaluated with frequency, correlation, and multiple regression analysis. The results of this study can be summarized as follows. First, the meaning and value of life positively influenced self‐efficacy. Second, only the meaning had a beneficial effect on communication efficiency. Third, only the value variable positively affected optimism. Therefore, this study implied that resilience is an important area in the context of spousal abuse. Based on these results, a program for enhancing the meaning of life is suggested to help domestic violence survivors to build up resilience.     

Athena's Legacy: Preparing Women for a Mentoring Program

ABSTRACT

A community-based research study conducted in 2004 identified a number of women from disadvantaged communities who sought mentoring in personal, educational, and vocational aspects of their lives. Informed by this earlier research, a program titled Map Your Future was developed, and a pilot mentoring program commenced in 2005. This article describes the group program that was developed to prepare the women for a mentoring relationship, and the research methodology underpinning its development. It concludes with an exploration of the women's experiences of the program.     

Intimate Partner Violence Survivors’ Unmet Social Service Needs

ABSTRACT

Women who have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization are at risk for physical and mental health problems, as well as social and economic challenges. In this cross-sectional study, 173 adult, English-speaking women who had experienced police response to IPV completed a self-report questionnaire about their use of, interest in, and need for various social services and whether or not each type of service helped (or would help) them to feel safer. More than three quarters of the participants reported a current need for health and economic support services. There was less interest in traditional IPV resources: law enforcement and domestic violence counseling or shelter. Expanding services to meet survivors’ needs for health care and economic independence may facilitate long-term safety. Recommendations for further research in this area are provided.     

An analysis of current Australian program initiatives for children exposed to domestic violence

While services have been assisting women who have been victims of domestic violence for many years, it has only been in recent times, that children exposed to domestic violence have begun to receive attention by service providers as clients in their own right. A number of specialised programs have now been designed to meet the needs of these children by domestic violence services and agencies that have a child protection or child welfare/family support focus. This paper aims to describe the types of programs currently in operation across Australia which cater specifically for the needs of children who have been exposed to domestic violence by analysing programs listed on the Child Abuse Prevention Programs Database developed by the National Child Protection Clearinghouse. A number of suggestions are made with regard to the means by which therapeutic responses and research in this area could be enhanced.     

Women's safety service within the Integrated Domestic Abuse Programme: perceptions of service users

This paper draws on the findings of a qualitative evaluation that examines women's perceptions of the services provided to them whilst their abusers attended an Integrated Domestic Violence Programme (IDAP) in one probation area in the UK. Research focusing on domestic violence programmes has mostly concentrated on the experiences of male perpetrators. As a result, less is known about how women feel about such programmes and the parallel safety services they are supposed to receive. This research seeks to address that weakness by exploring the perceptions of 13 women whose abusers are attending one perpetrator programme. The findings of our study suggest that women are generally negative about perpetrator programmes and require more comprehensive and coordinated services than are routinely made available to them. The paper suggests that women value and need direct and assertive support as well as safety services, and this need is especially pronounced in rural contexts where women can be isolated from mainstream services. The implications of the research to practice with victims of domestic violence are discussed to inform further development of IDAP and similar programmes in the UK and beyond.     

Women,trauma and substance abuse: Understanding the experiences of female survivors of childhood abuse in alcohol and drug treatment

Despite the available evidence suggesting gender should be considered in the provision of alcohol and/or drug (AOD) treatment, programmes are frequently offered in an apparent ‘gender vacuum’. This article argues that the generalist ‘one size fits all’ approach of many AOD services is not gender neutral but should be understood as implicitly gendered in that it neglects the specificity of women's needs in relation to abuse, mental illness and parenting. The discussion presented in this article is based on a qualitative study of the experiences of adult women with histories of childhood sexual abuse and/or domestic violence in AOD treatment. By examining the ways in which AOD treatments effectively ignore or minimise gender, this article uncovers intervention practices that efface the complexities underpinning AOD use among women and suggests ways in which alternative models of service delivery can create more validating and supportive environments. Key Practitioner Message: ● Some of the common assumptions underpinning alcohol and drug treatment do not adequately acknowledge the specific needs of female clients and so gender‐neutral service provision can be disenabling for women; ● Punitive service cultures or behaviour change strategies have a differential impact on female clients, many of whom have prior and ongoing experiences of abuse and violence; ● Service models that acknowledge the complex responsibilities and relational histories of female clients are more likely to engender a positive response and provide the opportunity to address the multiple and complex needs that can go unmet in non‐specialist services.