Participation in Income-Generating Activities and Help-Seeking for IPV in Bangladesh – Results from a National Survey of Women

Abstract

The present study examined whether there was an association between microfinance participation (i.e. microentrepreneurship) and help-seeking social networks and employment and help-seeking social networks of women who experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) in Bangladesh. The study is a secondary analysis of a subsample of 805 women (24.1% of the representative sample) who experienced IPV from the 2007 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) between the ages of 16 and 49?years. Results indicate that among the subsample of 805 respondents, 29.3% sought help for IPV. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that women who were employed all year round were significantly more likely and microfinance participants were marginally more to seek help for IPV than women who were not engaged in income-generating activities. Implications are discussed.     

Traditional Support Systems: Are They Sufficient in a Culturally Diverse Academic Environment?

Correspondence to Dr Adital Ben-Ari School of Social Work, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Studies, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel 31905. Summary The present study explores the relationship between perceivedsocial support and well-being among students of the three mainpopulations living in Israel: Israeli-born Jews, Israeli-bornArabs and Russian immigrants. More specifically, it comparesthe well-being of these three groups and examines to what extentperceived social support actually contributes to their well-being.The sample comprised 278 undergradute students in the schoolsof social work and nursing at one of the major universitiesin Israel. Three instruments were used. Well-being was measuredby both the Brief Symptoms Inventory Scale (Derogatis, 1979)and the Beck Depression Inventory (Beck and Steer, 1987). Perceivedsocial support was assessed by the Multidimensional Scale ofPerceived Social Support (Zimet et al., 1988). The findingsshow that the Arab students are significantly more distressedthan their Jewish and Russian counterparts on all measures ofwell-being. At the same time, their perceived social supportis significantly higher than that of the Jewish students (bothIsraeli-born Jews and Russian immigrants). Stepwise linear regressionanalysis revealed that while perceived social support was amajor contributor to the explanation of well-being among theIsraeli students, it did not surface as a significant explanatorypredictor of well-being among either Arabs or Russian immigrants.The significance of the findings is discussed within the theoreticalframeworks of stress and social support theories as well asmodernization and immigration processes.     

Contraceptive utilization: profile of the Muslim Arab women in rural Israel

The contraceptive habits of the Arab population in rural Israel was explored by means of a cohort ( n =429) of rural Muslim women, with the aim to compose a profile of the women who practice modern contraception. Self-reported information revealed that only one third of the women apply modern contraceptive devices. Multivariate analysis showed the following independent variables to bear a contributory and predictive value with respect to use or non-use of modern contraceptive means by Muslim village women in Israel: degree of religiosity of the woman, male offspring, extent of modernity within the nuclear family, number of children, occupation of the husband, and adherence to traditional norms by the woman.     

Use of Professional and Informal Support by Black Men with Mental Disorders

This study utilized data from the National Survey of American Life to investigate the use of professional services and informal support among African American and Caribbean black men with a lifetime mood, anxiety, or substance use disorder. Thirty-three percent used both professional services and informal support, 14% relied on professional services only, 24% used informal support only, and 29% did not seek help. African American men were more likely than to rely on informal support alone. Having co-occurring mental and substance disorders, experiencing an episode in the past 12 months, and having more people in the informal network increased the likelihood of using professional services and informal supports. Marital status, age, and socioeconomic status were also significantly related to help-seeking. The results suggests potential unmet need. However, the reliance on informal support also suggests a strong protective role that informal networks play in the lives of black men.     

The American Islamic Community: Which Muslims are Likely to be Encouraged by Other People?

ABSTRACT

Encouragement—or expressions of support designed to instill perseverance and hope in the face of challenging circumstances—is an important concept in the strengths perspective and a central feature of social work practice. Encouragement may be a particularly significant factor for Muslims living in post-9/11 America. Yet, little research has examined this topic despite its relevance. To address this gap in the literature, this cross-sectional study employed a community sample of Muslims (N = 274) to identify which Muslims are disproportionately likely to report receiving expressions of support from other people. The results of the logistic regression indicated that Muslims who were single, Middle Eastern, non-Sunni, and frequent Mosque attenders, were more likely to receive expressions of support compared to those who were married, European American, Sunni, and less frequent Mosque attenders. Conversely, Muslims without a 4-year college education and born aboard were less likely to receive expressions of support compared to those with a graduate degree and born in the US. The paper concludes by offering a tentative explanation for the results and suggesting some implications for practice with Muslim clients. Future researchers might build upon the findings by replicating the study with nationally representative samples.     

The Role of Residential and Nursing Homes in the Last Year of People's Lives

Dr Ann Cartwright, Institute for Social Studies in Medical Care, 14 South Hill Park, London NW3 2SB. Summary Almost a quarter of a random sample of adults dying in 1987had spent at least part of the last year of their lives in aresidential or nursing home; one in eight spent all of thatyear in one. The old, the unmarried, those with difficulty lookingafter themselves, the confused, the incontinent, the blind,the deaf, and the bad tempered were more likely to be in suchhomes than others. With their greater dependency, people living in residentialhomes received rather more consultations and home visits—althoughnot night calls—from their general practitioners. Butthey did not get more help from community nurses and they wereless likely to be admitted to, or to die in, a hospital or hospice. According to the assesments of relatives, friends, and neighbourswho answered the questions, the quality of life of people whohad been in a residential home for a year or more before theirdeath was similar to that of others who died but had never beenin such a home. It was those who were admitted in the year beforethey died who were perceived as having a relatively poor qualityof life in that year. Increasingly, the quality of life duringthe year before death is going to depend on the attributes ofresidential homes and their staff.     

Processes of conservation and change in Arab society in Israel: Implications for the health and welfare of the Arab population

Azaiza F. Processes of conservation and change in Arab society in Israel: Implications for the health and welfare of the Arab population This article reports on a study that examined how modernisation processes affect the Arab citizens of Israel on various levels and how the processes are reconciled with traditional ideals. Modernisation affects formal and informal support systems, affects family lifestyles, has resulted in changes in the treatment of elderly people and has seen modern ideas of health and wellness incorporated with traditional values and ideals. For the Arab citizens of Israel, the conflict of tradition versus modernisation is evident throughout society. Studying the processes of both modernisation and preservation and their implications allows us to better understand and address the needs of the Arab population in Israel. Based on the research presented in this review, processes of modernisation and conservation are conceptualised as a continuum along four dimensions: perceptions of self, sources of social support, health roles and gender roles. The implications of these changes are explored as they relate to various phenomena.     

The Aftermath of Shelter: Abused Arab Women in Israel

Shelters for battered women play a major role in combating abuse against women. Extensive research has dealt with various aspects of shelters, including professional and ideological perceptions and the women’s experiences. However, scarce research exists on women’s coping following shelter-stay, especially research on the meaning of shelter-stay for women from collectivist societies. In the present study, we focused on how Arab women who had lived in a shelter coped after returning to the community to begin independent lives. In the Arab society in Israel, Arab women who live in shelters are perceived as violating a cultural norm. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 12 Arab women aged between 25 and 42, who had stayed in a shelter for Arab women for at least six months.

The major themes that emerged from the interviews revealed changes in perception of self and of social environment, including a self-transformation from weakness to strength, from perceiving themselves as devoid of rights to the development of an identity of entitlement. Through their release from weakening cultural systems, they were transformed from familial and societal victims to empowered beings, and moved from negative gender self-awareness to an empowered gender self-perception. These changes helped the interviewees to cope with stresses and to live independently. The findings are conceptualized in the discussion using relational-cultural theory.     

More of a Bridge than a Gap: Gender Differences in Arab‐American Political Engagement*

Objective. Research on immigrant women's economic and cultural adaptation has increasingly come to the fore of immigration research, yet relatively little remains known about their engagement in the political arena. This study examines this question among Arab Muslims, a group that has been at the center of much public debate but little scholarly discourse. Methods. Using nationally representative data on Arab Muslims, this study examines gender differences in political consciousness and activity and assesses the degree to which different dimensions of religious identity contribute to differences in men's and women's attitudes and behaviors. Results. Both women and men have high levels of political engagement, in part reflecting their relatively affluent socioeconomic positions. Men are slightly more involved than women, and this is explained by their greater participation in religious activities and higher levels of political religiosity. In contrast, subjective dimensions of religiosity—or being a devout Muslim—have no effect on political engagement. Conclusions. Overall, there are few gender differences in Arab Muslim political engagement, suggesting that collective identity based on ethnicity and religion is more salient for the political mobilization of this group. Further, religion is not uniformly associated with political activity, varying by gender and the dimension of religious identity in question, suggesting that future research needs to focus on how different facets of religion influence U.S. political involvement.     

Parent–child relationships as perceived by Arab adolescents living in Israel

This article concerns how Arab adolescents living in Israel perceive their relationships with their parents by examining six domains of the adolescents' worldviews: caring and trust, family support, control and supervision, general attitudes towards parents, and parent–child communication, both instru-mental and intimate. The sample consists of 662 twelfth-grade Arab adolescents from seven high schools. Findings show significant differences in various domains of Arab adole-scents' worldviews according to gender, form of residence and level of religiosity.     

Self-perception of minority group adolescents: the experience of Arabs living in Israel

This article describes the self-perception of Arab adolescents living in Israel. The experience of Arab adolescents in Israel is that of a minority group which is currently undergoing cultural, social and political changes. The Arabs in Israel are a non-assimilating minority, a status that is not the result of their free choice, but of the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. The continuing state of conflict after this war between Israel and the Arab world has placed the Arabs in Israel in the permanent status of a hostile "minority", while the Jewish nationalist approach of the state of Israel has placed them outside the national consensus.
The sample consists of 692 twelfth-grade Arab adolescents from seven high schools located in Arab villages, Arab towns and mixed Jewish-Arab towns all over the country. Questionnaires were distributed among the students and were answered anonymously, each taking about 45 minutes to complete. The questionnaire is a version of the Offer Self-Image Questionnaire. It was translated from Hebrew into Arabic and modified to fit the unique situation of Arab adolescents in Israel. Demographic information included variables such as gender, religion and level of religiosity, number of years of parents education, and form of residence.
Findings show differences in various aspects of adolescents' self-perception according to gender, family level of religiosity and form of residence. The significance of the findings is discussed within two frameworks: environmental stability as related to self-concept, and the changes taking place in ethnic minority communities.     

Attitudes of Arab and Jewish mothers towards punitive and non‐punitive discipline methods

This study used data from 234 Jewish and Arab mothers in Israel to determine the association between cultural and socioeconomic factors on their views of punitive and non‐punitive discipline behaviours. Mothers highly approved the use of nonpunitive disciplines. For example, all mothers supported to explain to the child what the rules are to try to prevent misbehaviour; however, their support of punitive disciplines was not negligible. For instant, 15.32% approved spank, slap, smack or swat children; one out of 10 mothers endorsed using an object such as a paddle, hairbrush, belt, etc. on children. Mothers with lower levels of education (completing high school or lower) and Arab mothers approved the use of corporal punishment and psychological aggression more than others. More support and training are required for these families.     

Motives,experiences and strategies of next of kin helping older relatives in the Swedish welfare context: a qualitative study

Dunér A. Motives, experiences and strategies of next of kin helping older relatives in the Swedish welfare context: a qualitative study Int J Soc Welfare 2010: 19: 54–62 © 2008 The Author(s), Journal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare. Next of kin provide the major part of the help given to older people in Sweden, a country where the official goals of formal eldercare are universality and extensive coverage. This qualitative interview study investigates the thoughts and actions of next of kin who provide informal help to older relatives who also receive formal help from the municipal eldercare. Informal help‐giving, in the context of Swedish social policy, was connected with a multiplicity of motives, experiences and strategies. The motives for help‐giving were moral considerations, emotional attachment and ‘out of necessity’. The experiences of next of kin support the idea of ambivalence as a significant feature of informal help‐giving. Different strategies were employed, both active and passive in nature, to manage their situation. The study points out the importance of outlining working forms and methods of collaboration for older persons and their informal and formal networks to lessen the ambivalence experienced by help‐giving next of kin.     

The perception and utilisation of social support in times of cultural change: the case of Arabs in Israel

Arabs in Israel are currently undergoing a modernisation process characterised by a gradual shift from a collectivistic to an individualistic cultural orientation. During such a transition, perceptions and utilisation of social support assume great significance. This article examines perceptions and utilisation patterns of social support networks among Arabs in Israel. The research population consisted of 507 respondents, representative of the Arab population, randomly selected by means of a telephone survey. Findings are discussed within the context of modernisation processes, collectivistic and individualistic cultural orientations, and their association with the perception and utilisation of social support.     

Racial and ethnic diversity in senior centers: comparing participant characteristics in more and less multicultural settings

The 2008 Health Indicators Project surveyed a probability sample (N = 1,870) of New York City senior center participants. Attendees of racially and ethnically diverse and nondiverse senior centers were compared across 5 domains: demographics; health and quality of life; social support networks; neighborhood perceptions and engagement; health service access/utilization. Although homogeneous and diverse center participants demonstrate similar health and quality-of-life outcomes, those from diverse centers demonstrate greater risk of social isolation, receive less family support, and more likely seek medical care from hospitals or community clinics. Implications and future directions for research, practice and policy are discussed.     

Comparing the effectiveness of I-BMS-informed self-help interventions in alleviating psychosocial distress for women awaiting the outcome of IVF treatment

Women undergoing in vitro fertilisation experience enormous emotional distress while waiting to find out if they are pregnant; yet their intention to seek help remains low. Interventions that can be easily self-administered may provide a promising alternative. This randomised trial compares psychosocial outcomes of 207 women who received a self-help education booklet containing either spiritually reflective exercise and relaxation techniques, spiritually reflective exercises only, or information about body-mind wellness. Results suggest that knowledge on body-mind wellness protected the women from deteriorating in a range of psychosocial well-being domains that would otherwise have occurred during the waiting period prior to the pregnancy test.     

Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Senior Centers: Comparing Participant Characteristics in More and Less Multicultural Settings

The 2008 Health Indicators Project surveyed a probability sample (N = 1,870) of New York City senior center participants. Attendees of racially and ethnically diverse and nondiverse senior centers were compared across 5 domains: demographics; health and quality of life; social support networks; neighborhood perceptions and engagement; health service access/utilization. Although homogeneous and diverse center participants demonstrate similar health and quality-of-life outcomes, those from diverse centers demonstrate greater risk of social isolation, receive less family support, and more likely seek medical care from hospitals or community clinics. Implications and future directions for research, practice and policy are discussed.     

Culturally Sensitive Education: Adapting Self-Oriented Assertiveness Training to Collective Minorities

Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel have suffered from neglect and discrimination. They face a policy of "Israelization" and rejection of their national and cultural identity. The self-oriented education that is advocated by the Israeli ministry of education is perceived as a threat to Arabic family unity and to their cultural and national identity; therefore, it is resisted. Adopting culturally sensitive education would be an important step toward trust and coexistence. This article suggests a culturally sensitive adaptation of assertiveness training programs. Respecting Arab values and norms, as well as the joining of parents, teachers, and community leaders is central to accomplishing success for this program. Implications for coexistence meetings of Palestinian Israelis and Jews are discussed.     

Anonymous Enrollment in AIDS Prevention Telephone Group Counseling

SUMMARY

Participants in an outcome study of a 14-week AIDS prevention counseling intervention, delivered entirely by telephone, were able to enroll either confidentially or anonymously. Anonymous enrollees (27%) were more likely to be bisexual, in a primary relationship with a female, and colseted. They were less self-accepting of their sexual orientation, less acculturated in the gay community, and less likely to have close social supports for safer sex. They were less likely to have been tested for HIV antibodies or to have perticipated in risk-reduction programs despite reporting risk behaviors comparable to that of confidential perticipants. By the program's conclusion, most anonymous enrollees had provided their phone numbers or other personally identifying information. Participants who retained their anonymity throughout (10%) were less likely to complete treatment or follow-up assessments. The findings support the effectiveness of anonymous enrollment in facilitating the participation of potential clients and research subjects who might otherwise have remained unreached.     

Adolescent and Young Adult Male-to-Female Transsexuals: Pathways to Prostitution

Correspondence to Dr Ronit D. Leichtentritt or Dr Bilha Davidson Arad, Bob Shapell School of Social Work, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel. E-mail: ronitl{at}post.tau.ac.il Summary The current study aims to reveal the experiences of young male-to-femaletranssexuals who work as prostitutes in Israel, providing astage where the voice of this marginal group may be heard, aswe believe social workers need to know more about the realityof these young people’s lives before they can offer meaningfulresponses. The study was guided by two main questions: (1) Whataccounts do young male-to-female transsexuals who work as prostitutesprovide for their involvement in the sex industry? and (2) Whatare their experiences as young transsexuals engaged in prostitution?Using the life story interview and thematic analysis, two mainthemes were revealed: (a) what I ran away from or was thrownout of; and (b) why I became a prostitute, how I became professionalizedand why I continue to work as one. The first theme focuses ontranssexualism; the second on prostitution. Yet, these two themesare intertwined: from the respondents’ perspective, prostitutionis a price you must be willing to pay if you want to achievegender transformation at the beginning of the twenty-first centuryin Israel. Practical implications and further research are recommendedto better inform social workers assisting this high-risk population.