Domestic Violence During the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 180-187
Author(s):  
Sevaste Chatzifotiou ◽  
Despoina Andreadou
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Empowerment Theory ◽  
Coping Behaviors ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Northern Greece ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
And Coping ◽  
Depth Interviews

Abstract. Domestic violence against women by their partners is a form of gender-based violence, and it has been recognized as a major social issue worldwide. Under the framework of feminist empowerment theory, we investigated the experiences and coping behaviors of 15 abused women from northern Greece during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis. We conducted a qualitative study, utilizing in-depth interviews that were analyzed via content analysis. Our findings highlight the women's coping strategies, such as raising consciousness, being more aware of the situation, establishing safety plans, increasing self-confidence, and eventually reclaiming control of their lives. Our study allows educators, researchers, policy makers, and other women to learn lessons about dealing with violence in times of crisis, and for social welfare professionals to become more effective in meeting the needs of women in similar situations in the future.

scholarly journals Domestic Violence in the African North

1970 ◽  
pp. 17-27
Author(s):  
Fatima Sadiqi
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
United Nations ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Legal Reform ◽  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Past ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
Gender Based

Theories, debates, and activism on sexual health and rights have travelled withreasonable speed in North Africa in the past three decades or so and considerable headway has been achieved on this front (see Charrad, 2010; Sadiqi, 2008; Ennaji & Sadiqi, 2011). However, although related, questions of domestic violence, which may also include sexual assault and rape, have been rather side-lined theoretically, in spite of the fact that activism and legal reform remain strong in the region, and in spite of the fact that gender-based violence is considered essential to the most fundamental provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). This regression in theoretical work on domestic violence in the region resulted in lack of action on the part of policy-makers.

“You Are a Part of the Solution”: Negotiating Gender-Based Violence and Engendering Change in Urban Informal Settlements in Mumbai, India

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 1336-1360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Proshant Chakraborty ◽  
Nayreen Daruwalla ◽  
Anuja Jayaraman ◽  
Shanti Pantvaidya
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Front Line ◽  
Front Line Workers ◽  
Urban Informal Settlements ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
Depth Interviews

This article explores how women front-line workers engage with domestic and gender-based violence in the urban informal settlements of Dharavi in Mumbai, India. We conducted in-depth interviews with 13 voluntary front-line workers, along with ethnographic fieldwork in Dharavi, as a part of a pilot study. Our findings contribute to literature on context-specific approaches to understanding gender-based violence and “models” to prevent domestic violence in urban micro-spaces. Furthermore, we also discuss notions of “change” ( badlaav) that the front-line workers experience. Finally, this article presents implications for socially engaged ethnographic research, as well as contextual and grounded insights on ways to reduce gender-based and domestic violence.

Legal and Institutional Functionality in the Protection of Women – Victims of Domestic Violence in the Republic of Macedonia – Present Situation and Future Perspectives

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 131
Author(s):  
Zorica Saltirovska Professor ◽  
Sunchica Dimitrijoska Professor
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Women Victims ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
National Level ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Republic Of Macedonia ◽  
The Law ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Gender Based

Gender-based violence is a form of discrimination that prevents women from enjoying the rights and liberties on an equal level with men. Inevitably, domestic violence shows the same trend of victimizing women to such a degree that the term “domestic violence” is increasingly becoming synonymous with “violence against women”. The Istanbul Convention defines domestic violence as "gender-based violence against women", or in other words "violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately." The situation is similar in the Republic of Macedonia, where women are predominantly victims of domestic violence. However, the Macedonian legal framework does not define domestic violence as gender-based violence, and thus it does not define it as a specific form of discrimination against women. The national legislation stipulates that victims are to be protected in both a criminal and a civil procedure, and the Law on Prevention and Protection from Domestic Violence determines the actions of the institutions and civil organizations in the prevention of domestic violence and the protection of victims. The system for protection of victims of domestic violence closely supports the Law on Social Protection and the Law on Free Legal Aid, both of which include provisions on additional assistance for women victims of domestic violence. However, the existing legislation has multiple deficiencies and does not allow for a greater efficacy in implementing the prescribed measures for the protection of victims of domestic violence. For this reason, as well as due to the inconsistent implementation of legal solutions of this particular issue, the civil sector is constantly expressing their concern about the increasingly wider spread of domestic violence against women and about the protection capabilities at their disposal. The lack of recognition of all forms of gender-based violence, the trivial number of criminal sentences against persons who perform acts of domestic violence, the insufficient support offered to victims – including victim shelters, legal assistance, and counseling, and the lack of systematic databases on domestic violence cases on a national level, are a mere few of the many issues clearly pointing to the inevitable conclusion that the protection of women-victims of domestic violence is inadequate. Hence, the functionality and efficiency of both the existing legislation and the institutions in charge of protection and support of women – victims of domestic violence is being questioned, which is also the subject for analysis in this paper.

Violence Against Women and Children Following the 2011 Great East Japan Disaster: Making the Invisible Visible Through Research

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (7) ◽  
pp. 862-881 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mieko Yoshihama ◽  
Tomoko Yunomae ◽  
Azumi Tsuge ◽  
Keiko Ikeda ◽  
Reiko Masai
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Sexual Contact ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Women And Children ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Unwanted Sexual Contact ◽  
Structured Questionnaire ◽  
The Invisible

This study reports on 82 unduplicated cases of violence against women and children after the Great East Japan Disaster of March 2011. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from informants who worked with the disaster-affected populations. In addition to domestic violence, reported cases involved sexual assault and unwanted sexual contact, including quid pro quo assault perpetrated by nonintimates. Perpetrators often exploited a sense of fear, helplessness, and powerlessness and used threats to force compliance with sexual demands in exchange for life-sustaining resources. Findings point to the urgent need to develop measures to prevent and respond to postdisaster gender-based violence.

Rhetorical and Organizational Typification of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking as Discrete Forms of Violence

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin R Weiss
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Rhetorical Strategies ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Interactional Processes ◽  
Organizational Features ◽  
Forms Of Violence

Abstract Despite constructions of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking as discrete forms of violence, research shows that violence often co-occurs. Victims experiencing multiple forms of violence require different interventions from victims experiencing only one. Service providers’ understandings of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking as discrete, then, potentially undermine their goal of effective intervention. Drawing on 26 months of participant observation in an anti-gender-based violence nonprofit organization, I explore how advocates construct each form of violence as independent from the others. Results show that both organizational features, such as training curricula and organizational jurisdictions, and rhetorical strategies, such as an under-emphasis on co-occurring violence, contribute to the construction of each type of violence as discrete. This paper is of interest to researchers, practitioners, and policymakers committed to designing and implementing effective responses to gender-based violence. I also advance social problems theory, showing that organizational features, not just interactional processes, contribute to typification.

scholarly journals Men battering as the new form of domestic violence? A pastoral care perspective from the Kenyan context

2015 ◽  
Vol 71 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julius Gathogo
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Collective Responsibility ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Gender Divide ◽  
Ancient Times ◽  
New Form ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Shed Light

The article sets out to show that gender-based violence is no longer restricted to ‘women by men’. Rather society must appreciate that gender battering is a reality across the gender divide, particularly in the 21st century Africa. In its methodology, the article has engaged a theo-philosophical approach that involves a social, religious, and a cultural analytical approach. The materials are gathered primarily after interviewing the staff and students from Kenyatta University, Mombasa Campus, and some selected people from the campus surroundings who were consulted orally. To this end, a questionnaire was released in June and July 2012 where about 200 respondents from across the various counties of Kenya were called upon to shed light on men battering in Kenya. In particular, some of the questions that were posed included: Has battering of men by women been part of our African societies from ancient times or is it a new phenomenon? Statistically, who are battered more men or women? How does domestic violence against men manifest itself? What causes it? Why does it sound new to our society? What can we do about it? The article rests on the premise that even though battering of women is more explicit, men battering by women, which takes many forms, has been there for quite some time, albeit unreported. By taking a holistic approach hence ‘collective responsibility’ across the gender divide, the society can be healed from all forms of gender-based violence.

scholarly journals Leaving A Mark, An Animal-Assisted Intervention Programme for Children Who Have Been Exposed to Gender-Based Violence: A Pilot Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (21) ◽  
pp. 4084 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Muela ◽  
Josune Azpiroz ◽  
Noelia Calzada ◽  
Goretti Soroa ◽  
Aitor Aritzeta
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Internalizing Symptoms ◽  
Family System ◽  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Intervention Programme ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Animal Assisted Intervention

Gender-based violence is one of the most serious social and health problems faced by women around the world. Importantly, it has a negative impact not only on the woman’s physical and mental health, but also on all members of the family system in which it takes place. The aims of this study were to implement Leaving a Mark, an animal-assisted intervention (AAI) programme for children who have been exposed to gender-based violence, and to examine its effect on their associated clinical symptoms. The participants were 19 children (13 boys and 6 girls; Mage = 8.89, SD = 2.23) who had been exposed to domestic violence perpetrated either by their father or their mother’s intimate partner. Clinical symptoms were assessed using the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL). After taking part in the AAI programme, the children showed a reduction in internalizing symptoms and in symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder. However, no significant changes were observed in externalizing symptoms or in affective and behavioural dysregulation (CBCL-Dysregulation Profile). These results provide preliminary support for the use of the Leaving a Mark programme with children who have been exposed to domestic violence. However, further studies with a larger sample and more rigorous design are required.

Introduction: some reflections in these promising and challenging times

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Sundari Anitha ◽  
Ruth Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Sexual Objectification ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Prevention Education ◽  
University Communities ◽  
Gender Based

This introduction discusses the context and contours of some of the recent and emerging debates on gender based violence (GBV) in university communities. It begins by defining GBV as ‘behaviour or attitudes underpinned by inequitable power relations that hurt, threaten or undermine people because of their (perceived) gender or sexuality’. GBV encompasses a continuum of behaviours and attitudes such as domestic violence, sexual violence, and expressions on social media which normalise sexism and sexual objectification. This introduction explains the nature of the problem associated with GBV, how to understand and respond to the possibilities and challenges that it presents, and how gender as a lens is increasingly becoming obscured when considering the causes and consequences of GBV. It also argues that we need to rethink the punitive responses, service provision and prevention education used to address GBV in universities. Finally, it provides an overview of the chapters that follow.

Mandating Inclusion: Critical Trans Perspectives on Domestic and Sexual Violence Advocacy

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 531-554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sid P. Jordan ◽  
Gita R. Mehrotra ◽  
Kiyomi A. Fujikawa
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Advocacy Organizations ◽  
Transgender People ◽  
Violence Against Women Act ◽  
Legal Responses ◽  
Contingent Access ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Gender Specific

In 2013, the Violence Against Women Act became one of the first federal laws to explicitly prohibit discrimination against transgender people, yet little is known about its impact in practice. This qualitative study draws on in-depth interviews with transgender people working in domestic and sexual violence advocacy organizations. Building on critical and intersectional perspectives, the findings suggest that the persistence of inequities for trans survivors are tied to the reliance on criminal legal responses, contingent access to gender-specific services, compliance-focused approaches to inclusion, operating theories of gender-based violence, and the diversion of responsibility to LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) programs. This study highlights the participants’ recommendations for change.

Stabbed, shot, left to die: Christy Martin and gender-based violence in boxing

2020 ◽  
pp. 101269022097971
Author(s):  
Cathy van Ingen
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Sociological Imagination ◽  
Criminal Trial ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
And Gender ◽  
World Champion ◽  
A Site

This article presents a biographical narrative of Christy Martin, a former world champion boxer who survived being stabbed and shot by her trainer/husband. Rooted in a sociological imagination, this biographic research chronicles Martin’s boxing career and its entanglements with gender-based violence. The boxing industry has a widely acknowledged, yet under-reported, problem with men’s violence against women. This article aims to illustrate that women’s boxing should be critically examined for the ways in which it functions both as a site of and a sanctuary from gender-based violence. Within this paper, I draw from media coverage of Christy Martin’s boxing career, over 700 pages of transcripts from the subsequent criminal trial, an interview with Martin, as well as my own research in women’s boxing, including work with survivors of domestic violence.

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