scholarly journals Fighting Violence Against Women: Laws, Norms & Challenges Ahead

Daedalus ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 149 (1) ◽  
pp. 144-159
Author(s):  
Mala Htun ◽  
Francesca R. Jensenius

In the 1990s and 2000s, pressure from feminist movements and allies succeeded in pushing scores of states to reform their laws to prevent and punish violence against women (VAW). Even in states with progressive legislation, however, activists face challenges to induce citizens to comply with the law, compel state authorities to enforce the law, and ensure the adequate allocation of resources for social support services. In this essay, we take stock of legislative developments related to VAW around the world, with a focus on the variation in approaches toward intimate partner violence and sexual harassment. We analyze efforts to align behavior with progressive legislation, and end with a discussion of the balance activists must strike between fighting VAW aggressively with the carceral and social support dimensions of state power, while exercising some restraint to avoid the potentially counterproductive effects of state action.

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 138-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brittany E. Hayes

Despite progress in the application of routine activity theory to violence against women, much remains unknown about guardianship. The current study examined if presence of a capable adult guardian limited the risk of revictimization by an intimate partner, controlling for social support ( N = 497). Analyses tested differential impacts of guardians by examining if the presence of the victim’s friends/family, abuser’s friends/family, and/or bystander during the earliest reported physical abuse incident or threat of abuse affected likelihood of revictimization within a year. Odds of revictimization decreased by 60% when the earliest reported physical abuse incident or threat of abuse occurred in the presence of the respondent’s friends/family. Implications for practices and research suggestions are discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 104-121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enrique Gracia ◽  
Marisol Lila ◽  
Faraj A. Santirso

Abstract. Attitudes toward intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) are increasingly recognized as central to understanding of this major social and public health problem, and guide the development of more effective prevention efforts. However, to date this area of research is underdeveloped in western societies, and in particular in the EU. The present study aims to provide a systematic review of quantitative studies addressing attitudes toward IPVAW conducted in the EU. The review was conducted through Web of Science, PsychINFO, Medline, EMBASE, PUBMED, and the Cochrane Library, in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) recommendations. This review aimed to identify empirical studies conducted in the EU, published in English in peer-reviewed journals from 2000 to 2018, and analyzing attitudes toward IPVAW. A total of 62 of 176 eligible articles were selected according to inclusion criteria. Four sets of attitudes toward IPVAW were identified as the main focus of the studies: legitimation, acceptability, attitudes toward intervention, and perceived severity. Four main research themes regarding attitudes toward IPVAW emerged: correlates of attitudes, attitudes as predictors, validation of scales, and attitude change interventions. Although interest in this research area has been growing in recent years, the systematic review revealed important gaps in current knowledge on attitudes toward IPVAW in the EU that limits its potential to inform public policy. The review outlines directions for future study and suggests that to better inform policy making, these future research efforts would benefit from an EU-level perspective.


2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen Sullivan ◽  
E. Byrd Quinlivan ◽  
Andrea L. Blickman ◽  
Lynne C. Messer ◽  
Adaora A. Adimora

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Owen ◽  
M. Thompson ◽  
M. Mitchell ◽  
S. Kennebrew ◽  
A. Paranjape ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
pp. 089198872199681
Author(s):  
Kerry Hanna ◽  
Clarissa Giebel ◽  
Hilary Tetlow ◽  
Kym Ward ◽  
Justine Shenton ◽  
...  

Background: To date, there appears to be no evidence on the longer-term impacts caused by COVID-19 and its related public health restrictions on some of the most vulnerable in our societies. The aim of this research was to explore the change in impact of COVID-19 public health measures on the mental wellbeing of people living with dementia (PLWD) and unpaid carers. Method: Semi-structured, follow-up telephone interviews were conducted with PLWD and unpaid carers between June and July 2020. Participants were asked about their experiences of accessing social support services during the pandemic, and the impact of restrictions on their daily lives. Results: 20 interviews were conducted and thematically analyzed, which produced 3 primary themes concerning emotional responses and impact to mental health and wellbeing during the course of the pandemic: 1) Impact on mental health during lockdown, 2) Changes to mental health following easing of public health, and 3) The long-term effect of public health measures. Conclusions: The findings from this research shed light on the longer-term psychological impacts of the UK Government’s public health measures on PLWD and their carers. The loss of social support services was key in impacting this cohort mentally and emotionally, displaying a need for better psychological support, for both carers and PLWD.


2021 ◽  
pp. 107780122110139
Author(s):  
Karen B. Vanterpool ◽  
William L. Yarber ◽  
Molly Rosenberg ◽  
Rasul A. Mowatt ◽  
Justin R. Garcia

This study explores how perceptions of the availability of male dating partners (sex ratio) affect heterosexual Black women’s tolerance and experiences with intimate partner violence (IPV). Evolutionary behavioral models suggest that when the sex ratio is high (more available men than women), violence against women is more likely to occur, whereas the Guttentag–Secord model suggests that when there is a surplus of men, violence against women is less likely to occur. Testing these theories, results show perception of a high sex ratio was significantly positively associated with experiences of IPV in the past 12 months and more tolerant attitudes toward IPV.


2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria A. Ferrer-Perez ◽  
Andrés Sánchez-Prada ◽  
Carmen Delgado-Álvarez ◽  
Esperanza Bosch-Fiol

Abstract Attitudes play a central role in intimate partner violence against women and are related to its origin, to the responses of women who suffer violence, and to the settings where it occurs. In fact, these attitudes are recognized as one of the risk factors linked to violent perpetration and to public, professional, and victim responses to this type of violence. However, even though available research generally shows a broad rejection of this violence, it remains a serious social and health problem that has reached epidemic proportions. This suggests that the information available about these attitudes (obtained through explicit and direct measures, i.e., self-reports) may be distorted or influenced by factors such as social desirability. In this context, the overall objective of our research project is to provide multi-method measures (explicit and implicit) of attitudes toward intimate partner violence against women, and the main goal of this paper is to propose an instrument for the implicit measurement of these attitudes. In this regard, the Implicit Association Test (IAT) is the most common procedure used, providing a superior predictive validity compared to explicit measures for socially sensitive topics. We will present an exploratory study that describes its adaptation for our purposes, and the development of the Gender Violence - Implicit Association Test (GV-IAT) to use among Spanish-speaking populations, and discuss the strengths and limitations of this proposal.


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