A Nationwide Evaluation of Services Provided to Domestic Violence Survivors at Shelters in Bosnia-Herzegovina

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 667-690 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa R. Muftić ◽  
Irma Deljkić ◽  
Ashley K. Fansher
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Women Victims ◽  
Community Education ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Elderly Women ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Crisis Services ◽  
Bisexual And Transgender ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Domestic Violence Survivors

The shelter movement in Bosnia-Herzegovina was born out of a tradition of assisting survivors of gender-based violence in the early 1990s during the Bosnian conflict. To date, nine shelters are in existence providing emergency shelter and services to survivors. Little is known about these shelters, or the clients these shelters serve. The purpose of this study is to examine what services are provided to domestic violence survivors by shelters in Bosnia-Herzegovina and who these survivors are. A total of 43 service providers from all existing shelters within the country were surveyed about shelter characteristics, client demographics, and services provided. Findings revealed that the typical Bosnian shelter had been in operation for 11 years and had assisted 64 survivors in the previous year; the majority of whom were married females with minor children who had sought shelter services before. Core services were provided by the majority of shelters, including crisis services, legal and medical advocacy, counseling, and community education. While services were provided to a diverse group of survivors (e.g., children, elderly women, victims of human trafficking), shelters were less likely to be available for male and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender survivors. Implications from these findings, as well as limitations and suggestions for further research, are discussed.

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.

scholarly journals The potential role of network-oriented interventions for survivors of violence among refugees in Belgium

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilomo Ogbe ◽  
Alaa Jbour ◽  
Ladan Rahbari ◽  
Maya Unnithan ◽  
Olivier Degomme
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Repeat Victimization ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Coping Process ◽  
New Findings ◽  
Open Coding ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Domestic Violence Survivors

Abstract Introduction Social support and social network members have been identified as an important factor in mitigating the effects of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and improving the coping process for many survivors. Network oriented strategies have been advocated for among domestic violence survivors, as they help build on improving social support and addressing factors that alleviate repeat victimization. There are opportunities to implement such strategies among refugees, who are survivors of SGBV in asylum centres, however, this has not been fully explored. This study sought to identify key strategies and opportunities for developing peer-led and network-oriented strategies for mitigating the effects of SGBV among refugees at these centres. Methods: 27 interviews, were conducted with service providers (n=14) and refugees (n=13) at three asylum centres in Belgium. Deductive coding was performed independently by two researchers based on pre-identified research questions, when new findings emerged outside the themes, open coding was done. Data triangulation was used with findings from observations at these centres over a period of a year. Findings: Many of the refugees presented with PTSD or psychosomatic symptoms, because of SGBV or other trauma experienced during migration. Peer and family support were very influential in mitigating the effects and social costs of violence among the refugees by providing emotional and material support. Social assistants were viewed as an information resource that was essential for most of the refugees. Peer-peer support was identified as a potential tool for mitigating the effects of SGBV

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.

Digital media and domestic violence in Australia: essential contexts

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Molly Dragiewicz ◽  
Bridget Harris ◽  
Delanie Woodlock ◽  
Michael Salter
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Coercive Control ◽  
Safety Work ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Key Sites ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Domestic Violence Survivors

Domestic violence is a pervasive social problem in Australia. Digital media are increasingly integral to its dynamics. Technology-facilitated coercive control (TFCC) is a form of gender-based violence. This article examines domestic violence survivors’ experiences with TFCC, drawing on interviews with 20 Australian women. Study results enhance understanding of how abusers use digital media. We highlight four key contexts for understanding the role of technology in domestic violence: the coercive and controlling relationship, separation abuse, co-parenting and survivors’ safety work. These contexts provide insight into the dynamics of TFCC and illuminate key differences between this and other forms of online abuse.<br /><br />Key messages<br /><ul><li>Technology is integral to coercive control.</li><br /><li>Separation and co-parenting are key sites of technology-facilitated coercive control.</li><br /><li>Survivors manage technology-facilitated abuse in the absence of adequate responses and support.</li></ul>

scholarly journals Feasibility and acceptability of a universal screening and referral protocol for gender-based violence with women seeking care in health clinics in Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Vu ◽  
A. L. Wirtz ◽  
S. Bundgaard ◽  
A. Nair ◽  
G. Luttah ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Universal Screening ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Global Public Health ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Internally Displaced ◽  
Health Clinics ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Screening Protocol ◽  
Gender Based

Background.Gender-based violence (GBV) is both a global public health problem and violation of human rights. Refugees and internally displaced persons experience an increased risk of GBV and health outcomes associated with GBV are often exacerbated in conflict settings.Methods.A mixed methods study to examine the feasibility and acceptability of universal screening for GBV in a refugee population in the Dadaab refugee camp of Kenya, using the ASIST-GBV from January to July 2015.Results.Of 9366 women offered screening at International Rescue Committee health clinics, about 89% (n = 8369) female refugees consented to participate. Only 15% of the potentially eligible population could participate in GBV screening because of the ongoing struggle to identify private space in the clinics. Over 85% of women reported being ‘willing’ or ‘very willing’ to participate in GBV screening; 96% felt they had a good or very good experience with the screening protocol. Qualitative findings stressed the importance of securing a room/space in the busy clinic is critical to universal screening with referral to safe and confidential services for survivors.Conclusions.The findings suggest that the evidence-based ASIST-GBV is both feasible to implement and acceptable to both providers and women seeking care. Universal GBV screening and referral is an effective way for health care and service providers in humanitarian settings to assist survivors of GBV.

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.

scholarly journals Social work with women from agricultural locations, which would brought: general principles and questions for professional preparation

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
pp. 175-190
Author(s):  
Оксана Кравченко
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Women Victims ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Professional Preparation ◽  
Equal Rights ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
Gender Based

An article devoted to the issue of social work with women from rural areas that were violent, as well as coverage of approaches to training specialists providing social services to this category of population. It is established that gender policy is based not only on international normative legal acts ratified by Ukraine, but also regulated by national legal acts on equality between women and men. An important area of gender policy is the provision of equal rights and opportunities for women from rural areas, including the realization of their human rights. At the same time, women in rural areas are more vulnerable to gender-based violence than women living in cities that require a specially designed program for their social and psychological rehabilitation. As a result of the clarification of the content and focus of social work with women, the study of the regional experience of social services with women, the disclosure of the specifics of the training of future social workers to work with this category of citizens, recommendations for improving the quality of social services for women victims of domestic violence have been developed.

scholarly journals Climate Change and Violence Against Women: Study of A Flood-Affected Population in The Rural Area of Sindh, Pakistan

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-85
Author(s):  
Falak Shad Memon
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Women Victims ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Qualitative Research Methodology ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Experiences Of Women ◽  
Post Disaster

Climate-induced gender-based violence is an emerging area of study. Although studies on women and climate change are not new, a fresh understanding of gender-based issues and related problems are becoming of greater concern now. Women in Pakistan are generally at a disadvantage due to their societally- perceived norms, roles and responsibilities. This study aims to examine the experiences of women in flood settlement camps and to identify an association between natural disasters and violence against women. For this study, with the help of qualitative research methodology, 20 women were interviewed in the flood-prone areas of Sindh. Findings show that most women experience different types of violence, physical as well as emotional, committed by partners and even by complete strangers. The rate of such violence rises when women are displaced and are in temporary shelter facilities during a post-disaster period. Committing violence under such situations results in critical implications for both women victims and the development and implementation of gender-sensitive climate change and disaster planning policies.

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.

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