Psychosocial Separation and Women’s Disengagement From Prosecutions Against Abusive Intimate Partners in Spain

In order to end and “liberate” themselves from an abusive relationship, female survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) usually face a complex process. Although women may decide to seek help through the criminal justice system, some refuse to participate in legal proceedings against their abusers. While many studies have focused on exploring variables explaining disengagement from legal proceedings, the aim of this article is to study the impact of the process of liberation from an abusive relationship on the likelihood of disengagement (LoD) from legal proceedings. Liberation was measured through the psychosocial separation overall score and the LoD was predicted by a logistic regression model developed in a previous study in Spain. A sample of 80 women involved in legal proceedings for IPV against their ex-partners in Andalusia (Spain) participated in this study. Exploratory analyses were conducted using ANOVA and Chi-square; multiple linear regression analyses were used to study the relationship between psychosocial separation and LoD. Results showed that victims who had higher psychosocial separation from their abusers were less likely to disengage from legal proceedings against the abuser. We discuss the results in terms of practical implications like detection of women’s need for specific psychological support to ease a comprehensive recovery. Training programs for legal professionals and judges in the judicial arena should use the results of this study to increase professionals’ understanding of IPV and survivors’ decision-making processes. This would lead to a decrease in survivors’ secondary victimization, as well as decrease the frustration of legal professionals when victims disengage from legal proceedings.

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Problem-Focused Coping Strategies Used by Victims of Gender Violence Across the Stages of Change

Violence Against Women ◽

10.1177/10778012211054866 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107780122110548

Author(s):

Alicia Puente-Martinez ◽

Silvia Ubillos-Landa ◽

Darío Páez-Rovira

Keyword(s):

Coping Strategies ◽

Stages Of Change ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Gender Violence ◽

Maladaptive Behaviors ◽

Abusive Relationship ◽

Female Survivors ◽

Regulation Strategies ◽

The Impact ◽

The Relationship

This study compares the problem-focused emotion regulation strategies used by 200 female survivors of intimate partner violence (age: M = 40.16, SD = 11.27, 18 – 66 years) to cope with violence throughout various stages of change (SOC). It examines the relationship between problem-focused coping strategies and positive and negative affect, and the impact of these variables on the different SOC. Results suggest that victims differ and are flexible in the use of strategies throughout the various SOC. During the initial stages, victims tend to use passive/maladaptive behaviors that hamper change, while in the later stages they use more active/adaptive strategies to leave the abusive relationship.

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From the uncertainty of violence to life after abuse: discursive transitions among female survivors of IPV in online contexts

10.31219/osf.io/ugy8v ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Alfonso Sánchez-Moya

Keyword(s):

Partner Violence ◽

Software Tool ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Textual Evidence ◽

Abusive Relationship ◽

Female Survivors ◽

Initial Stage ◽

Linguistic Patterns ◽

Discourse Studies ◽

The Many

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is undoubtedly one of the most worrying concerns in today’s global societies. Due to the many intertwined factors that explain the persistence of this reality among people from all sorts of backgrounds, finding a uniform strategy to cope with this social issue is far from unproblematic. In this study, I contribute to a growing field of research that examines the discourse of female survivors of IPV in online contexts. The main objective this research pursues is to identify relevant linguistic patterns used by these women to represent themselves and their perpetrators in a publicly-available online forum. More specifically, I seek to ascertain discursive traits that characterise women in an initial stage in contrast to a final stage within an abusive relationship. To this end, I adopt a Corpus-Assisted Discourse Studies approach (CADS) in a digital corpus of circa 136,000 words, which are analysed with the software tool Sketch Engine (SkE). Findings show the most salient discursive traits that characterise IPV online discourse. Additionally, and drawing from verb patterns and their semantic categorisation, I highlight relevant verbal tendencies that connect linguistic textual evidence that contributes to sustaining the power imbalances that also define this social phenomenon.

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Does Who You Know Affect How You Act? The Impact of Relationships on Bystander Intervention in Interpersonal Violence Situations

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/0886260516628292 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 33 (17) ◽

pp. 2623-2642 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Jane E. Palmer ◽

Sarah C. Nicksa ◽

Sarah McMahon

Keyword(s):

Interpersonal Violence ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Private University ◽

Chi Square ◽

Web Based ◽

Campus Sexual Assault ◽

Relational Distance ◽

Crime Types ◽

Context Specific ◽

The Impact

This study utilized an experimental design to determine how bystanders would intervene in campus sexual assault (SA) or intimate partner violence (IPV) situations. Specifically, it examines whether the type of intervention (direct, indirect, or delegation) is associated with relational distance, the nature of the crime, or the sex of the bystander. A random sample of college students completed a web-based survey at a private university in the Midwest. Survey participants were randomly assigned two vignettes—an SA scenario ( n = 371) and an IPV scenario ( n = 350)—with one of three conditions: knew the victim, knew the perpetrator, or knew neither. Chi-square tests, binary logistic regressions, and predicted probabilities were conducted to test three hypotheses. Results indicate that relational distance affects how a bystander will intervene. In the SA vignette, students who knew the victim or perpetrator chose direct intervention. In the IPV vignette, students who knew the victim or perpetrator chose direct or indirect interventions. Students who knew neither the victim nor the perpetrator tended to choose to delegate the intervention to someone else for both crime types. Although there were differences by sex, the larger differences were between whether they knew someone or not. Still, men had the highest probability of directly intervening in the SA scenario, whereas women had the highest probability of indirectly intervening in the IPV scenario. The results of this study suggest that campus violence prevention programs should consider context-specific issues in their trainings such as relational distance and type of crime.

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The Impact of Thwarted Belonging on Tolerance of Abusive Behaviors in a Romantic Relationship

Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology ◽

10.1521/jscp.2020.39.01.003 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

pp. 1-24 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Alejandro Trujillo ◽

Heather M. Claypool

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Romantic Relationship ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Female Victim ◽

Abusive Relationship ◽

Competing Hypotheses ◽

The Impact ◽

The Relationship

Introduction: This work examined the role of thwarted belonging in directing reactions to intimate partner violence (IPV). We tested two competing hypotheses. First, we offered the Insensitivity Hypothesis, which argued that excluded (compared to control) participants would indicate they were comfortable and willing to remain in an abusive relationship longer, an effect likely mediated by reduced relational needs. Second, we offered the Hypersensitivity Hypothesis, which argued that excluded (compared to control) participants would indicate they were uncomfortable and willing to leave an abusive relationship earlier, an effect likely mediated by activation of hostile cognitions. Methods: To test these, female participants underwent an exclusion or non-exclusion experience, completed measures of the hypothesized mediators, and then read a vignette describing a heterosexual romantic relationship that slowly turned more abusive. Participants took the perspective of the female victim and indicated when they would feel uncomfortable in the relationship and leave the relationship. Results: Results partially supported the Insensitivity Hypothesis, as exclusion (relative to control) lowered relational needs, and lowered relational needs predicted later desires to exit the relationship (no significant effects emerged for discomfort onset). Discussion: Implications of these findings for the belonging and IPV literatures are discussed.

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Violence and sexual violence between partners: A qualitative analysis of female victims’ experiences

Tijdschrift voor Genderstudies ◽

10.5117/tvgn2021.2.004.dzie ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 24 (2) ◽

pp. 127-142

Author(s):

Amandine Dziewa ◽

Fabienne Glowacz

Keyword(s):

Sexual Violence ◽

Gender Stereotypes ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Political Agenda ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Unwanted Sex ◽

Female Victims ◽

Abusive Relationship ◽

The Impact

Abstract Subject: In the 1970s, domestic violence was put on the political agenda as a societal problem. Since then, research exploring the dynamics of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) has multiplied, but the study of sexual violence between partners is still topical. This article examines female victims’ experiences of intimate partner sexual violence (IPSV). Method: This qualitative study uses a thematic approach to explore how IPV victims perceive sexual violence within their couple. Semi-structured interviews, which include the use of qualitative life calendars, were conducted with 20 women. Results: The thematic analysis of the 20 interviews highlighted several themes and sub-themes that address (1) sexual violence experienced by victims within the couple, (2) their perception of sexual violence, and (3) the reasons why they submitted to unwanted sex in an abusive relationship. Conclusion: Experiences of sexual violence are the result of different dynamics; however, IPSV is a form of violence that is still difficult to identify and is more often defined by victims as an impulse or aggression than a rape. Within the couple, the impact of violence, but also the influence of gender stereotypes, affect the perception of violence, assertiveness capacities, and, therefore, the ability to express free consent. Victims submitt to their partner because they are afraid of him; they want to protect themselves or their children; or they do not have the capacity to express their non-consent.

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