Intimate partner violence, interpersonal trust and hope: a study among portuguese adults.

According to results presented in several reports from the World Health Organization, violence in intimate relationships is a phenomenon whose incidence covers the most diverse populations on a universal scale. Allowing for recent information included on a report from a Portuguese association that gives support to victims (APAV, 2014), this is a very serious problem with severe consequences, including death. Being a complex problem, so interconnected with several variables that have an impact on developmental trajectories, there is an increased need for research and intervention. Objectives: Considering previous research on interpersonal trust, hope and intimate partner violence, this exploratory study aims to examine the relationship between intimate partner violence, interpersonal trust in the intimate partner and hope for the future. Also, prevalence of violence in intimate relationships will be addressed. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the sample includes 302 subjects (202 women and 100 men), aged 18 to 63 years (M = 29, SD =10.78). Data collection was performed through a protocol that includes a Sociodemographic Questionnaire, the Portuguese adaptation of the Rotenberg s Specific Trust Scale-Adults, the Scale of Beliefs about Marital Violence, the Inventory of Marital Violence and the Scale of the Future. Results: A worrying prevalence of violence in intimate relationships was found, whether in present or in past relationships. Results also show the existence of weak, but statistically significant negative associations between interpersonal trust and violence, considering both victimization and perpetration. Although modest, some significant positive relationships between certain aspects of hope and interpersonal trust were found. In addition, results show some significant differences in legitimating beliefs of intimate partner violence by age, sex and socioeconomic status. Discussion: Interpretation of these findings, study limitations and suggestions for future investigations are presented and discussed.

Beliefs on Marital Violence Among Portuguese Adolescents: Monitoring Their Evolution and Relationship With Dating Violence

In the last two decades, the problem of violence in the family sphere in particular and in intimate relationships in general has been on the agenda for Portuguese governmental and nongovernmental agencies. Several initiatives and campaigns have been launched, which are aimed at reducing occurrence of this violence, particularly among teenagers. This present study aims to assess the evolution in adolescents' attitudes and behaviors concerning intimate partner violence. We collected data from a sample of adolescents (n = 913) to compare with corresponding data collected 7 years ago by Neves and Nogueira (2010) in a sample that had identical sociodemographic characteristics (n = 899). Both cohorts resided in the same areas in the northeastern region of Portugal. The instruments used were the Scale of Beliefs about Marital Violence (ECVC) and the Marital Violence Inventory (IVC; Neves & Nogueira, 2010). The results indicate that although respondents tend to reject traditional beliefs on marital violence more now than in the past, especially male and older respondents, the percentage of dating violence reports has not decreased. Among girls, there was even an increase in perpetration of emotional and mild physical violence. We discuss possible reasons for this discrepancy between the evolution of attitudes and behaviors and make suggestions for improvement in the actions implemented among teenagers to increase their effectiveness.

Gender differences in marital violence: A cross-ethnic study among Bengali, Garo, and Santal communities in rural Bangladesh

Studies on marital violence (MV) in Bangladesh have primarily focused on the women of the mainstream Bengali people, although half of the population is men, and there are also ethnic minority communities with diverse gender constructions. The current study examined the gender differences in MV among the matrilineal ethnic minority Garo, patrilineal ethnic minority Santal, and the patrilineal mainstream Bengali communities in rural Bangladesh. Adopting a cross-sectional design, we randomly included 1,929 currently married men and women from 24 villages. We used cross-tabulations as well as multivariate logistic regressions to estimate the ethnic and gender differences in MV. Data revealed that women were widely exposed to different types of MV, while only a few men experienced such abuses. It showed that 95.6% of the women experienced emotional abuse, 63.5% physical abuse, 71.4% sexual abuse, and 50.6% poly-victimization, whereas these rates were quite low among the men (emotional = 9.7%, physical = 0.7%, sexual = 0.1%). No men reported poly-victimization. The odds ratio (OR) for emotional, physical, and sexual MV were respectively, 184.44 (95% CI = 93.65−363.24, p<0.001), 449.23 (95% CI = 181.59−1111.35, p<0.001), and 2789.71(95% CI = 381.36−20407.08, p<0.001) for women compared to men. Data further revealed that matrilineal Garo women experienced less MV (emotional = 90.7%, physical = 53.4%, sexual = 64.0%, poly = 38.8%) than the patrilineal Santal (emotional = 99.4%, physical = 67.3%, sexual = 71.3%, poly = 53.9%) and Bengali women (emotional = 96.6%, physical = 69.6%, sexual = 78.8%, poly = 58.9%). Multivariate regressions also showed that the Bengali society perpetrated more physical (OR = 1.90, 95% CI = 1.27−2.85, p = 0.002) and sexual (OR = 2.04, 95% CI = 1.34−3.10, p = 0.001) MV than the Garo society. It appears that MV is largely a gendered issue in the country. Though both women and men can be the victims of MV, the nature/extent of victimization noticeably differs according to the social organization. Matrilineal society appears to be less abusive than the patrilineal one. Interventions aimed to prevent domestic violence in rural Bangladesh should take these findings into account.

Emotional distress and its care in empowered indigenous women exposed to domestic violence and the demands of child rearing

Introduction. Indigenous girls and women in Mexico suffer emotional distress due to marital violence and adherence to gender roles. They are unlikely to denounce violence or treat their health in a timely manner. Women can cope with their distress by participating in empowerment processes. Objective. Describe in indigenous empowered women the emotional distress caused by domestic violence in their childhood and the current demands of raising their children and the actions they take to cope with them. Method. Qualitative and phenomenological qualitative research, in-depth interviews, and participant observation were conducted with nine migrant indigenous women to explore experiences during their upbringing, emotional reactions, and current mental health problems. Results. The software Atlas. ti V 7 was used to undertake a theoretical categorization of the data. Findings included exposure to violence, the influence of a good mother, and past and present emotional distress overcome through empowerment and professional care. Discussion and conclusion. Participating in urban empowerment activities enables participants to reflect on the violence experienced and the attendant distress, identify them as gender violence, and use them in their favor. They are strategic when coping with current distress due to the conflictive upbringing of their children, using psychological services and the urban upbringing prescriptions of children’s rights, and incorporating indigenous parenting practices, which encourage community commitment, responsibility, and early self-sufficiency in children. Empowerment is suggested as an effective means of improving the health of indigenous women in Mexico.

Socio-epidemiological study of marital violence among women’s attending health care facility of Central Delhi

Background: Marital or domestic violence (DV) is endemic in communities and countries around the world, cutting across class, race, age, religions and national boundaries. It is defined as a pattern of coercive / controlling behaviors and tactics used by one person over another to gain power and control. The study’s objectives were to understand DV prevalence, factors associated with DV, and health and social outcomes of DV among married women.Methods: This was a healthcare facility based cross-sectional study conducted from Jan-Dec 2011among married women attending antenatal clinic and chest / ICTC clinic. The presence of DV was evaluated using a semi-structured interview designed based on the NHFS-3screening tool. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS version 22.Results: A total of 700 subjects were included. 36% of married women reported the presence of DV. The independent risk factors for DV were belonging to non-Hindu religion (OR=1.95, CI:1.02-3.72), belonging to joint family (OR=1.52, CI: 1.08-2.14), having no daughter (OR=1.7, CI: 1.19-2.44), and ever contraceptive use (OR=1.50, CI: 1.06-2.11) in a multivariate logistic regression model. DV’s main cause was misunderstanding (46%) between the victim’s and the perpetrator. The main perpetrator was husband (81%); main support system for victim’s were parents or parental relatives (63%), while the main type of support received was emotional (92%). Headache (78%) was the most common symptom; 70% subjects were unable to carry out household activities, and 24% victim’s relationship with relatives were affected because of DV.Conclusions: The proportion of DV among the married women is high and is a common problem irrespective of the socio-economic and demographic factors. Hence there is no time for complacency and an urgent need for multisectoral coordination for its quick redressal.