Priorities for research in child maltreatment, intimate partner violence and resilience to violence exposures: results of an international Delphi consensus development process.

C Nadine Wathen,Donna E Stewart,Helen Herrman,Joanne Hammerton,Jennifer C D Macgregor,Jeffrey H Coben,Harriet L Macmillan

doi:10.1186/1471-2458-12-684

Abstract

BackgroundIntimate partner violence (IPV) and child maltreatment (CM) are major global public health problems. The Preventing Violence Across the Lifespan (PreVAiL) Research Network, an international group of over 60 researchers and national and international knowledge-user partners in CM and IPV, sought to identify evidence-based research priorities in IPV and CM, with a focus on resilience, using a modified Delphi consensus development process.MethodsReview of existing empirical evidence, PreVAiL documents and team discussion identified a starting list of 20 priorities in the following categories: resilience to violence exposure (RES), CM, and IPV, as well as priorities that cross-cut the content areas (CC), and others specific to research methodologies (RM) in violence research. PreVAiL members (N = 47) completed two online survey rounds, and one round of discussions via three teleconference calls to rate, rank and refine research priorities.ResultsResearch priorities were: to examine key elements of promising or successful programmes in RES/CM/IPV to build intervention pilot work; CC: to integrate violence questions into national and international surveys, and RM: to investigate methods for collecting and collating datasets to link data and to conduct pooled, meta and sub-group analyses to identify promising interventions for particular groups.ConclusionsThese evidence-based research priorities, developed by an international team of violence, gender and mental health researchers and knowledge-user partners, are of relevance for prevention and resilience-oriented research in the areas of IPV and CM.

Highlights

Intimate partner violence (IPV) and child maltreatment (CM) are major global public health problems
Despite the fact that exposure to violence is recognized as highly correlated with mental health problems [3,4,5,6,7] there has been little opportunity for investigators in mental health and addictions, CM and IPV to collaborate to develop and test approaches to reduce violence and associated impairment
Round 3: Finalization of Research Gaps/Priorities Round 3 consisted of three teleconferences held in April and May, 2011, one for each of resilience to violence exposure (RES), CM and IPV, with discussion of cut the content areas (CC) and research methodologies (RM) in each

Summary

Introduction

Intimate partner violence (IPV) and child maltreatment (CM) are major global public health problems. Our international team of over 60 collaborating investigators and policy partners has been funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research’s (CIHR) Institute for Gender and Health and Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addictions to establish the PreVAiL Research Network, a Centre for Research Development in Gender, Mental Health and Violence Across the Lifespan. PreVAiL has three main objectives: 1) to increase understanding and knowledge about the links between mental health impairment, gender and exposure to child maltreatment and IPV, both in Canada and internationally; 2) to develop and test interventions to prevent or reduce child maltreatment, IPV and subsequent mental health problems; and 3) to develop and promote an integrated research and knowledge translation and exchange (KTE) agenda among a network of established, new and emerging researchers and key stakeholders. A full list of team members, and brief biographies, is included in Additional file 1, and can be viewed from the Network’s website at www.PreVAiLResearch.ca

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