Context Of Violence Research Articles

The Correlation Between Exposure to Violence and Parental Monitoring: Differences Between Mothers and Fathers From Palestinian–Israeli Families

ABSTRACTIn this study, I investigated the correlations between retrospectively reported experiences of child abuse in the family‐of‐origin and exposure to community violence as adults on parental monitoring among Palestinian–Israeli parents. A sample of 760 parents (453 mothers, 59.6%) participated in the study. A self‐administered questionnaire was used. Results showed that both experiencing child abuse and community violence victimization were associated with high levels of parental stress, and experiencing child abuse was also associated with low levels of parental monitoring. Indirect effects of parental stress were found between both types of violence exposure and parental monitoring. Among mothers, there were additional indirect effects between violence exposure and parental monitoring. These findings suggest that exposure to multiple contexts of violence correlated with parental behaviours, and parenting programmes should focus on reducing parental stress and improving parental monitoring, considering the gender differences. Overall, this study highlights the importance of addressing the outcomes of trauma on parenting monitoring, which can have significant implications for public health.

Fragilized Ecologies and Multilayer Violence in Two Oil Films About the Niger Delta

ABSTRACT: Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta region has continuously been conceived as a context of terror and political violence. However, this representation of the Niger Delta is deemed too schematic and misleading since it does not account for oil production's complicated local and human issues. In fact, violent mining geographies like the Niger Delta are always permeated by various forms of subtle and imperceptible violence that, if overlooked, may lead to misrepresentations. Rob Nixon has theorized such invisibilized forms of violence as "slow violence." Building on this concept of slow violence as long emergencies that are hard to harness and turn into dramatic stories, this article examines how Black November : Struggle for the Niger Delta (Jeta Amata, 2012) and Oloibiri (Curtis Graham and Samantha Iwowo, 2016), two films set in the vulnerable ecosystem of the Niger Delta oil-producing enclaves, take on the representational challenge posed by the slow violence of ecological destruction. It studies how the filmmakers conceptualize slow violence and explores their strategies to make visible subtle forms of harm that resist representation. More specifically, it analyzes how spatiotemporal relations, images, and narrative sequences are combined to witness the slow violence of oil production and ecological destruction.

Technology-facilitated abuse within the context of intimate partner violence: Barriers to and recommendations for safety planning

Technology-facilitated abuse within the context of intimate partner violence: Barriers to and recommendations for safety planning

Nigerian Youth Engagement in Violent Electoral Environments: Political Apathy or ‘Constrained Optimism’?

Abstract How do young citizens engage with politicians and their political environment in contexts where elections are frequently affected by violence? We explore this question through focus group discussions (FGDs) in Nigeria, a country with high rates of election violence. We argue that young voters in violent electoral environments operate with ‘constrained optimism’, where they perceive low government responsiveness but possess high levels of self-efficacy. Participants condemned violence and expressed little faith in political institutions and leaders to curtail violence, but they also felt a determination to elect a better government and a strong sense of a civic duty to vote, participate in politics, and encourage others to do so as well. Many participants also shared that they would continue to support their preferred candidate if they were accused of violence. Some participants raised concerns about the veracity of such allegations while others explained that politicians sometimes use violence for defensive purposes. Still others stated that they would continue to support candidates who expressed remorse for engaging in violence and committed to peaceful campaigning in the future. Taken together, we argue that young voters in violent contexts operate with ‘constrained optimism’ where they remain committed to democracy, but face constraints on who they support and how they participate. Our findings nuance expectations of the effects of electoral violence on political participation and better help us understand the challenges facing voters in contexts where violence is rife.

Intimacy and the gendering of war healthcare: women’s experiences of insurgency war in Nepal (1996–2006)

ABSTRACT This article explores intimacy and gendered practices in insurgent warfare, with special reference to the conflict in Nepal between 1996 and 2006. Drawing on fieldwork, we argue that women’s experiences of and during the insurgency highlight how they engaged with bodily concerns and care, reproductive, and healing practices while serving revolutionary causes. By drawing attention to these particular issues, the article contends that most of the existing literature on conflict fails to account for the gendered nuances and micro-politics of care in violent contexts. It shows how healthcare provisions have been restricted to informal and private spaces due to attacks against healthcare and illustrates the long-term impacts of being unable to access public healthcare due to insecurity.

Speaking of ‘violence’: Figleaf use in sexualized violence contexts

Abstract In this project, I develop the concept of a sexualized violence figleaf, a speech mechanism often used in sexualized violence discourse to dismiss or characterize assault as some other kind of thing: a misunderstanding, a change of heart by the victim, a mischaracterization of the perpetrator, or any other number of things which are not rape, or violence. Sexualized violence figleaves are an extension of Jennifer Saul's work on racial and gender figleaves, as the underlying mechanics of the utterance track those of Saul's figleaves. In other words, I am developing a figleaf variant, showing that this conceptual tool is useful for analysing utterances beyond racist, sexist, and conspiracist speech, upon which Saul focuses. Rather, bringing figleaves into the realm of sexualized violence discourse illuminates features of the discourse which are often obscured by the prevalence of strong social intuitions about rapists and their corresponding character.

Unspeakable and hidden: intimate partner sexual violence against married women in Pakistan

ABSTRACT Intimate partner sexual violence (IPSV) is a significant form of violence against women that remains largely under-researched in Pakistan, primarily due to sociocultural and religious factors. This study documents the nature and factors associated with IPSV against women in Pakistan by conducting qualitative in-depth interviews with Christian and Muslim women residing in both urban and rural areas of Punjab, Pakistan. A thematic approach was employed to analyse data gathered from seventeen participants. The findings revealed that the patriarchal nature of the society, privileged position of men within marriage, poverty and child marriages, consumption of alcohol and drugs, joint household system, legal ambiguities, and the absence of a supportive environment were contributory factors that increase the risk of sexual violence against women within intimate partnerships in the Pakistani context. It is crucial to acknowledge that sexual violence needs to be understood in the broader context of intimate partner and domestic violence. Additionally, there is a need for further research to explore the specific circumstances faced by women from diverse identity categories and to understand the multifaceted consequences of sexual violence on the physical and mental health of women.

Peacekeeping, policing and politics: assembling the Ghana Armed Forces

Abstract While much of the peacekeeping literature fixates on mission deployments, associated challenges and the escalating violent contexts they navigate, this article underscores the transformative reverberations of peacekeeping on troop-contributing countries. Drawing from the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) case, our main focus is to elucidate how international peacekeeping shapes domestic security procedures, but we also point out that they are reciprocally influenced by them. Central to our analysis is the concept of ‘peacekeeping assemblage’ that we introduce to highlight the symbiotic relationship between the GAF's domestic security roles and its international peacekeeping engagements. Through this lens, we trace the cyclical flow of practices, discourses and experiences as they disassemble and reassemble in varied configurations, emphasizing the fluidity of peacekeeping influences across global landscapes. As discussions on peacekeeping evolve, it becomes paramount to grasp its broader implications—particularly its transformative impact on the personnel from troop-contributing nations and their home societies. This enriched perspective not only deepens our comprehension of the multifaceted nature and global reach of peacekeeping, it also provides policy-makers with insights into the broader ramifications of deployments, especially for those nations from the global South that bear the weight of these missions.

Conflict sensitivity and activism: insights from Cambodia's resource conflicts

ABSTRACT This paper examines debates relating to international aid, civil society, and natural resource conflicts, through a case study of conflict sensitivity programming in Cambodia. The paper highlights the value of confrontational activism, yet the practice of conflict sensitivity can dissuade such activism. Embedded in the country's history and politics, the paper analyses the conflict sensitivity work of an international non-government organisation, revealing significant community-level success, including women's empowerment, but limitations in addressing systemic drivers of conflict. The case study also reveals how the application of conflict sensitivity contributed towards conflict and risk avoidance. In a global context of prevalent natural resource conflicts and related violence, this paper calls for critical reflection on the practice of conflict sensitivity, which continues to gain popularity globally. For development institutions and practitioners, conflict sensitivity has extensive value, but it must be implemented in ways that do not inadvertently dissuade more emancipatory civil society activism.

Attachment, Mental Health, and Alcohol Use by Men: The Mediating Role of Cumulative Lifetime Violence Severity.

Cumulative lifetime violence (CLV) encompasses many different types and contexts of violence that occur across the lifespan and is associated with negative mental health outcomes in men; however, little attention has been paid to other factors that can influence these relationships such as attachment style. In this analysis, our focus is to understand how attachment styles directly and indirectly through CLV affect men's mental health, specifically depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and alcohol use. Data from 597 Canadian men with lifetime experiences of violence who participated in our national online survey focusing on violence and health were used for mediation analysis. Results indicated that CLV severity mediated the relationship between attachment anxiety (but not attachment avoidance) and depression, anxiety, PTSD, and alcohol use. Although attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance each directly affected depression, anxiety, and PTSD, neither directly affected alcohol use. Importantly, these findings provide the first evidence that the mechanism by which anxious attachment affects alcohol use is through CLV severity. These findings highlight the importance of anxious attachment on mental health outcomes for men who have experienced CLV.

Gender violence, emotion, and the state symposium commentary

AbstractFeminist anthropologists have long emphasized the cultural, social, economic, and political contexts of gender violence rather than only focusing on interpersonal relationships between intimate partners or within the family. This commentary situates the five articles in the Gender Violence, Emotion, and the State Symposium within that context while noting their “evocative ethnographic” approach as a vital contribution to feminist anthropological thought, paying particular attention to power and its exercise within institutions and various forms of structural violence.

Theories of Relational Health in Interpersonal Violence Research: A Scoping Review

Interpersonal violence is a pervasive public health problem that leads to emotional, behavioral, and physical health challenges. Theoretically, sound research examining protective factors, such as relational health, is imperative for developing effective interventions. However, the use of relational health theories in existing research needs to be better understood within the literature and should be further explored. Using scoping review methodology, 23 theories of relational health were identified in the research literature. Attachment theory and emotional security theory were the most frequently utilized. The remaining studies drew on a wide range of theories, including relational cultural theory, social support theories, and others. Findings highlight the complexities of relational experiences in interpersonal violence contexts. Future research should seek a more comprehensive understanding of the inclusion and application of relational health theories.

Adult Maltese Women's Understanding of How Childhood Domestic Violence Has Impacted Their Relationships with Their Parents and Siblings: A Grounded Theory Study.

Most of the literature that has looked at children's relationships with their parents in the domestic violence context has focused solely on the children's relationship with one parent or is studied from the perspective of one parent, usually the mother. Sibling relationships in the same context are also under-studied. This paper explores in more detail the complexity of children's relationships with their mothers, fathers, and siblings over time from the perspective of adult women and survivors of childhood domestic violence. Methods: A grounded theory methodology was used to analyse the interviews with 15 women aged twenty to forty-three years of age living in Malta. Results: the analysis showed that the domestic violence context remains significant in these important relationships for these women. The relationship with the father remains strongly influenced by the dynamics of fear, love, and retaliation, with cycles of cut-off and connection from the adult daughter's end. The relationship with the mother is complicated-feelings of love that are seen as having been limited and complicated by betrayal if there was abuse from the mother. Similarly, for the siblings, the roles of the early family of origin remain persistent and significant. However, in some of these relationships, there has been transformation, reconciliation, and forgiveness. The article offers implications for therapeutic practice for dealing with the complexity of these relationships and ideas for future research.

Exposure to Violent Contexts and Psychosocial Functioning of Adolescents: A Cross-sectional Study

Objective: The aim is to examine the relationship between exposure to violence at home and at school on the psychosocial functioning of school-going adolescents. Materials and Methods: A total of 306 adolescents (mean = 15.28 years, standard deviation = 1.04) were recruited from two schools (one government and one private) in a North Indian city. A semi-structured form elicited information on demographic and socioeconomic variables and the extent to which students were exposed to violence at home and school. Based on the students’ responses to the victimization questions at home and school, they were categorized into four groups: those who faced overt and/or covert violence at both home and school; overt and/or covert violence only at home; overt and/or covert violence only at school; and those who faced no violence (control group). The preadolescent adjustment scale (PAAS) was used to assess the student’s self-reported adjustment at home, school, and with teachers, and peers. The main outcome measure was the self-reported total score on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Results: Nearly one-fifth (20.3%) of the students’ total score on the SDQ was in the borderline or abnormal range. The students who had been exposed to one or more contexts of violence were significantly more likely to report higher total SDQ scores (χ² = 33.94, P = 0.0001) and show scores in the abnormal range on the subdomains of hyperactivity/inattention (χ² = 15.75, P = 0.015) and conduct problems (χ² = 27.70, P = 0.0001) on the SDQ. Stepwise multivariate linear regression analyses indicated that overall, 17.4% of the variance in the SDQ total difficulties score was explained by the total score on the index of violence score, adjustment score on the teacher subdomain of PAAS, and the age of the adolescent (F = 20.88, P = 0.0001). Conclusions: Exposure to violence in different settings plays a critical role in determining the mental health of adolescents. Professionals need to be sensitive to the issues of parenting, disciplining practices, and school connectedness with school teachers while working with adolescents.

“Boys’ role in life is to protect and defend” Primary school boys’ constructions of masculinity within a context of violence

“Boys’ role in life is to protect and defend” Primary school boys’ constructions of masculinity within a context of violence

Undergraduate Students’ Definitions of Sexual Violence Labels Across the Rise of the #MeToo Movement

Examining changes in perspectives of sexual violence across the #MeToo movement is critical to understanding shifts in sociocultural contexts of sexual violence; yet the literature is still nascent. In the present study, we assessed variation across the #MeToo movement in undergraduate students’ ( N = 1,028) rape myth acceptance, sexual violence experiences, identification of experiences with sexual violence labels, and self-generated definitions of sexual violence labels (e.g., sexual assault). We also examined the mediating role of the relation between timepoint across #MeToo and students’ self-generated sexual violence definitions. Text analyses revealed seven themes in students’ definitions: Activity, Chronicity, Body, Contact, Gender, Force/Harm, and Consent. Notably, there was greater representation and a higher rate of change in the Contact theme in definitions following the #MeToo movement compared to pre-#MeToo, but only among students with sexual violence history. Rape myth acceptance did not change significantly across the #MeToo movement and did not demonstrate a significant role in time-related variability in students’ definitions. These findings provide support for the role of the #MeToo movement in facilitating more inclusive perceptions of sexual violence among undergraduate students, especially among those with sexual violence histories. We hope that with increased insight into the #MeToo movement's impact on sexual violence perspectives, continued efforts of the movement and prevention initiatives can broaden their reach.

Challenging Silencing in Stigmatized Neighborhoods Through Collaborative Knowledge Production

Researchers are always potential traitors when they represent what they see or hear. This is of particular concern in the case of people in subaltern positions, who lack the power to challenge possible misrepresentations. This article deals with an old dilemma in critical social science: How to use language when research objects are silenced through dynamics of domination? Is it possible for research to create space for marginalized people to speak for themselves? This was one of the questions of the Université Populaire, a group initiative by actors in a marginalized social housing neighborhood in Grenoble. The community‐based people’s education initiative was created in a double context of violence and silence. As a result of incidents of violence, media coverage participates in depicting the neighborhood as a place of danger and otherness, which impedes voices from the neighborhood from being heard. The initiative of the Université Populaire made space for speech in this marginalized and racialized area of Grenoble dealing with the consequences of terrorist violence in France. It is an initiative the author has been involved in since its inception in 2015. This article explains how the author sought ways to reduce power asymmetry in research relationships, why she steered away from using interviews for data collection and organized public debates instead, and how this made space for speech.

Children in Street Situations, Their Determinants, Survival and Strategies. Case of the City of Bujumbura

The aim of this article is to establish the link between the determinants of street life and the violence experienced by children and their survival in the city of Bujumbura. To gather the experiences of our interviewees, we used a life history with semi-structured interviews, and direct and indirect observation. To identify emerging themes, we carried out a thematic analysis of the interview content. Analysis of the empirical corpus of 43 street children reveals nine determinants at the root of the street child phenomenon, grouped into two categories, namely environmental and personal and interpersonal determinants centered on parent-child relationships. There are also determinants linked to educational styles that interact with the child's behavior. The stepmother is often perceived by children and their in-laws as a "ferocious animal’’, even in the absence of a negative upbringing. When family life fails, the street becomes an alternative. Exposed to all forms of violence, child victims become violent, and the cycle of violence is fueled. Stories of life on the streets show that every child has his/ her problems. Previous results show that the determinants of street life are multifactorial and have causal links that are part of a cyclical context of violence. Our results go further, proving that in addition to environmental determinants, there are also personal and interpersonal ones. Combating this phenomenon requires preventive action at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels: preventing the development of the problem, intervening early and, finally, treating the consequences and reintegrating the children.

Empathy and attitudes toward protecting migrants from criminal violence

AbstractMigrants in Latin America are increasingly vulnerable to organized crime violence while en route to their destination. Public opinion regarding how to address this problem varies. While many residents of countries along migration routes support policies protecting migrants from organized crime, others oppose them. What explains this variation? To investigate this situation, we draw on nationally representative survey data from one of Latin America's most important migrant corridors, Mexico, where sustained criminal violence makes migrants vulnerable to criminal predation en route. We integrate insight from theories about helping refugees amid political violence with studies about aiding migrants amid peace to develop and test hypotheses about an understudied research phenomenon, protecting migrants amid large‐scale criminal violence. We argue that attitudes toward protecting migrants are influenced by feelings of empathy. We test hypotheses related to two conduits of empathic perspective taking—crime victimization and imagining one could become a victim in the future. We find these channels of perspective taking are positively associated with support for migrant protective policies among crime victims and nonvictims alike. Our research reveals new information about attitudes toward immigration policy in criminally violent contexts and advances knowledge about the public endorsement of policies to preserve migrant rights and dignity.

Digital gender-based violence from the experience of actors in the delivery of justice

Gender-based violence is one of the problems that most afflict Mexican society, and the most affected are women; with globalization and increased access to technology for many people, it has crossed the boundaries of the physical environment to manifest itself in digital spaces. There is a lack of literature approaching this problem, justifying the relevance of this research. The general objective of this paper is to analyze the current context of gender-based digital violence from the experience of public servants who currently provide care to women victims of gender-based digital violence in Nuevo León, Mexico. To carry out this research, a qualitative design was used in which 15 interviews were conducted with people who currently work as public prosecutors in the state of Nuevo León. For the analysis of the information, we opted for a thematic analysis based on the proposal of Braun and Clarke (2006), and for the treatment of the data we used the qualitative software Maxqda. In general terms, it was detected that many of the cases are not reported and involve bureaucratic and administrative problems that limit and hinder attention and resolution.