Violence In Brazil Research Articles

A tale of two cities: Heterogeneous effects of COVID-19 quarantine on domestic violence in Brazil

Domestic violence calls to helplines surged worldwide immediately after COVID-19 lockdowns, but crime reporting, assaults, or homicides did not consistently rise. Using Brazilian data from health services and helplines, we analyze the impact of COVID-19 quarantine on domestic violence calls and assaults (health reports and hospitalizations). We use a difference-in-difference model to compare the evolution of domestic violence against women in municipalities that enacted the quarantine in March 2020 versus those that never did. Then, we estimate the difference in the quarantine effect between municipalities with and without protective services for women. Domestic violence calls increased by 11.8% in the first quarter of the quarantine, while health reports reduced by 12.6% a quarter later. These effects came from municipalities with protective services for women, where female hospitalizations due to assault decreased as well. In contrast, municipalities without such services saw a decrease in domestic violence calls and an increase in health reports in the first quarter. The supply of protective services for women could be a factor that explains why COVID-19-induced quarantine effects on domestic violence varied across populations. Our results suggest that when domestic violence calls increased, protective services actions prevented domestic violence from escalating into more severe cases, such as assaults.

Epidemiological and conjunctural characterization of violence in Brazil from 2011 to 2020

Introduction: Violence is a complex phenomenon that affects individuals of different genders, ages, ethnicities and social classes, being considered an important public health problem in Brazil and in the world. Methodology: Study with a quantitative, epidemiological and analytical approach, whose objective was to characterize the main indicators and the way they are associated with violence in Brazil according to their forms, means and circumstances of occurrence, from 2011 to 2020. A dendrogram was produced through the combined application of Multiple Correspondence Analysis and Hierarchical Clustering techniques, characterizing the main profiles associated with violence in Brazil. Results: Violence is established as a complex and multicausal phenomenon, which results not only in high public expenditures, but mainly in the reduction of social cohesion due to the immeasurable damage caused to the population involved. In the present study, the violence is mostly of the physical type, affecting adult females, with low schooling and white or brown. Recurrence occurs mainly when the violence is psychological and sexual. As for the aggressor, they are usually adults, male, and the use of alcohol is common. An important participation of the Southeast region was observed in the notifications of all forms of violence. Conclusions: The magnitude and severity of the problem is brought into question, which must be investigated regionally and in a segmented manner, according to the type of violence. Thus, it infers that spending on violence prevention can mitigate economic, social and psychological problems in Brazil.

Does the Gender Wage Gap Influence Intimate Partner Violence in Brazil?

<h3>Abstract</h3> Greater gender equality in wages may reduce Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) by improving women’s economic opportunities and enabling them to leave abusive relationships. On the other hand, increases in women’s income may trigger use of violence as an extractive mechanism or as an alternative way to assert superiority for men once economic superiority was challenged. Using panel data from Brazil, we test if the gender wage ratio influences IPV as measured in three types of administrative data: homicides, overnight hospitalizations for assault, and mandatory reports of IPV by health care providers. More wage equality leads to a reduction in violence against women in settings where income is likely to be a binding constraint for leaving abusive relationship: in low-income settings and among younger women.

Terapia de exposição narrativa para o tratamento do transtorno de estresse pós-traumático com pessoas que passaram por violência doméstica e comunitária: estudo de série de casos em dois centros de saúde no Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

Prevalence of violence in Brazil is high, which contributes to an increasing number of trauma-related disorders, especially post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study aims to present a case series of PTSD patients treated with narrative exposure therapy (NET) in two public health centers in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). Health professionals were trained in a two-week workshop to deliver NET. Exposure to violence and other potentially traumatic events, as well as PTSD were assessed by interviewers before treatment and six months later in follow-up interviews conducted by blind assessors. Multiple traumatic events, including different types of childhood and sexual abuse, intimate partner violence and community violence were reported. Five patients were exposed to community violence, and one to domestic violence, during or after NET treatment. Treatment delivery was integrated into the routine of health centers. Eight patients completed NET and presented a substantial reduction in PTSD severity at six-month follow-up. NET is a feasible and effective treatment for PTSD patients exposed to ongoing violence, and can be integrated into established public health services.

Victimisation and fear of crime in Brazil: The effect on the desire to move

We examined the effect of victimisation and fear of crime in Brazil and its attendant influence on the desire to move. Data drawn from the 2012 National Victimisation Survey were used to model the relationship between victimisation and the desire to move, with fear of crime used as a mediator variable. Our results indicate that being a victim of crime leads to increased fear, which, in turn, increases the desire to move. However, the indirect effect is comparatively small (i.e., our mediator variable—fear of crime—only marginally attenuates the relationship between victimisation and the desire to move). We also found evidence that property victimisation, victimisation occurring close to an individual's home, and indirect victimisation (i.e., hearing about a crime committed against another person in the neighbourhood) were also predictors of an increased desire to move in Brazil. Lastly, our results also suggest the importance of distinguishing between victimisation that occurred in the last 12 months compared to victimisation that occurred more than 12 months ago. Thus, policies that reduce victimisation and fear of crime may minimise the desire to move and any related economic and social costs.

New Routines in Making the Local News: How Fear and Distancing Change the Coverage of Violence in Brazil

The purpose of this article is to discuss to what extent the coverage of urban violence by local television news in Brazil has been impacted by journalists’ fear and their distancing from regions of armed conflict, leading to the development of new professional routines and, in particular, the use of WhatsApp. Our methodology included in-depth interviews with 13 journalists occupying different positions in the hierarchy of the newsrooms of the 4 main TV stations in the country. The testimonies suggest that aggression and hostility against journalists drove professionals away from certain territories and turned them toward new technologies and citizen co-production as ways out for local crime coverage. On the other hand, this dynamic creates challenges for journalism itself. One of the main concerns is the verification of content.

Sexual violence in Brazil: voices of raped women

Sexual violence in Brazil: voices of raped women

A narrative historical review of psychiatric epidemiology in Brazil: Focus on social and cultural determinants of mental health

Psychiatric research in Brazil has had a strong focus on social and cultural variables related to mental health. In the present narrative review, we provide historical context to the theoretical and methodological roots of psychiatric epidemiology in the country, from the era of proto-epidemiologic studies to the emergence of population neurosciences, showing the contribution of the field to approach social and cultural determinants of mental health. A periodization is proposed, including a proto-epidemiological phase and three subsequent generations. The available epidemiological data show extraordinary consistency and stability in terms of the prevalence of mental disorders in Brazil, which is very high as compared to other settings. Especially affected are vulnerable groups such as women, migrants, illiterates, low social class, unskilled workers, unemployed, people living in deteriorated urban sites, individuals exposed to violence, and in the socially excluded. Social inequalities and violence in Brazil play a noteworthy role as social determinants of poor mental health.

TRÁFICO INTERNACIONAL DE PESSOAS PARA EXPLORAÇÃO SEXUAL

In the present course, the international trafficking of people for sexual exploitation was studied. This crime has been practiced since the dawn of human history, victimizing thousands of women worldwide. Over the years, crimes and criminals have changed, but what remains over the centuries is the victims of trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. In this paper we point out the historical evolution of crime in the world and in Brazil. This crime has its historical roots, but it is today where it has become prominent, being the third most practiced crime in the world behind only drug and weapons trafficking, moving a billionaire scheme with specialized and extremely organized gangs. We analyze and point out the infractions to the criminal norms about the conduct of this crime in Brazil, where we look for the main laws and positive norms that deal with the crime under study. We verified the fundamental rights violated and the Brazilian State's action in the confrontation of these sexual exploitation networks, we also made an analysis of the Brazilian penal norms in face of the Additional Protocol to the Palermo Convention. It is in this context that throughout the work we seek to expose the legal thinking of various authors, and the main aspects of international trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation in order to give visibility to a cruel and silent crime that completely annihilates the human condition of being, restricting their freedom and making this crime a modern form of slavery.

The spatial association between drugs and urban violence: an analysis for the Metropolitan Region of Recife, Brazil

ABSTRACT The objective of this article is to provide evidence about the association between illegal drugs and urban crimes in Brazil at the neighbourhood level, specifically considering the case of the Recife Metropolitan Region. We apply spatial econometric models to estimate a reliable relationship between drug trafficking and possession and homicide and violent property crimes. The main results indicate strong and robust associations between drug trafficking and both kinds of crimes, but not between drug possession and violent crimes. The set of evidence is obtained even after controlling for the influence of a large set of crime determinants, including not only traditional local socioeconomic conditions affecting violence, but also the presence of slums, employment access, and the presence of bars and restaurants in neighbourhoods.

Effects of the Pelotas (Brazil) Peace Pact on violence and crime: a synthetic control analysis

City-led interventions are increasingly advocated to achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goal to reduce violence for all. We used a new quantitative evaluation method to examine whether a flagship programme, called the "Pelotas Pact for Peace" (the Pacto), has been effective in reducing violence and crime in the city of Pelotas, Brazil. We used synthetic control methodology to assess the effects of the Pacto from August 2017 to December 2021, and separately before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Outcomes included monthly rates of homicide and property crime, and yearly rates of assault against women and school drop-out. We constructed synthetic controls (counterfactuals) based on weighted averages from a donor pool of municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul. Weights were identified using pre-intervention outcome trends and confounders (sociodemographics, economics, education, health and development, and drug trafficking). The Pacto led to an overall 9% reduction in homicide and 7% reduction in robbery in Pelotas. These effects were not uniform across the full post-intervention period as clear effects were only seen during the pandemic period. A 38% reduction in homicide was also specifically associated with the criminal justice strategy of Focussed Deterrence. No significant effects were found for non-violent property crimes, violence against women, and school dropout, irrespective of the post-intervention period. City-level interventions that combine public health and criminal justice approaches could be effective in tackling violence in Brazil. Continued monitoring and evaluation efforts are increasingly needed as cities are proposed as key opportunities for reducing violence for all. This research was funded by the Wellcome Trust [grant number: 210735_Z_18_Z].

Multi-criteria classification of reward collaboration proposals

This article develops a mechanism for automatically classifying rewarded collaboration proposals. The research’s purpose is to increase transparency in the rewarded collaboration process, thereby inviting more collaboration proposals, to aid in the fight against criminal organizations. The research focuses on critical facets of the public security system and of the organized crime in Brazil. Through rewarded collaboration, a new approach to plea bargaining is achieved that helps detect, disrupt, and ultimately dismantle illicit operations. This multi-criteria approach enables the consideration of the interests of detainees, the priorities of police institutions, and the perspective of the community. This approach results in the formation of a holistic understanding of the issue, taking into account the costs and benefits to society of punishing defendants whose guilt can be established. Composition of Probabilistic Preferences Trichotomic is the multi-criteria method employed to take imprecision into consideration while performing classification into predetermined classes. It enables the evaluation of each proposal independently. This boosts the system’s objectivity and consequently its attractiveness. Taking the interaction between the criteria into consideration, the analysis naturally applies to any number of evaluation criteria and individuals involved in the investigated crimes. Novel forms of interaction modeling are compared in practical instances.

Inclusão ou ilusão da identidade de gênero no país com o maior número de assassinatos de transgêneros: um ensaio crítico brasileiro

Abstract Objective to reflect on the implications and risks associated with Brazil’s new identification registry for the trans population. Method this is a reflective study that explores the concept of social identity as a complex phenomenon, grounded in the principles of self-determination and human dignity. To accomplish this, it draws upon feminist post-humanist and critical perspectives, challenging individuals’ biological essentialism, with a particular focus on Judith Butler’s theory. Results Brazil is currently implementing a national identification registry that can recognize trans individuals’ gender identity. This manuscript addresses the implications of the new national identification system, including potential setbacks and advances in the struggle for trans rights. To safeguard people’s identity and safety, this article advocates for a novel national government-issued identification system that stores personal information in central databases for linking purposes, displaying only the preferred name and gender marker on the identification card. Final considerations and implication for practice the high rates of anti-trans violence in Brazil emphasize the urgent need for the new system. Early recognition and respect for gender identity are integral to promoting the success of the new national identification system.

Crimes letais e o mercado ilegal de drogas no Brasil de 2006 a 2015: uma análise sob o ponto de vista da teoria da desorganização social e da teoria econômica do crime

Abstract Brazil has a high rate of homicide, whose increase in recent years seems to be closely related to the expansion of the illegal drug market. This study aims to analyze the role that socioeconomic factors (family instability, ethnic heterogeneity, unemployment rate, and average income) play in this escalation. The study uses pooled regression models and fixed and random effects, with panel data from 27 Brazilian states for the period 2006–2015. The results indicate that the illegal drug trade is positively correlated with the mortality rates in Brazil during 2006-2015. Furthermore, the results show family instability, ethnic heterogeneity, unemployment rate, and average income as crime enhancers. This research brings insights that help develop a better interpretation of Brazilian lethal violence: in the 1980s and 1990s, violence was mainly explained by economic factors. This study points to the fact that phenomena linked to social disorder are also correlated with the level of homicides in Brazilian states. Therefore, this paper contributes to the literature by incorporating other elements that suggest alternatives to mitigate violent crime in Brazil.

As fontes em notícias de violência contra a mulher: um estudo de caso do portal G1

Abstract Gender-based violence in Brazil is increasingly affecting more and more women. They see their lives destroyed, physically and psychologically as a result of aggression, which often caused by their own family members and partners. And as in all other areas of society, the press also plays a fundamental role in raising awareness about reporting and warning about the seriousness of this scenario. What we often see, however, are factual stories, without the necessary depth and produced by journalists unprepared to talk about this issue. In order to understand how daily journalism on the internet deals with violence against women, this investigation analyzed articles on this topic in five sections of the Brazilian portal G1 in 2017. The editorials related to Brazilian states were chosen because Roraima, Goiás, Mato Grosso, Rondônia and Espírito Santo are the most violent states for women to live in, according to research by Ipea (Institute for Applied Economic Research). We analyzed their sources and whether the content is produced with a humane approach.

Challenges to the implementation of telemedicine in abortion care for victims of sexual violence in Brazil.

The article focuses the recent dynamics resulting from state institutions adding more legal and regulatory barriers to abortion care access, particularly against the use of telemedicine for sexual violence victims in Brazil. It presents a case study from a lawsuit targeting a pioneer public health service on the city of Uberlandia to ban telemedicine in abortion care. The case study highlights human rights violations of women's right to health as well as the recent threats to the right to safe legal abortion care. It also provides legal arguments-based on scientific evidence and international human rights standards-that support the use of telemedicine for abortion care.

Unauthorized exposure of intimate images of women

This work analyzed the experience of women who had intimate images exposed in an unauthorized manner through in-depth interviews with 17 women and ten health and care professionals from different institutions belonging to the care network to women in violence situations who attended those who have gone through this type of violence in Brazil. It was observed that the unauthorized exposure of intimacy is initiated by different people in relation to women and motivated by different factors. Commonly, exposure occurs amidst other types of violence against women, associated with it or not. The main damages caused to women do not refer to the exposure itself, but to the repercussion of this event in their personal and professional relationships and the revictimization that occurred mainly in institutions such as the police.

GPS collars as a tool to uncover environmental crimes in Brazil: The jaguar as a sentinel

<scp>GPS</scp> collars as a tool to uncover environmental crimes in Brazil: The jaguar as a sentinel

Out of sight out of mind: Psychological distance and opinion about the age of penal majority.

The growth of urban violence in Brazil, as in other countries, has led citizens to demand more severe and punitive measures to solve the problem of juvenile crime. One motion submitted to the Brazilian parliament, for instance, proposes to reduce the age of penal majority (APM) from 18 to 16 years. Our hypothesis is that popular opinions about this proposal are largely constrained by construal levels and psychological distance. Accordingly, we expect that the knowledge and proximity to the circumstances associated with juvenile transgression will influence opinions about the proposal. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated how opinion against or for the proposal can be explained by psychological distance and moral development theory. We studied two samples, composed of people who do not have a deep experience with the subject (passersby in a public square (N = 77) and workers from a juvenile justice court (N = 157). After collecting socio-demographic information from the subjects and their answer to moral dilemmas, the data was subjected to a multivariate analysis by multimodal logistic regression for socio-demographic characteristics, Kohlberg moral stages, and opinion on the reduction of APM (agree, indifferent, and disagree) as dependent variables. Our findings suggest that 1) opinion about the APM depends on psychological distance and 2) socioeconomic variables may influence the average construal level of adolescent transgressors in the public’s perspective.

A violência nossa de cada dia, segundo dados da Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde 2019

Abstract Based on the National Health Survey, this article aimed to verify the association between sociodemographic, health, and behavioral characteristics and the occurrence of psychological, physical, and sexual violence in Brazil in 2019. Logistic models were adjusted to four outcomes: Having experienced physical, psychological, or sexual violence in the last 12 months; having experienced psychological violence in the last 12 months; having experienced physical violence in the last 12 months; having experienced sexual violence in the last 12 months. There was a prevalence of 17.36% of psychological violence, 4.15% of physical violence, and 0.76% of sexual violence. The variables zone, sex, age group, skin color/race, marital status, per capita income, health status, mental health problem, and alcohol consumption remained in the final models. These results can and should contribute to adequate proposals for prevention and promotion actions since the National Policy for the Prevention of Accidents and Violence includes these social phenomena in the list of problems that cause illness and deaths.