Incidence Of Domestic Violence Research Articles

The Disutility of Stock Market Losses: Evidence From Domestic Violence

AbstractStock returns during the week are negatively associated with the reported incidence of domestic violence during the weekend. This relationship is primarily driven by negative returns. The incidence of domestic violence increases with the magnitude of losses, and the effect increases with local stock market participation. Our findings suggest that negative wealth shocks caused by stock market crashes can affect stress levels within intimate relationships, escalate arguments, and trigger domestic violence. Stock market losses may reduce household utility beyond the shock to financial wealth, supporting gain-loss models where disutility from losses outweighs the utility from gains of a similar magnitude.Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix, which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online.

THE EFFECT OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN TERMS OF WOMEN’S MENTAL HEALTH DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The most common issue throughout this pandemic is domestic violence. Women are the most victims of domestic violence during the Covid-19 pandemic. Domestic violence is a pattern of aggression, torture, or harassment used to retain authority over a spouse in a close relationship. Around 57% of domestic violence cases were reported from women during Movement Control Order in Malaysia. The objective of this study is to identify the effect on the issue of domestic violence during the Covid-19 pandemic. The researchers employed quantitative approaches to collect long-term data on domestic violence incidents during the COVID-19 Pandemic with four registered counselors from the National Population and Family Development Board (LPPKN) and the Department of Social Welfare. According to the counselor’s perspective, the study’s findings show several effects of domestic violence during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The causes of the Rising incidence of domestic violence in Nigeria: Proposing Judicial Separation as a Panacea

The increase in domestic violence in Nigeria has become overwhelming. However, the death of Osinachi Nwachukwu (a popular gospel artist singer), which has been linked to domestic violence, prompted the discussion of domestic violence to be more pronounced. Although several laws and institutional bodies are set up to curtail the incidence of domestic violence, there seems to be an increase in the monster in Nigeria. In this regard, this study adopts a hybrid method of research to ascertain the causes of the current increase in domestic violence in Nigeria and proposes judicial separation as a panacea. In this regard, various literature and laws were analysed concerning the suitability of judicial separation as a panacea in curtailing domestic violence. Furthermore 350 questionnaire was distributed to respondents to ascertain the causes of the current increase in domestic violence and possible solution. The study, therefore, found that alcohol abuse, psychological disorder, economic hardship, and traditional belief are some of the causes of the current increase in domestic violence in Nigeria. The study also found that judicial separation could be a viable legal tool to curtail domestic violence, given that it preserves the status quo of the marriage. Therefore, the study concludes and recommends that victims of domestic violence should open up and embrace the concept of judicial separation.

Resiliency of livelihood and empowerment of women: Results of a cash-based intervention in Bangladesh's Lalmonirhat District

Almost every year, the north-western part of Bangladesh faces acute flash floods causing property damage and loss of livelihood. The 2017 flood severely affected Lalmonirhat District, where in 2019 several organizations provided cash incentives as an aid to recovery of livelihoods and empowerment of women. This study explores the use of cash-based intervention (CBI) for livelihood restoration and empowerment of women. A qualitative exploratory research design was employed using a questionnaire survey, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews. Due to COVID-19, a follow-up phone survey was conducted in July 2020, revealing that CBI led to diversified income sources. The average inflation-adjusted income for beneficiaries was BDT17442 per month. About 52% of respondents believed CBI was highly effective, while 44% found CBI moderately helpful. In only 2% of cases was it fruitless due to the death of cattle. The daily income increased by BDT83-227 for Cluster-A (50% of respondents), BDT228-371 for Cluster-B (42% of respondents), and BDT372-517 for Cluster-C (8% of respondents). Among other occupations, livestock rearing made a significant profit, specifically for those who received minimal monetary CBI support. Following CBI and training, 100% of female respondents opined that males and females should have equal rights. About 93% of female respondents found improvement in self-confidence, self-esteem, and decision-making capacity attributable to participation in training and meetings to which they did not have access previously. About 93% of females felt that after empowerment training, they were able to reduce incidents of domestic violence. They enjoyed greater freedom in household and social decisions, greater independence in income, and improved equality in attitudes. CBI could be implemented on a large scale in disaster-affected communities to recover livelihoods, increase income sources, engage women in the workforce, and empower women.

Program on Violence against Women and Children for DKI Jakarta residents

The pandemic of Covid-19 bring poor influence in various aspects such as the economy, health and finance. Increased problems and stress have an impact on domestic violence against women and children. It was reported the incidence of domestic violence increased during the pandemic as a result of stresses and uncertainty condition, especially when there is an imbalance of authority between men and women at home. There were 80% of female respondents in the middle to lower economic level reported receiving psychological and economic violence, and the implementation of Community Activity Restrictions (PPKM) in DKI Jakarta forced victims to live in the same house as the perpetrators of violence. For this reason, a program for an anti-violence campaign against women and children is needed with the aim to increase the awareness of women/wives due to domestic violence impact both for themselves, children and families. This program is carried out by academics through some events such as webinars, sharing messages through social media and launching the SAPA Pos (Friends of Women and Children) as a service forum for residents who need services and support. With a good understanding of violence, it is expected that DKI Jakarta residents will be more concerned in preventing violence experienced by women and children and have the courage to speak up/report it.

The merits and risks of body-worn camera footage in domestic and family violence incidents and legal proceedings: a study of police perceptions and experiences

ABSTRACT There has been significant investment by police agencies in the use of body-worn cameras (BWCs). Preliminary evidence suggests that when used in the context of domestic and family violence, BWC footage may strengthen evidential cases and prosecutions. There is, however, a paucity of research examining the merits of and risks posed by the use of BWC footage in DFV incidents and legal proceedings. Notably absent in much of the literature are the views and experiences of police officers who, as initial owners of BWC footage, are likely to affect how it is produced and interpreted. This paper presents findings from the first Australian study to examine how police officers, as users and operators of BWC technology, perceive the use of BWC footage in DFV-related civil and criminal legal proceedings in two Australian state jurisdictions: Western Australia and Queensland. While broadly supportive of BWC technology, police respondents, especially those from specialised DFV units, identified various benefits and limitations to using BWC footage in the context of DFV, including that BWCs have the potential to capture DFV upon police call-outs, but can be limiting insofar as they do not show ongoing patterns of violence. Our findings highlight the importance of exercising domain-specific, rather than a ‘one size fits all’ approach when it comes to understanding the benefits and limitations of BWC technology.

Qualitative study of the perspectives of women with lived experience of domestic and family violence on accessing healthcare.

To explore the perceptions of women with lived experience of domestic and family violence on accessing healthcare and to identify how nurses can facilitate and support women experiencing domestic and family violence to receive the care they need. A qualitative single site study. As part of an evaluation of a nurse-led domestic and family violence service, a 2-h focus group was conducted with four women with lived experience of domestic and family violence on 14 December 2021. The Levesque Framework provided a novel approach to identify barriers and facilitators to healthcare access. The focus group guide included eight open-ended questions. The audio recording was transcribed and analysed using Braun and Clark's thematic analysis process. The Levesque Framework helped highlight individual and structural challenges in accessing healthcare faced by women experiencing domestic and family violence. Dominant themes were first contact, comprehensiveness of services and domestic violence awareness. The growing incidences of domestic and family violence are confounding communities worldwide. Despite the high profile of domestic and family violence in Australia, access to healthcare remains problematic. These preliminary findings suggest that nurses have opportunities to facilitate access in relation to the approachability, acceptability and appropriateness of services. Realizing these opportunities requires education that enables nurses' capacity to provide an effective first contact and facilitate comprehensive care by embodying a no wrong door culture. We intend to explore these concepts in future focus groups. This study explored the factors impacting access to healthcare for women experiencing domestic and family violence. Accessing healthcare when experiencing domestic and family violence in Australia is problematic. Findings suggest that nursing has opportunities to facilitate the approachability, acceptability and appropriateness of services. These findings will be valuable to nurses across all healthcare settings, nursing education providers and health workforce planners.

Changes of ambulance departures to assaults during COVID-19 pandemic restrictions

IntroductionRestrictions related to COVID-19 may affect aggressive behaviour. Increased incidence of gender-based, domestic, and intimate-partner violence was expected during the pandemic, however, retrospective analyses yielded contradicting results.ObjectivesExamine changes in frequency of assaults caused by pandemic restrictions, including separate analysis for male and female assault victims, for residential and non-residential location of assaults and for assaults related to domestic violence.MethodsWeekly number of ambulance departures to injuries secondary to assaults in the Pilsen region, Czechia, during the COVID lockdown was compared to records from the three previous years using ANOVA and post hoc t-tests. Further, multilinear regression was used to model weekly number of ambulance departures between 1st January 2017 and 30th April 2021 based on presence of pandemic national emergency state, time, and seasonality.ResultsDuring pandemic lockdown, ambulance departures to assaults dropped by 43% compared to equivalent periods of the three previous years. The decrease was notable specifically among departures to male victims and to assaults in non-residential areas, with only small decrease observed for female victims and assaults related to domestic violence and no change found in frequency of assaults happening at home.ConclusionsLockdowns and restrictions of public life were associated with a decreased incidence of violent assaults. While the incidence decreased especially in males and in those assaulted outside of their homes, we found no support for an increase in domestic or gender related violence. Pandemic restrictions may serve as a protective rather than a risk factor for assaults.DisclosureNo significant relationships.

Does Knowledge Empower? Education, Legal Awareness, and Intimate Partner Violence

This article exploits the rollout of the 1997 Basic Education Program in Turkey, a reform that extended compulsory school attendance, to estimate the causal effects of education on women’s awareness of laws designed to reduce gender inequality and prevent domestic violence. The study implements a regression-discontinuity design and finds that the additional years of schooling improved women’s legal awareness. Women exposed to the education reform were more likely to have heard about the new laws and services through newspapers, journals, or books. However, despite these improvements, the study finds no evidence of a significant change in the risk of women experiencing domestic violence or their ability to quit abusive relationships. HIGHLIGHTS Multiple barriers undermine women’s access to the justice system in Turkey. Education reform helped remove one such barrier: women’s legal awareness of their rights. However, legal awareness did not translate into significant changes in incidence of domestic violence. Raising awareness is a necessary first step but not enough to empower women to access to legal institutions.

“We’re Essential Because You’re Essential”: How Louisiana Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Organizations Adapted Outreach Efforts and Health Messaging during COVID-19

ABSTRACT Within weeks of the World Health Organization declaring the COVID-19 outbreak a global pandemic, domestic violence and sexual assault incidents increased. To adhere to new health protocols, social service providers were encouraged to move outreach efforts to virtual formats. We draw on 21 in-depth interviews with Louisiana organizations working in violence against women to examine how they 1) transitioned to online outreach efforts and 2) adapted their messaging to the COVID-19 context. We found that organizations who successfully moved to virtual efforts credited their success to thinking creatively and properly matching educational activities to digital media platforms, while those who struggled pointed to obstacles such as digital media fatigue and funding limitations (RQ1). We also identified three changes to message framing (RQ2): 1) Empathy and reassurance, especially, reiterating that centers “are there” for victims 2) Addressing racial justice issues, and 3) describing COVID-19 protocols and conducting lockdown-focused education efforts.

“Well, He Is Paid to Be Violent…”: How Athlete Identity Alters Perceptions of Domestic Violence Incidents

The purpose of this study is to determine if perceptions of violence related to race, gender and sport will impact audience reactions to domestic violence issues involving an athlete. Specifically, this study will examine how these elements of an athlete’s identity could affect his/her perceived image when faced with domestic violence accusations. A 3 (perceived race) X 2 (gender) X 2 (sport) factorial experiment was conducted using a national convenience sample of 626 participants from Qualtrics Panels. Results provided evidence that an athlete’s race and gender could have an impact on their perception during domestic violence cases, with the male athlete (regardless of the race of the athlete) and the White athlete (regardless of the gender of the athlete) facing more negative perceptions. Furthermore, the violent nature of the sport did not have an impact on the perceptions of the athlete. This study provides further evidence about the role that gender and race play in how domestic violence is perceived during criminal transgressions.

Addressing the Impact of Animal Abuse: The Need for Legal Recognition of Abused Pets as Sentient Victims of Domestic Violence in Australia

Awareness of the incidence and impact of domestic violence has increased in recent decades, along with community and legal recognition of the interests of animals. However, streams of jurisprudence addressing these issues have only partially influenced one another. While in most Australian jurisdictions, animal cruelty can constitute domestic violence, abused companion animals have not been accorded the legal status of victims. This article proposes introducing laws that recognise such animals as sentient victims of domestic violence. This would enable courts to make orders protecting these animals, which would safeguard their welfare and ensure that people with whom they live who are also experiencing domestic violence can escape without worrying about the fate of their animals. Further, it would convey the seriousness of animal cruelty, and might increase support for and awareness of programs for re-homing abused animals, and training of people involved with animals to identify and report animal abuse.

Participant-Reported Effects of Armed Conflict and Displacement on Behaviour and Attitudes in Malakand District of Pakistan

This study was carried out in Malakand District, to identify conflict related loss of family members and affect on livelihood as reported by study participants, to assess participant-reported perceived changes in human behaviour and attitude towards revenge due to armed conflict and displacement. For this cross-sectional study, convenient sampling was done among residents at the time of conflict and thereafter. Four hundred and thirty-five residents of Malakand District were included in the study. Two hundred and sixty-six (61%) of the participants were displaced from their hometown and 23% had one or more of their family members injured during the conflict. One hundred and sixty-five (38%) participants believed that they have the right to take revenge by whatever means necessary and 287 (66%) reported an increase in the incidence of domestic violence and abuse. Increase in abductions and robberies were reported by 292 (67%) and 182 (41.8%) participants respectively. Those displaced were more likely to report a family member killed (p = 0.044) or injured in the conflict (p <0.05), earnings affected (p <0.05), increase in robberies (p = 0.006) and increase in abductions (p = 0.003) compared to those who were not displaced in the conflict. Substantial loss of family members, displacement and loss of livelihood were reported by the participants due to armed conflict as well as an increase in various criminal activities. Health professionals in areas of conflict should consider focusing on domestic violence, mental health and social history.

Reducing the incidence of domestic violence: An observational study of an equine-assisted intervention.

This paper is presenting results from an observational study which has measured the impact of an equine‐assisted education (EAE) intervention on the future occurrence of domestic violence within the family over 1 year following completion of the intervention as part of the troubled families program. The data analyzed were collected by the local authority troubled family's team from the different agencies involved including crime, health, and social care data. The data were analyzed and compared across four groups, those families on the troubled families program who had a key worker with a member or members who had attended and completed the equine‐assisted intervention (n = 268); those families who were on the troubled families program but no support had been offered (n = 10,569), those families who were on the program and were being supported by a key worker only (n = 2119), and those families on the program who were being supported by a key worker and had received further support, not from the equine‐assisted intervention (N = 1119). Significant reductions in domestic violence and child in need status were found for those families who had a member or members attend and complete the equine‐assisted intervention under study. Those families referred to the equine‐assisted intervention also had significantly more complex needs than those in the other groups. Referrals to this intervention are normally for those families for whom talk‐based interventions such as parenting, or education‐based interventions are not working.

Child Mental Health and Bullying within the Exposure to Domestic Violence: Literature Review

The harmful consequences of domestic violence on children’s lives have been widely reported in the literature. However, the influences of exposure to domestic violence or witnessing violence in the family on the children’s experiences of being a bully or victimized of bullying have not been paid sufficient attention in child mental health field. A critical literature review was the method of this article. Electronic databases about the relationship between bullying behavior and mental health by recognizing the consequences of domestic violence on children’s lives were searched. Exposure to domestic violence might be associated with children’s problematic behavior. Also, children might be bullied by peers at schools and behave aggressively. This article aims to explore the relationships between experiencing domestic violence and bullying behavior and being peer victimization by focusing on child mental health and intervention efforts. Understanding how children witness violence and how school bullying might be linked with witnessing violence is a goal of the study. Bullying can be recognized as a result of domestic violence incidence and this can improve effective interventions for children’s mental health and overall well-being. Thus, a deeper understanding of how child mental health conditions might be interconnected with bullying behavior within complex and dynamic domestic violence cases was explored.

Analysis of the geographic pattern of the police reports for domestic violence in Girona (Spain)

BackgroundThere are many studies that address the issue of gender-based violence, but few analyse the police-reported cases. It is as important to analyse the temporal and geographic distribution of these incidents as it is the sociodemographic profile of the accuser. To this effect, the present study aims to analyse the sociodemographic profile of the victims of the particular case of domestic violence that report the incident to the police and to evaluate the spatial–temporal distribution of these reports.MethodsUsing the data from a database containing the police-reported incidents of domestic violence in Girona in the period 2012–2018, the risk of a police-reported incident was estimated by adjusting the two-part Hurdle model.ResultsThe risk of reporting incidents of domestic violence to the police is higher in the less deprived areas of the city, and the spatial distribution of these police reports corroborate this finding. Nevertheless, those areas with the greatest socio-economic deprivation were also the ones where there were less police reports filed. Also the prediction of less police reports in the census tract with the highest percentage of the population with an insufficient educational level coincides with the largest number of police reports made by women with a medium and university level education (56.1%) compared with 9.5% of police reports made by women with insufficient schooling.ConclusionsThese results can be useful for social protection services to design policies specifically aimed at women residing in those areas with the highest risk. Moreover, the use of spatial statistical techniques together with geographic information systems tools is a good strategy to analyse domestic violence and other types of offences because they not only allow to graphically identify the spatial distribution, but it is also a good tool to identify problems related to this type of offence.

One-year prevalence of domestic violence against women during the COVID-19 pandemic in an urban community in Southern Nigeria

Background:Violence against women is a major public health challenge particularly in the developing countries. During the COVID-19 pandemic, varied rising incidence of domestic violence against women were reported. This study determined the one-year prevalence of domestic violence against women during the COVID-19 pandemic in an urban community in Southern Nigeria.Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Multistage sampling technique was utilized in recruiting 616 female respondents from an urban community in Benin City, Nigeria. Structured intervieweradministered questionnaire was the tool for data collection. The questionnaire was adapted from the 2018 Nigeria Demographic Health Survey and the 2006 World Health Organization multi-country survey tool. Data analysis was done using IBM-SPSS version 25.Results: More than a third of the women 221 (35.9%) had been victims of domestic violence in the last one year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The types of domestic violence experienced by the women included: psychological 120 (54.3%), physical 68 (30.8%), sexual 38 (17.2%) and economic 36 (16.3%). Husbands 52 (76.5%) and boyfriends 39 (57.4%) of the victims were the most frequent perpetrators of physical violence.Conclusion: The study revealed a high one-year prevalence of violence against women in the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychological and physical violence were most prevalent and were perpetrated mainly by intimate partners of the women. The social media can be utilized routinely to educate the masses about violence against women. Also, men should be engaged in the prevention of domestic violence programmes through education workshops.
 Keywords: Prevalence; Perpetrators; Violence against women; Domestic violence; COVID-19 pandemic; Southern Nigeria

COVID-19 and Domestic Violence: Economics or Isolation?

Recent studies estimate that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly increases reports of domestic violence in several countries. Using mobile device tracking data, city-level unemployment data, and new data on labor market conditions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, we isolate the effects of unemployment and staying at home on incidents of domestic violence. We find that unemployment decreases domestic violence after controlling for the degree to which people stay at home. We also provide evidence that staying at home increases domestic violence. However, we find that the effects of unemployment and staying at home are concentrated right after an initial shock from mid-March to mid-June 2020. Finally, we find that some labor market conditions linked to COVID-19, such as being prevented from looking for work due to the pandemic, decrease domestic violence, and these labor market effects are often gendered.

Findings from a natural experiment on the impact of covid-19 residential quarantines on domestic violence patterns in New Orleans.

PurposeFollowing the rise of the novel coronavirus, de facto residential quarantines resulted either from executive stay-at-home orders, unemployment or through remote work requirements. One question that has arisen is whether the COVID-19 quarantines led to increases in domestic violence (DV), with research findings thus far being mixed. To further this understanding, this study examined whether the frequency and geographic dispersion of DV increased during stay-at-home and phased reopening periods of the pandemic in New Orleans, Louisiana while accounting for socio-economic determinants.MethodsThe study built on a natural experiment of home quarantine and examined its effects on DV using a mixed-methods approach of quantitative and geospatial analyses. Data for the analyses came from a sample of 11,502 police reported DV incidents and ArcGIS portal data of sociodemographic information across neighborhood statistical areas (NSAs).ResultsWhile results revealed no significant increase of DV during early phases of the quarantine, a significant increase in frequency was observed in the second reopening phase compared to the same time-period in the previous year. However, the dispersion of DV incidents appeared stable with continued concentrations in pre-existing geographic ‘hot spots.’ Conversely, households which were greater in size exhibited significantly fewer DV incidents.ConclusionFindings suggest that prevention programs might target residences already inflicted with domestic violence histories in advance of future pandemic or natural disaster related residential quarantines. Findings also reveal that situational factors, such as number of household residents, might be used to triage the delivery of services.

COVID-19, Violent Crime, and Domestic Violence: An Exploratory Analysis

As the world continues to struggle with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been much speculation on the impact of the virus on crime rates, especially violent crime and domestic violence. Disruptions in the patterns of daily, routine activities of life caused by lockdowns have been linked to changes in opportunities for criminal events, and these opportunities may vary based on the type of crime. The purpose of this paper is to examine the rates of violent interpersonal crime and domestic violence in the State of Florida, USA from 1/1/2020 to 12/31/2020. Using counties as the unit of analysis, the rates for selected violent crimes was predicted based on the differential impact of the COVID-19 virus, controlling for various county-level social vulnerability and health-related factors. Comparisons between violent crime levels in 2019 and 2020 were also made. Under opportunity theory, it was predicted that the level of domestic violence would increase in counties that experienced higher infection rates and deaths from COVID-19. Conversely, it was predicted that interpersonal violence would decrease in counties with greater impacts and restrictions due to the COVID-19 virus. The results suggest that as the COVID-19 death rate increased, incidents of domestic violence decreased. Altruism was proposed as an alternative explanation for this atypical finding.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43576-022-00049-y.