Intimate Partner Violence In Spain Research Articles

Understanding Social Workers and Health Professionals’ Public Stigma against Women who Experience Intimate Partner Violence in Spain

Understanding Social Workers and Health Professionals’ Public Stigma against Women who Experience Intimate Partner Violence in Spain

Intimate Partner Violence and Formal Help-Seeking in Spain: Comparing Experiences of Spanish and Immigrant Women

In Spain, 17.23% of the population is immigrant. In Madrid area, it rises to 20.96%, being Latin American and Romanian origin the most prevalent. Data indicate that intimate partner violence (IPV) is higher in immigrant than in Spanish women, although they seem to make less use of specialized services. This study aims to identify the characteristics of knowledge and use of specialized IPV services and related variables between Spanish, Romanian, and Latin American women with lifetime IPV in Spain. An anonymous, self-administered survey was applied to a stratified sample of residents aged over 16 in Coslada (Madrid, Spain), where there is a large immigrant population (18.78%). Data from 280 women showed higher recognized lifetime IPV for immigrants (62.1%) than for natives (48%) (p < .05). However, not even half (48.7%) of them used any of the services assessed (without significant differences by origin); Romanians showed more judicialized processes. Use of services was related to having children or IPV severity, among other variables. Results point out the need to consider the influence of the context of immigrant women on their help-seeking behavior and increase awareness and training among professionals. Further research is required about the specific needs of women from different countries.

Social Support Seeking Among Women Victims of Intimate Partner Violence: A Qualitative Analysis of Lived Experiences

Abstract Purpose Intimate partner violence against women is a major source of morbidity and mortality among women worldwide. In this study, 131 testimonies of female victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) are examined to study the factors associated with victims’ decision to seek social support (formal and informal). Method Semi-structured interviews were conducted with female victims of IPV in Spain. The IRaMuTeQ 7 software was used to analyze the discourses. A total of 10,845 words with 1183 different forms were examined. Results The analysis identified six clusters. Cluster 1 (18% of the total content) reflects the emotional component of aggression (fear of death). Cluster 2 (13.1%) describes psychological aggression (threatening), and Cluster 3 (17.2%) refers to the use of power within relationships (control). Cluster 6 (13.8%) includes different types of physical aggression (hitting); and Clusters 4 (21%) and 5 (16.9%) refer to formal (judging) and informal (friends) social support. Conclusions Results indicated a strong association between emotions (e.g., fear of dying) and physical and psychological aggression. Non-fatal strangulation represented an extreme form of physical violence that was used to control women increasing the risk of violence becoming lethal. Women tended to seek more support when the violence increased, and they perceived a greater risk to their children. There was an association between suffering violence, power, control, and seeking formal and informal social support. Results have significant implications to interrupt coercive control processes and to motivate help seeking behaviors in victims of IPV.

Using machine learning-based systems to help predict disengagement from the legal proceedings by women victims of intimate partner violence in Spain.

Intimate partner violence against women (IPVW) is a pressing social issue which poses a challenge in terms of prevention, legal action, and reporting the abuse once it has occurred. However, a significant number of female victims who file a complaint against their abuser and initiate legal proceedings, subsequently, withdraw charges for different reasons. Research in this field has been focusing on identifying the factors underlying women victims' decision to disengage from the legal process to enable intervention before this occurs. Previous studies have applied statistical models to use input variables and make a prediction of withdrawal. However, none have used machine learning models to predict disengagement from legal proceedings in IPVW cases. This could represent a more accurate way of detecting these events. This study applied machine learning (ML) techniques to predict the decision of IPVW victims to withdraw from prosecution. Three different ML algorithms were optimized and tested with the original dataset to assess the performance of ML models against non-linear input data. Once the best models had been obtained, explainable artificial intelligence (xAI) techniques were applied to search for the most informative input features and reduce the original dataset to the most important variables. Finally, these results were compared to those obtained in the previous work that used statistical techniques, and the set of most informative parameters was combined with the variables of the previous study, showing that ML-based models had a better predictive accuracy in all cases and that by adding one new variable to the previous work's predictive model, the accuracy to detect withdrawal improved by 7.5%.

Formal and Informal Services Used by Women Who Suffer Intimate Partner Violence in Spain.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important public health problem. Female victims of IPV do not always use the institutional resources available to them. We conducted a cross-sectional study using data from the Spanish 2014 Macro-Survey on Violence Against Women. The findings show that 15% of the survey participants suffered from IPV in the last year. The factors associated with a higher probability of suffering IPV are being of non-Spanish nationality, being a student, having a low-educational level, having no income, being the household head, and not having a current partner. Regarding the resources used by women subjected to IPV, almost half resorted to informal sources, such as female friends and/or their own mothers. The use of formal resources was low. Therefore, IPV continues to be a problem in Spain that seems to remain in the private domain. Consequently, it is necessary to increase the availability of and access to legal resources.

Working memory, episodic memory and sustained attention in women survivors of intimate partner violence in Spain: The Believe Battery

A growing body of literature suggests that intimate partner violence (IPV) is linked topsychopathology and lower cognitive functionality. Nonetheless, few studies have examinedneuropsychological correlates using objective neuropsychological assessments. The mainobjective of this study was to assess the relationship between cognitive functioning (specificallymemory and attention) and IPV. A group of women IPV survivors (n = 37) and a group of womenwho had not experienced IPV (n = 23) were assessed using the Believe Battery, a comprehensiveneuropsychological battery adapted for women survivors of IPV. Findings demonstrated thatwomen who have suffered IPV present lower neuropsychological scores in the domains ofworking memory, verbal episodic memory, and attention compared to women who have notexperienced IPV. These results suggest that IPV may have an impact on neuropsychologicalfunctioning among women victims and survivors, thus raising an important question aboutimplications in clinical and forensic settings. Future studies should examine whether there areadditional differences in other cognitive domains and assess how such differences are relatedto the potential causal mechanisms of violence (e.g., strangulation, head injury, chronic stress).

Barriers to access intimate partner violence services in female Romanian immigrants in Spain: A Delphi study.

Immigrant women may be at higher risk of intimate partner violence (IPV) and may seek specialized services less frequently than other populations. In Spain, Romanian origin foreigners comprise the second-highest proportion among immigrant population. This study aimed to identify, from the perspective of experts, (1) the main barriers faced by immigrant women of Romanian origin in accessing specialized services for IPV in Spain; and (2) the most useful strategies to combat these barriers. A Delphi study was conducted with a panel of 23 experts. The coefficient rWG was calculated to established agreement among participants. The results showed 58 barriers and 31 strategies with high agreement among the experts (rWG ≥ 0.80). Barriers in access to services that were considered to be highly influential included: having been in the host country for a short time; lack of language proficiency; job insecurity; difficulty with family-work reconciliation; and fear of the social consequences for help-seeking. The strategies considered most useful were: facilitating access to the job market and decent housing; promoting a social support network; translating material into Romanian; and increasing training among professionals. The findings offer guidelines for the improvement of the accessibility of specialized services to immigrant women of Romanian origin.

Spanish Intimate Partner Violence Survivors Help-Seeking Strategies Across the Life Span.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) and its associated factors may vary according to women's age. In this study, we analyze the effect of age on help-seeking behavior and the associated factors among women exposed to IPV in Spain. Using the Spanish Macrosurvey on Gender Violence of 2014, we analyzed the frequency of help-seeking behavior (police report, formal resources, and informal networks of support) in women who were exposed to lifetime physical/sexual or fear-based IPV (n = 1,567 women). We used Poisson regression models to obtain variables associated with support resources. The analysis was carried out in three age groups: young women (16-29 years old), adults (30-49 years old), and older women (50 years and over). Our results show that informal support networks are the most used resource by all women´s age groups. The probability of filing a police complaint increases among women exposured to physical IPV (PRadult : 1.58; PRelder : 2.17 ). The probability of using formal resources decreased among older women with low family socioeconomic status (PR: 0.80) and in adult women exposed to sexual IPV (PR: 0.78), and increased among young women and adult Spanish women (PRyoung: 1.65; PRadult: 1.34). The use of informal support networks increased among adult women with physical and mental health effects (PR: 1.22). In older women use of informal support networks was associated with the type of IPV (PRphysical: 1.14; PRsexual: 0.88). The presence of minors who witnessed IPV increased help-seeking behavior among adult and older women.In conclusion, the knowledge of the differences in help-seeking strategies by women in different age groups could contribute to designing strategies to promote women's ability to seek formal help when exposed to IPV.

Predicting Disengagement from Judicial Proceedings by Female Victims of Intimate Partner Violence in Spain: A Systematic Replication With Prospective Data.

This article examines which variables predict disengagement from legal proceedings by victims of intimate partner violence in the first steps of the Spanish judicial process. We replicated a previous retrospective study with a prospective sample of 393 women. The relationships of sociodemographic, emotional, motivational, and psychological variables with procedural withdrawals were analyzed. We developed a binary logistic regression model that predicts disengagement with two variables: the contact with the abuser and the interaction between this contact and the thought of going back with him. Interesting differences between the current and the retrospective study were found. Results are discussed extensively in the conclusions.

Severity of neurocognitive impairment in women who have experienced intimate partner violence in Spain

ABSTRACTThis study examines neuropsychological impairment in women who have experienced intimate partner violence using DSM 5 criteria for mild and severe cognitive impairment. A total of 108 females in Spain were included in one of three groups: psychological abuse (n = 24), physical and psychological abuse (n = 45), and no-abuse (n = 39). There were differences between the control and IPV groups in attention and executive functioning. Furthermore, approximately 25% of women experiencing IPV suffer mild neuropsychological alterations and 5% severe, mostly in memory and executive function domains. This evidence supports the growth in research that suggests psychological violence on its own to be as strongly related to poor health outcomes as physical violence in intimate partner relationships.

Primary health care attributes and responses to intimate partner violence in Spain

ObjectiveThis study provides an overview of the perceptions of primary care professionals on how the current primary health care (PHC) attributes in Spain could influence health-related responses to intimate partner violence (IPV). MethodsA qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews with 160 health professionals working in 16 PHC centres in Spain. Data were analysed using a qualitative content analysis. ResultsFour categories emerged from the interview analysis: those committed to the PHC approach, but with difficulties implementing it; community work relying on voluntarism; multidisciplinary team work or professionals who work together?; and continuity of care hindered by heavy work load. Participants felt that person-centred care as well as other attributes of the PHC approach facilitated detecting IPV and a better response to the problem. However, they also pointed out that the current management of the health system (workload, weak supervision and little feedback, misdistribution of human and material resources, etc.) does not facilitate the sustainability of such an approach. ConclusionThere is a gap between the theoretical attributes of PHC and the “reality” of how these attributes are managed in everyday work, and how this influences IPV care.

Help-Seeking Behavior Among Moroccan, Romanian, and Ecuadorian Women Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence in Spain.

This study aims to identify different types of response to intimate partner violence (IPV) and help-related seeking behavior among Spain's most numerous immigrant groups-Moroccans, Romanians, and Ecuadorians. Women reporting physical, sexual and/or psychological violence by a current or former intimate partner (n = 194) were selected from a cross-sectional study based on 1,607 surveys (2011). There are 84% of surveyed battered women who reported seeking help through informal and/or formal channels. The most frequently reported informal help-seeking behavior was talking with the abusive partner (from 63% to 83%). Moroccans identified social services (29.6%) and health care (25.9%) professionals as their most frequently used formal resources when seeking help. Approximately 32% of Ecuadorians and Romanians declared having reported their partners to the police. Among all of the women, seeking help through formal channels was more probable in cases where the severity of IPV was high (adjusted odds ratio = 5.69, 95% confidence interval [2.29, 14.12]). It is needed to increase professionals' opportunities to intervene in cases of IPV before they become severe.

Gender inequality and violence against women in Spain, 2006-2014: towards a civilized society

ObjectiveConsidering both the economic crisis of 2008 and the Gender Equality Law (2007), this study analyses the association between gender inequality in Spanish Autonomous Communities (AC) and intimate partner violence (IPV) from 2006 to 2014 in terms of socio-demographic characteristics. MethodsEcological study in the 17 Spanish AC on the correlation between the reported cases by IPV and deaths and the Gender Inequality Index and its dimensions: empowerment, participation in the labour market and adolescent birth rates; and their correlation with Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET). ResultsIn 2006, IPV mortality rates were higher in autonomous communities with greater gender inequality than AC with more equality (4.1 vs. 2.5×106 women >14 years), as were reporting rates of IPV (OR=1.49; 95% CI: 1.47-1.50). In 2014, the IPV mortality rates in AC with greater gender inequality fell to just below the mortality rates in AC with more gender equality (2.5 vs. 2.7×106 women >14 years). Rates of IPV reports also decreased (OR=1.22; 95% CI: 1.20-1.23). Adolescent birth rates were most associated with IPV reports, which were also associated with the burden of NEET by AC (ρ2006=0.494, ρ2014=0.615). ConclusionGender-sensitive policies may serve as a platform for reduced mortality and reports of IPV in Spain, particularly in AC with more gender inequality. A reduction of NEET may reduce adolescent birth rates and in turn IPV rates.

Immigrant Women Suffering From IPV in Spain

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women is a violation of human rights and one form of discrimination compounded by other discrimination factors as migration. The risk of violence can increase among immigrant women because of the legal and economic situation and the barriers they encounter to accessing information and support services. This qualitative study explores in-depth the perspective of experienced social workers about challenges faced by immigrant women suffering from IPV in Spain. This study may help professional social workers, others professionals, and public policy makers to design effective strategies for meeting the demands and needs of this population.

Prevalence of intimate partner violence in Spain: A national cross-sectional survey in primary care

Objectives(1) To analyze the prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence by types. (2) To examine the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and Intimate Partner Violence. DesignCross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire. SettingPrimary Healthcare centers in Spain. Participants10,322 women (18–70 years) attending Primary Healthcare centers. Main measurementsA compound index was calculated based on frequency, types, and duration of Intimate Partner Violence. Multivariable adjusted logistic regression models were used to identify the sociodemographic factors, which were independently associated with each Intimate Partner Violence category. ResultsThe prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence was 24.8%. For the physical only category, no differences were observed regarding education or employment status, and women with the highest income have less risk. For the psychological only category, no differences were observed according to the income level. The risk increases as the education level decreases, and the greatest frequency of only psychological Intimate Partner Violence was observed in women who were unemployed or students. For both the physical and psychological category of Intimate Partner Violence, a clear risk increase is observed as income and education levels decrease. Retired women showed the highest frequency of this violence category. ConclusionThe results show that Intimate Partner Violence affects women of all social strata, but the frequency and Intimate Partner Violence category will vary according to the socio-economic.

Factors Associated With Women's Reporting of Intimate Partner Violence in Spain.

In Spain, in 2013, the 20% of women who were murdered by their partner had reported him previously. We analyze the 2011 Spanish-Macrosurvey on Gender Violence to identify and analyze the prevalence of and the principal factors associated with reporting a situation of intimate partner violence (IPV) and the main reasons women cite for not filing such reports, or for subsequently deciding to withdraw their complaint. Overall, 72.8% of women exposed to IPV did not report their aggressor. The most frequent reasons for not reporting were not giving importance to the situation (33.9%), and fear and lack of trust in the reporting process (21.3%). The main reasons for withdrawing the complaint were cessation of the violence (20.0%), and fear and threats (18.2%). The probability of reporting increased among women with young children who were abused, prevalence ratio (95% confidence interval [CI]): 2.14 [1.54, 2.98], and those whose mother was abused, prevalence ratio (95% CI): 2.25 [1.42, 3.57]. Always focusing on the need to protect women who report abuse, it is necessary to promote the availability of and access to legal resources especially among women who use them less: women who do not have children and women who do not have previous family exposure to violence.

Mathematical Modeling of Hidden Intimate Partner Violence in Spain: A Quantitative and Qualitative Approach

The fact that women are abused by their male partner is something that happens worldwide in the 21st century. In numerous cases, abuse only becomes publicly known when a fatal event occurs and is beyond any possible remedy, that is, when men murder their female partner. Since 2003, 793 (September 4, 2015) women have been assassinated by their significant other or excouple in Spain. Only 7.2% of murdered women had reported their fear and previous intimate partner violence (IPV) to the police. Even when the number of female victims is comparable to the number of victims by terrorism, the Government has not assigned an equal amount of resources to diminish the magnitude of this hidden social problem. In this paper, a mathematical epidemiological model to forecast intimate partner violence in Spain is constructed. Both psychological and physical aggressor subpopulations are predicted and simulated. The model’s robustness versus uncertain parameters is studied by a sensitivity analysis.

Using realist evaluation to assess primary healthcare teams’ responses to intimate partner violence in Spain

ObjectiveFew evaluations have assessed the factors triggering an adequate health care response to intimate partner violence. This article aimed to: 1) describe a realist evaluation carried out in Spain to ascertain why, how and under what circumstances primary health care teams respond to intimate partner violence, and 2) discuss the strengths and challenges of its application. MethodsWe carried out a series of case studies in four steps. First, we developed an initial programme theory (PT1), based on interviews with managers. Second, we refined PT1 into PT2 by testing it in a primary healthcare team that was actively responding to violence. Third, we tested the refined PT2 by incorporating three other cases located in the same region. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected and thick descriptions were produced and analysed using a retroduction approach. Fourth, we analysed a total of 15 cases, and identified combinations of contextual factors and mechanisms that triggered an adequate response to violence by using qualitative comparative analysis. ResultsThere were several key mechanisms —the teams’ self-efficacy, perceived preparation, women-centred care—, and contextual factors —an enabling team environment and managerial style, the presence of motivated professionals, the use of the protocol and accumulated experience in primary health care— that should be considered to develop adequate primary health-care responses to violence. ConclusionThe full application of this realist evaluation was demanding, but also well suited to explore a complex intervention reflecting the situation in natural settings.

Mechanisms that Trigger a Good Health-Care Response to Intimate Partner Violence in Spain. Combining Realist Evaluation and Qualitative Comparative Analysis Approaches.

BackgroundHealth care professionals, especially those working in primary health-care services, can play a key role in preventing and responding to intimate partner violence. However, there are huge variations in the way health care professionals and primary health care teams respond to intimate partner violence. In this study we tested a previously developed programme theory on 15 primary health care center teams located in four different Spanish regions: Murcia, C Valenciana, Castilla-León and Cantabria. The aim was to identify the key combinations of contextual factors and mechanisms that trigger a good primary health care center team response to intimate partner violence.MethodsA multiple case-study design was used. Qualitative and quantitative information was collected from each of the 15 centers (cases). In order to handle the large amount of information without losing familiarity with each case, qualitative comparative analysis was undertaken. Conditions (context and mechanisms) and outcomes, were identified and assessed for each of the 15 cases, and solution formulae were calculated using qualitative comparative analysis software.ResultsThe emerging programme theory highlighted the importance of the combination of each team’s self-efficacy, perceived preparation and women-centredness in generating a good team response to intimate partner violence. The use of the protocol and accumulated experience in primary health care were the most relevant contextual/intervention conditions to trigger a good response. However in order to achieve this, they must be combined with other conditions, such as an enabling team climate, having a champion social worker and having staff with training in intimate partner violence.ConclusionsInterventions to improve primary health care teams’ response to intimate partner violence should focus on strengthening team’s self-efficacy, perceived preparation and the implementation of a woman-centred approach. The use of the protocol combined with a large working experience in primary health care, and other factors such as training, a good team climate, and having a champion social worker on the team, also played a key role. Measures to sustain such interventions and promote these contextual factors should be encouraged.

Mapping and exploring health systems' response to intimate partner violence in Spain.

BackgroundFor a comprehensive health sector response to intimate partner violence (IPV), interventions should target individual and health facility levels, along with the broader health systems level which includes issues of governance, financing, planning, service delivery, monitoring and evaluation, and demand generation. This study aims to map and explore the integration of IPV response in the Spanish national health system.MethodsInformation was collected on five key areas based on WHO recommendations: policy environment, protocols, training, monitoring and prevention. A systematic review of public documents was conducted to assess 39 indicators in each of Spain’s 17 regional health systems. In addition, we performed qualitative content analysis of 26 individual interviews with key informants responsible for coordinating the health sector response to IPV in Spain.ResultsIn 88% of the 17 autonomous regions, the laws concerning IPV included the health sector response, but the integration of IPV in regional health plans was just 41%. Despite the existence of a supportive national structure, responding to IPV still relies strongly on the will of health professionals. All seventeen regions had published comprehensive protocols to guide the health sector response to IPV, but participants recognized that responding to IPV was more complex than merely following the steps of a protocol. Published training plans existed in 43% of the regional health systems, but none had institutionalized IPV training in medical and nursing schools. Only 12% of regional health systems collected information on the quality of the IPV response, and there are many limitations to collecting information on IPV within health services, for example underreporting, fears about confidentiality, and underuse of data for monitoring purposes. Finally, preventive activities that were considered essential were not institutionalized anywhere.ConclusionsWithin the Spanish health system, differences exist in terms of achievements both between regions and between the areas assessed. Progress towards integration of IPV has been notable at the level of policy, less outstanding regarding health service delivery, and very limited in terms of preventive actions.