Victim Support Research Articles

“They feel like it’s all based around the offender”: Professionals explore how victim participation in family group conferences can be enhanced

INTRODUCTION: The Family Group Conference (FGC) is one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most innovative features to emerge in the Oranga Tamariki Act (1989). It was designed to address the harm caused by youth offending, as well as set the scene for reconciliation to allow victims to heal. However, victim participation at such conferences remains low.METHODS: This study focused on a 6-month pilot project in 2019 between the agencies of New Zealand Police, Oranga Tamariki and Victim Support, that aimed to increase victim participation at FGCs within the Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) area. Rates of victim participation were tracked and six professionals were interviewed for their observations on the pilot.FINDINGS: Victim participation in FGCs increased during the project and interviewees identified that there had been more collaborative efforts between the professionals involved. Thematic analysis highlighted issues with 1) Agency processes and systems (with more training and resources needed, and more streamlined processes between the three agencies called for); 2) Information (youth justice information and cases were “too complicated,” and tended to be offender-focused, not necessarily understanding victim’s perspectives nor getting feedback from them); and 3) Timing (improved processes were needed around timely police referrals and there were effects of timeframes overall on victim participation).CONCLUSIONS: Participants recommended building on this exploratory pilot to increase and maintain better outcomes. The importance of victims being well-prepared for FGCs, feeling well-supported in making an in-person submission, in culturally appropriate ways, needs timely collaboration between well-trained and well-resourced professionals from the agencies involved.

Islamic Psycho-Spiritual Support Model for Disaster Victims

Religiosity and spiritual experiences are primarily associated with better physical and mental health, less need for health services, faster recovery from illness, and increased longevity. Unfortunately, in any disasters or calamities, psycho-spiritual consequences are given less emphasis. In fact, to date, there has been no specific and comprehensive religious-based model being introduced to the victims in minimizing the risks of psycho-spiritual impacts. Therefore, the objective of this study is to describe a proposed model of psycho-spiritual support for disaster victims based on the Islamic principles of maqasid shariah. Keywords: Islamic; psycho-spiritual; model; disaster eISSN: 2398-4287 © 2021. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BYNC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v6iSI5.2932

Why Report? Sex Workers who Use NUM Opt out of Sharing Victimisation with Police.

BackgroundNational Ugly Mugs (NUM) is a UK-wide violence prevention and victim support charity that provides a mechanism for sex workers to share safety information and obtain support for harms that they may experience during the course of their work. Over the past several years, NUM has witnessed a decline in sex workers willing to access police as part of their recovery journeys after experiencing victimisation. In 2012, 28% of those reporting to NUM chose to engage with the legal system; in 2020, this was down to 7.7% amongst off-street independent workers. Statistics for 2021 indicate a continuation of this downward trend. Furthermore, anonymous consent to share information with police also declined from 95% in 2012 to 69% in 2020.MethodsNUM conducted a survey of 88 sex working members in 2020. This information combined with our data on victimisation provides insights of the factors that deter sex workers from involving police as part of their justice-seeking efforts.ResultsSurvey results reveal that sex workers feel alienated and untrusting of police and courts.ConclusionsThe implications of sex workers not sharing information about dangerous individuals with police and choosing not to participate in court processes signal significant flaws in our legal system regarding safe and inequitable access and pose dangers for all of us.

Reform Measures on Protection and Support for Victims of Disaster

국가의 국민보호라는 이념적 가치를 담보하기 위해서는 국민의 생명·신체·재산에 대한다양한 형태의 위협을 예방하고, 이미 발생한 피해를 복구하기 위한 사전적·사후적 조치의법제화가 필요하다. 우리 헌법은 범죄피해자의 구조청구권 등 범죄피해를 전제로 한 규정과함께, 국민의 인간다운 생활을 할 권리 및 국가의 재해예방과 국민보호를 위한 노력의무를 규정함으로써 재난·재해피해로부터의 국민보호 또한 국가의 책무 중 하나로 규정하고 있다. 재난으로 인한 피해는 사회적·개인적 차원에서 큰 영향을 미치게 되는데, 재난에 대한기존의 대응체계는 주로 재난 현장의 인명구조, 파괴된 시설의 복구 등 외형적 회복을 중심으로 꾸려져 왔고, 진정한 의미에서 피해자가 재난 이전의 상태로 돌아가는 이른바 ‘회복적재난대응’을 기대하기는 어려운 것이 현실이었다. 그러나 재난의 성공적 극복을 위해서는 사회적·물질적 인프라의 회복 못지않게 재난피해자의 개인적·정신적 회복이 중요하다고 할것이며, 재난피해자의 회복은 물질적·경제적 지원을 넘어 피해자의 정서적 회복을 추구하는 방향으로 이루어져야 할 것이다. 이러한 문제의식에서 이 연구는 재난의 극복 과정에서 ‘피해자중심적 재난대응’의 이념이입법적으로 어떻게 구현되어야 하는지를 연구의 목적으로 설정하고, 이를 위해 현행법상 다양한 재난 관련 입법을 재난피해지원의 관점에서 분석·검토한 후, 이를 토대로 향후 재난피해지원 관련 법률의 입법적 개선방안을 제시하고자 하였다.

Effects of Crime Victim Support on the Psychological Recovery of Violent Crime Victims

이 연구는 범죄피해자 지원에 관한 국내의 논의를 확장하여, 범죄피해자에 대한 지원 유형과 특성이 폭력범죄 피해자의 심리적 회복에 어떠한 영향을 미치는지를 실증적으로 검증해보고자 한다. 보다 구체적으로, 이 논문에서는 범죄피해자 지원의 유형을 경제적 지원과 사건정보 제공, 상담서비스 제공으로 구분하였고, 범죄피해자 지원 특성으로는 지원에의 접근성과지원 신속성을 살펴보았다. 분석을 위하여 한국형사·법무정책연구원에서 수행한 ｢범죄피해자 생활실태 및 사회적 지원현황 조사, 2014: 범죄피해자｣자료를 활용하였으며, 해당 자료에서 폭력범죄 피해자 274명을 연구 대상으로 하여 분석을 수행하였다. 분석 결과, 범죄피해자지원 유형과 특성 중 경제적 지원이 폭력범죄 피해자의 심리적 회복에 정적(+) 영향을 미치는것으로 나타났다. 이러한 결과를 바탕으로 연구의 함의와 제한점이 논의되었다.

FGM and Restorative Justice-A Challenge for Developing Countries and for Refugee Women.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) has been identified as one of the most serious human rights violations women are exposed to in many countries, in spite of national and international efforts. The actual implementation of preventive strategies and support of victims faces a number of challenges that can only be addressed by an interdisciplinary approach integrating public health and legal considerations. FGM in the context of women as refugees who left their country to escape FGM has rarely been covered in this context. This article summarizes the most important international standards and initiatives against FGM, highlights the medical, legal, and psychological factors identified so far, and explores the interdisciplinary considerations in changing a country and society to permit safe return of those escaping FGM to third countries and support public health in the country.

An Observational Analysis of ‘Me Too’ Narratives from YouTube

The ‘me too’ movement originated to help survivors of sexual violence by providing resources and building a community of advocates to exemplify the magnitude of sexual violence victimization. This movement gained momentum via Twitter due to the viral hashtag—#metoo. YouTube is often used as a means of expression in younger generations, thus sexual violence survivors began using the platform as a way to disseminate ‘me too’ narratives. Therefore, this study aimed to examine how sexual violence narratives resulting from the ‘me too’ movement are being told on YouTube and understand the components of the narratives related to self-blaming mindsets. Based on predetermined search criteria, researchers identified and screened YouTube videos of people sharing ‘me too’ narratives, and developed themes and codes (e.g., type of violence, perpetrator characteristics). Descriptive statistics and a logistic regression were conducted using demographic, experience, and attitudinal data to predict self-blaming mindsets. Sixty-two YouTube videos were included, consisting of 96 individual ‘me too’ stories. The sample was mostly female, and perpetrators were predominately strangers. The model explained 19.3% of the variance in self-blaming attitudes. Odds of self-blaming rose 4.589 times for those who experienced sexual harassment, and 6.109 times for those who experienced rape. If the perpetrator was not mentioned in the video, odds of self-blaming dropped by 89.4%. This study suggests self-blaming beliefs are prominent among victims, even when they have the space to share their story. Overall, our findings support the continued need for further education and support for victims.

What you say and what I hear-Investigating differences in the perception of the severity of psychological and physical violence in intimate partner relationships.

The correct communication of the severity of violence is essential in the context of legal trials, custody cases, support of victims, etc., for providing fair treatment. A narrator that communicates their experiences of interpersonal violence may rate the seriousness of the incident differently than a rater reading the narrator's text, suggesting that there exist perceptual differences (PD) in severity ratings between the narrator and the rater. We propose that these perceptual differences may depend on whether the narrative is based on physical or psychological violence, and on gender differences. Physical violence may be evaluated as more serious by the receiver of the narrative than by the narrator (Calibration PD), whereas the seriousness of psychological violence may be difficult to convey, leading to a discrepancy in the seriousness ratings between the narrator and the rater (Accuracy PD). In addition, gender stereotypes may influence the seriousness rating (Gender PD), resulting in violence against women being perceived as more serious than the same violence against men. These perceptual differences were investigated in 3 phases using a new experimental procedure. In Phase 1, 113 narrators provided descriptions and seriousness ratings of self-experienced physical and psychological violence in relationships. In Phase 2, 340 independent raters rated the seriousness of 10 randomly selected narrations from Phase 1. In Phase 3, the genders in the narrations were changed to the opposite gender, and seriousness ratings were collected from 340 different raters. Our results confirmed the hypothesized perceptual differences. Violence to male victims was considerably more likely to be seen as severe when the raters were misled to believe the victim was a woman. We propose that these data provide practical guidelines for how to deal with misinformation in the communication of violence. The data also show that mean values and the confidence of such severity ratings need to be adjusted for several factors, such as whether it is self-experienced or communicated, the type of violence, and the gender of the victims and raters.

Validation of the German Version of the Second Victim Experience and Support Tool-Revised.

IntroductionThe second victim phenomenon that occurs after critical events poses a serious factor for patient and workplace safety. These experiences can be evaluated using the Second Victim Experience and Support Tool (SVEST), originally in English, or the translated and validated Korean or Chinese versions. In 2020, a revised version was published (SVESTR) with the addition of resilience items. The aim of this study is the validation of the German version, the G-SVESTR, in a multiprofessional setting.MethodsThe G-SVESTR questionnaire was designed according to World Health Organization recommendations. This entails translation, test for face validity, back translation, pretest, expert panel evaluation, and a test in a large population for validity and reliability. We provided an anonymous online questionnaire to physicians, nurses, paramedics, medical assistants, and physician assistants to test our developed tool. Statistics were accomplished using XL-Stats.ResultsAltogether, 72% (306 of 428) of the participants completed the survey. The mean time for completion was 9.4 minutes. Physician assistants and medical assistants were significantly younger than other respondents. The analysis revealed satisfactory reliability (Cronbach α = 0.844). A principal component analysis showed 11 factors with eigenvalues greater than 1. Factor loading on distinct dimensions was satisfactory with one exception, the absenteeism item (item 31), which showed cross-loadings and poor factor loading on the absenteeism dimension. The results of the G-SVESTR revealed only some differences between the professional subgroups.ConclusionThe G-SVESTR is a valid and reliable testing instrument for the evaluation of second victim experiences in different medical professions.

Second Victim Experience and Perception Discordance of the Colonoscopic Perforation.

Perforation is the most serious adverse event of colonoscopy, but rarely considered from the view of colonoscopists' second victim experience and perception discordance between colonoscopists and patients. We aimed to evaluate colonoscopists' second victim experience and the perception discordance between colonoscopists and patients for the colonoscopic perforation. A survey for colonoscopic perforation was performed for the colonoscopists and outpatients who visited the university hospital between February 1, 2020, and April 30, 2020. The questionnaire included questions regarding colonoscopists' satisfaction for the intervention strategies offered to patients and patient-colonoscopist perception on colonoscopic perforation. A modified Korean version of the "Second Victim Experience and Support Tool (K-SVEST)" was used to assess the second victim experiences and supportive resources for the colonoscopists. Survey results from 160 colonoscopists and 165 patients were analyzed. The colonoscopists' satisfaction scores were higher for strategies related to sufficient explanation, empathy, courteous listening, and monetary compensation. The scores of the K-SVEST for the second victim experience were highest in psychological distress, followed by loss of professional self-efficacy, colleague support, physical distress, non-work-related support, institutional support, and turnover intentions/absenteeism. Significant patient-colonoscopist discordance was noted for the same colonoscopic perforation scenario on the judgment of medical error, health professionals' apology, monetary compensation, and criminal penalties for the colonoscopists. Colonoscopists can suffer emotionally and physically from the second victim experience after colonoscopic perforation. In addition, the significant patient-colonoscopist discordance should be considered to make a better communication for the colonoscopic perforation.

Offender-Centric Policing in Cases of Rape

The article explores the idea of ‘offender-centric’ policing in cases of rape, with its focus on suspect and offender admissions and behaviours. It features discussion of 11 cases, illustrating offender-centric pathways to charge or conviction, the challenges facing complainants, suspects and police officers, along with missed opportunities to focus on a suspect’s behaviour. The importance of victim care and support is discussed, and it is argued that victim care should accompany an offender-centric approach to rape investigation. It is also argued that there are potential dangers with offender-centric tactics, specifically, that without due care it may become a self-confirming investigative tool influenced by confirmation bias which may lead to flawed decision-making. The article concludes by arguing that offender-centric policing has benefits in those cases with suspects who engage in predatory behaviour, have a history of previously undisclosed sexual offending and domestic violence and other problematic behaviours. It also has value in focusing the attention of investigators on what steps were taken by a suspect to ascertain the complainant’s consent. While the offender-centric approach cannot address all investigative challenges in rape cases, it is a useful addition to existing strategies.

Correlations of impulsivity and aggressive behaviours among adolescents in Shanghai, China using bioecological model: cross-sectional data from Global Early Adolescent Study

ObjectiveTo examine the correlations between impulsivity and aggressive behaviours among Chinese adolescents.DesignA school-based cross-sectional study.SettingThree primary middle schools located in less developed communities of Shanghai.Participants1524 adolescents aged 11–16 years.MeasuresThe impulsivity...

The Prevalence of Second Victim Syndrome and Emotional Distress in Pediatric Intensive Care Providers.

Pediatric critical care providers are at higher risk of second victim syndrome (SVS) and emotional distress after a poor patient outcome, unanticipated adverse event, medical error, or patient-related injury. We sought to determine the prevalence of SVS within our intensive care units (ICUs) and evaluate the adequacy of current institutional peer support. A validated survey tool, the second victim experience and support tool was sent electronically to all ICU providers in our pediatric health care system. Of 950 recipients, there were 266 respondents (28%). Sixty-one per cent of respondents were nurses; 19% were attending physicians, advanced practice providers, and fellows; 88% were females; 42% were aged 25 to 34 years; and 43% had worked in the ICU for 0 to 5 years. The most common emotion experienced was psychological distress (42%) and one-third of respondents questioned their self-efficacy as a provider after a second victim event. Support from colleagues, supervisors, and the institution was perceived as low. Support from a respected peer was the most desired type of support by 81% of respondents. Emotional distress and SVS are commonly found among pediatric ICU providers and the level of support is perceived as inadequate. Developing and deploying a peer support program are crucial to staff's well-being and resilience in the high-stress ICU environment.

Revictimization Patterns Among Unhoused Youth.

Young people experiencing houselessness are at high risk for revictimization. As has been identified in other populations, symptoms of psychological distress may be an indirect pathway by which initial victimization may increase risk for later revictimization among youth experiencing houselessness. The current study used cross-sectional mediation analyses to examine the hypothesis that there would be an indirect effect of interpersonal victimization that occurred before young people left home on subsequent victimization while experiencing houselessness, through posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression symptoms. Youth (N = 245) residing in a shelter provided responses during an in-person interview screening prior to participating in a larger clinical study. Relevant to the current study, youth reported victimization experiences before and after leaving home (Childhood Trauma and Juvenile Victimization Questionnaires, respectively), and PTSD and depression symptoms on the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Results replicated and extended previous findings determining high rates of victimization among houseless young people both before (92%) and after (75%) leaving home. Further, exposure to more types of childhood victimization significantly predicted likelihood of experiencing more types of victimization after leaving home. Significant indirect effects of childhood victimization risk on revictimization after leaving home were found, occurring through both PTSD and depression symptoms. Results are discussed in terms of existing theories of revictimization, with particular emphasis on the state-dependence theory of victimization. These findings have implications for intervention with young people experiencing houselessness, particularly with regard to addressing the consequences of childhood victimization and trauma-informed support systems.

Double, triple or quadruple hits? Exploring the impact of cybercrime on victims in the Netherlands

This article explores the impact of online crime victimisation. A literature review and 41 interviews – 19 with victims and 22 with experts – were carried out to gain insight into this. The interviews show that most impacts of online offences correspond to the impacts of traditional offline offences. There are also differences with offline crime victimisation. Several forms of impact seem to be specific to victims of online crime: the substantial scale and visibility of victimhood, victimisation that does not stop in time, the interwovenness of online and offline, and victim blaming. Victims suffer from double, triple or even quadruple hits; it is the accumulation of different types of impact, enforced by the limitlessness in time and space, which makes online crime victimisation so extremely invasive. Furthermore, the characteristics of online crime victimisation greatly complicate the fight against and prevention of online crime. Finally, the high prevalence of cybercrime victimisation combined with the severe impact of these crimes seems contradictory with public opinion – and associated moral judgments – on victims. Further research into the dominant public discourse on victimisation and how this affects the functioning of the police and victim support would be valuable.

Gender-Stratified Analysis of Haitian Perceptions Related to Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Perpetrated by UN Peacekeepers during MINUSTAH

Feminist scholarship has analyzed the gendered dynamics of national- and international-level risk factors for peacekeeper-perpetrated sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA); however, the gendered dynamics within the host country have not been adequately considered. Using the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) as a case study, this research analyzes gender differences within community-level perceptions of SEA. Using SenseMaker® as a data collection tool, cross-sectional qualitative and quantitative data were collected by Haitian research assistants over an 8-week period in 2017. Participants first shared a narrative in relation to MINUSTAH and then self-interpreted their narratives by noting their perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs on a variety of questions. The self-coded perceptions were analyzed quantitatively to determine patterns, and this was complemented with a qualitative analysis of the narratives. Women/girls were more likely to perceive the sexual interactions as “relationships” compared to Haitian men/boys. Furthermore, women/girls were more likely to perceive the peacekeeper as “supportive”, whereas men/boys conceptualized the peacekeeper as “authoritative”. SEA-related policies/programs, such as the UN Trust Fund in Support for Victims of SEA, should engage with local Haitian actors and consider such nuanced and gendered perceptions to maximize community trust and program efficacy.

Coping strategies in health care providers as second victims: A systematic review.

To analyze personal and organizational strategies described in the literature for dealing with the second victim phenomenon among healthcare providers. The second victim phenomenon involves many associated signs and symptoms, which can be physical, psychological, emotional, or behavioral. Personal and organizational strategies have been developed to deal with this phenomenon. A systematic review was carried out in PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Scopus, PsycINFO, Science Direct, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature databases, searching for evidence published between 2010 and 2019 in Spanish, English, German, and Portuguese. Seven hundred and eighty-three articles were identified. After eliminating duplicates, applying inclusion and exclusion criteria and critical analysis tools of the Joanna Briggs Institute, 16 research articles were included: 10 quantitative studies (design: descriptive, correlational, systematic, or integrative review) and six qualitative studies (descriptive, systematic review). There are several different personal and organizational strategies for dealing with the second victim phenomenon. Among these, peer support and learning from adverse events are highly valued. In personal strategies stands out the internal analysis of the adverse event that the professional performs to deal with the generated negative feelings. In organizational strategies, the most valued are second victim support programs with rapid response teams and made up of peers. The main organizational coping strategies for tackling this phenomenon are online programs in countries such as the United States, Spain, and other European countries. Formal evaluation of these programs and research is required in Latin America. Adequately coping with the second victim phenomenon allows health professionals and organizations to learn from adverse events. Furthermore, by supporting health professionals who suffer from the second victim phenomenon, the organization takes care of its most valuable resource, its human capital. This contributes toward building a culture of healthcare quality in organizations, which will reduce adverse events in the future.

Cross-cultural adaptation to the Spanish context and evaluation of the content validity of the Second Victim Experience and Support Tool (SVEST-E) questionnaire

ObjectivesTo carry out a cross-cultural adaptation of the Second Victim Experience and Support Tool (SVEST) questionnaire to the Spanish context, and to evaluate its content validity (CVI). MethodsThe translation and cultural adaptation of a measuring instrument by means of translation and back translation conducted through the participation of 20 health professionals. The content validation was carried out through the participation of 10 experts. The content validity of each item (CVI-I), the content validity index per expert (CVI-E) and the content validity total (CVI-T) were calculated for the questionnaire. Corrections were carried out for probable random agreement and the statistical calculation Kappa (K*) modified for each item of the instrument. ResultsThe final instrument obtained (SVEST-E) has a CVI-Total of 0.87 and consists of 36 total items, subdivided into 7 dimensions, 2 outcome variables and a support option section maintaining the same structure as the original questionnaire. Thirty items had a CVI-I with values over ≥°0.79. ConclusionsThe SVEST-E questionnaire is an equivalent of the original and is an instrument that could help to evaluate the second victim experiences of healthcare professionals in our country. It is an instrument with adequate content validity to measure the experience of second victims in health professionals in our country.

Beyond Funds Raised: How Public Displays of Compassion Manifest in Crowdfunding Campaigns

Crowdfunding enables the organizing of support for victims of a tragedy from a wide range of sources. While this support can be financial and non-financial, we know relatively little about the non-...

The Impact of Covid-19 on the Identification of Victims of Modern Slavery and their Access to Support Services in Australia

This article examines how COVID-19 impacted the identification and access to support of modern slavery victims in Australia during 2020. It is the first comprehensive analysis of the pandemic’s impact on modern slavery victimisation in Australia. The key finding of the research is that COVID-19 exacerbated existing barriers to identifying victims of modern slavery in Australia and referring them to government funded support, related to the linkage of the provision of support with criminal justice processes. The reliance on policing capacity to identify and refer victims meant that when police and other government resources were diverted into the large-scale COVID-19 emergency response, there was less capacity for police to undertake this vital function, resulting in the under-identification and referral to support of victims of modern slavery.