This study investigated the impact of working with domestic violence victims on domestic violence shelter workers. Recent research has shown that working with trauma victims may have a profound impact on the worker, including levels of intrusive and avoidant PTSD symptoms as well as distorted beliefs about the self and others. This was the first study to examine secondary traumatization in the domestic violence worker population. Results suggested that domestic violence workers are experiencing levels of secondary traumatization slightly higher than sexual assault counselors, a group used for comparison due to their similar job demands and client population. Though this study attempted to ameliorate symptom levels by providing feedback, and feedback with suggestions for improvement to two treatment groups, no significant effects were found post-treatment. Various reasons were offered for this lack of effect, including the lack of adequate sample size at follow-up. Overall, several predictors of secondary traumatization were confirmed, the most notable of which was social support. Individuals with high levels of social support tended to have less symptoms of secondary traumatization, and individuals with high levels of social avoidance tended to have more symptoms of secondary traumatization. For this sample, trauma history was not found to predict secondary traumatization symptoms. These findings were discussed in relation to the vicarious traumatization model of indirect trauma. Clinical implications and implications for future research were also offered. This study was supported in full by the Agency for Healthy Care Policy and Research Grant for Health Service Dissertation Award, number R03 HS10036-01. / Ph. D.

Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts in the subject of Clinical Psychology in the Department of Psychology (Faculty of Arts) at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2011. / Spousal abuse is a public health concern and is common in all races and ethnicities. It may take on various forms such as; physical beating, verbal/ emotional/ psychological abuse, sexual abuse, or financial abuse. Women often remain in abusive relationships for financial security, fear of further harm, and because of socials stigmatization. This study focuses on the psychological empowerment of female victims of spousal abuse through philophonetics. Philophonetics-counselling is a therapeutic intervention which appreciates the complexities of the human form. It is an approach that offers the possibilities of healing and experiencing the fullness of what life could be. Seven female victims of spousal abuse participated in the study and these participants reside in the Rustenburg area. A qualitative approach was utilized, with data being analysed applying hermeneutics. The results indicated the success and effectiveness of the philophonetics modality. Each participant disclosed and described significant shifts in their production of the imprints (IT) of abuse. Self help tools were given so as to ensure that participants could prevent further IT’s from entering their body, and thereby heal themselves. Findings in the current study show that the utilization of such a modality is effective in empowering the target population. It is therefore recommended that the process of empowerment through philophonetics be continuous.

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The purpose of this thesis was to survey and discuss how small Baptist church clergy address domestic violence (DV) with the goal of studying how clergy in small Baptist churches view domestic violence and how they address the problem of domestic violence within their congregation. The Baptist faith was selected since they form the largest portion of the Protestant faith in the United States. The sample consisted of clergy from small Baptist churches located within the geographic limits of Brevard County, Florida. Interviews were conducted with ten small Baptist church clergy. The interview questions were constructed to ascertain specific areas of information regarding personal beliefs, perceptions about domestic violence, understanding of issues, and to find out information regarding clergy qualifications, roles, and responsibilities in the area of domestic violence. After summarizing the content of the responses, several conclusions regarding how small Baptist church clergy addresses domestic violence can be made. Within this group of small Baptist clergy, scripture does not justify DV. The clergy are aware of the issue of DV but their training in addressing the details and extent of the problem is often dependent upon the time period they were trained and ordained. Older clergy or those with less recent training, still regard physical abuse as the main element of DV. Counseling within the church is the primary method most of the clergy use to address DV. At the same time, physical danger or injury is referred to law enforcement and other agencies. Referral to other agencies or resources is an essential element to their DV programs. However, most do not have a formal system to implement these actions. Given the lack of resources within the church and heavy workload demands on the clergy, the effect of most small Baptist church clergy is positive in the areas of education, observation, referral, and awareness of domestic violence.

Thesis advisor: Paul Cichello / Domestic violence affects women of all socioeconomic and educational backgrounds across the world. It violates fundamental human rights and also has significant economic costs including a loss of human capital formation. This study seeks to understand the impact of a mother's experience of domestic violence on her children's early childhood development and educational outcomes in Uganda. It uses data from the 2016 Uganda Demographic and Health Survey and employs a two-stage least squares instrumental variables approach. The instrument used is whether or not the woman's mother experienced domestic violence. Results are not precisely estimated but they suggest that experiencing domestic violence increases the incidence of low socioemotional development in women’s 3-to-5-year-old children while it decreases the incidence of low cognitive development. This suggests that living in a household with violence causes children to have worse social and emotional early childhood development while it improves their cognition and/or independence. Results from the educational models suggest that exposure to domestic violence increases a child’s likelihood of being enrolled in school as well as his overall years of educational attainment. Taken together, results suggest that children in homes with domestic violence might cope by becoming more independent. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2019. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: Economics.

This paper seeks to explore the way the print news media reported on issues related to domestic violence (DV) in the Greater Toronto/Hamilton Ontario area in the context of Covid-19 from March 2020 to March 2021. Specifically, I drew on three newspapers to include the Hamilton Spectator, the Toronto Star, and the Globe and Mail. This research is primarily concerned with the discourses that emerged about gender-based violence in the newsprint media during a time when people were required to stay in their homes and when access to community-based services that support women experiencing DV became increasing challenging. Using a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) that was grounded in a feminist theoretical framework, three themes emerged as particularly dominant. These included: a) the media’s use of “victim” and “survivor” discourses, b) women’s experiences of DV and access to resources, and c) public health discourses that centered on responses to DV in light of Covid-19. This paper concluded that reinforcement of dominant narratives about the socio political and gendered landscape in which DV is reported on via newsprint media sources, depict DV as an individual rather than structural issue that shifts the blame away from historical and current day social, economic, and political forces that create the conditions in which DV occurs. Importantly, the newsprint media promote a homogenous definition of ‘woman’ thus elevating dominant DV discourses that tend to centre the experiences of white, heterosexual women and that result in silencing the voices of gender diverse and racialized women. Consequently, my research suggests that there is an ongoing need to build on existing feminist literature to critically examine DV as a systemic issue that requires a response that is inclusive of the diversity of women who experience DV, the needs for services to support a diversity of women, and to do so in ways that move away from individual solutions toward shifts in practice and policy. / Thesis / Master of Social Work (MSW)

Domestic violence is a complex crime against humanity that has been socially constructed over time by a patriarchal system that has encouraged an imbalance of power relationships between men and women for centuries (Dupont & Sokoloff, 2005, p. 42-43). The objective of this thesis is to create further dialogue based on the pioneering work of Danns and Parsad’s (1989) research in exploring the role colonization plays in shaping domestic violence in the Caribbean. As a result, this research identified gaps in knowledge around women’s reluctance to report incidents of domestic violence, a tendency to rationalize men’s violence and at some level male violence is tolerated, as well how colonization altered the national identities and ethnicities of Caribbean people. The concepts presented throughout this thesis were informed through social constructionism, where certain ideologies have created psychological or ‘internal’ divisions around ethnicity, region, and gender (Brereton, 2010). Over time, Danns and Parsad (1989) argue that the implications of colonization have created issues of insecurities, frustration, and ego by means of social norms which emphasize a male machismo. Danns and Parsad (1989)’s study also refers to the impact of colonization as a root of domestic violence and how Caribbean history reproduces male dominance. As a result, violence against women and domestic violence is based on gender inequality and female subordination, which has transcended through colonization. Further, women’s vulnerability is reinforced by the lack of economic opportunity and the power of authorities to dismiss or minimize women’s issues (p. 23). This has led me to think about the history of Trinidad and Tobago, domestic violence, and how this has impacted on women. In addition, I asked if such policies and legislation as the Domestic Violence Act (1991) support organizations in their role to help and assist women from violence then why is violence against women not decreasing in Trinidad and Tobago? To explore these ideas and the impact domestic violence has had on Caribbean women, I engaged in a qualitative research study over a six-week period on the islands of Trinidad and Tobago. This research focused on two major questions: (a) what are some of the contributing factors that sustain domestic violence in Trinidad and Tobago and (b) how do organizations respond to the demands of women enduring domestic violence. The research engaged a feminist and a critical theoretical approach, eliciting stories from 10 women. From these stories, a number of themes emerged which included: 1) ‘visible’ yet ‘invisible’; 2) ‘light skin’/’dark skin’; 3) ‘private matters’; 4) re-victimization of women by the system; and 5) an overarching theme of ‘power’ and ‘control’. As a result, women shared that domestic violence and the history of colonization play a role in keeping women in subordinate positions in three disadvantaged dimensions: reproductive health, empowerment, and the labour market. Yet, this research also speaks to potential ways in which men and women can find common ground through the deconstruction of the history and colonial legacy of violence (Cruz et al., 2011; Murdoch, 2009). The research also points to ways for the unequal distribution of power to be minimized in both the public and private spheres, and ways to understand the impact of domestic violence and the possibility of ending it in the future. / Thesis / Master of Social Work (MSW)

The primary goal of the courts in deciding which parent (if any) should be awarded custody of the child is complicated by the presence of domestic violence. Children are direct and indirect victims of domestic violence. As well as the possibility of being physically injured, they are psychologically impacted by the trauma of witnessing violence in the household and may continue a cycle of violence into adulthood. States vary on the weight that is given to domestic violence as a factor in custody decisions. Judges have discretion in the options available to them in making custody determinations. Judges need to be educated on the dynamics of domestic violence to create a more informed judiciary. This paper examines the current law in Florida and gives recommendations for improvements in the way Florida handles custody of children

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