The killing of parents and stepparents by biological and stepchildren is a rare event. Incidents involving multiple parricide victims and/or multiple parricide offenders are an even rarer occurrence. The majority of studies on parricide involve a single victim and single offender. Using the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), this study identified 603 single-victim, single-offender incidents, 22 single-victim, multiple-offender incidents, 60 single-offender double parricide incidents, 17 multiple-offender double parricide incidents, and 15 familicide incidents over the 20 year period 1990 to 2010. Univariate and bivariate analyses examined parricidal incidents involving single or multiple offenders and single or multiple victims with the aim of investigating juvenile and adult involvement in double parricide and familicide. Frequencies reported include victim, offender, and incident characteristics for all types of parricide incidents. Consistent with prior research on single-victim, single-offender parricide, the results indicated that the typical parricide offender was a white male approximately 30 years of age. A firearm predominated as the weapon of choice for all parricide incidents; however, when a biological mother was one of the victims, the offender(s) used more diverse methods. When multiple offenders were involved in double parricides, however, the offenders tended to be younger and were more likely to include a female accomplice. Only one case of familicide involved a female offender, and none of the familicide incidents involved multiple offenders. Study limitations and implications for prevention are also discussed.

Sibling violence is a pervasive, yet poorly understood and substantially underreported phenomenon. Currently recognized as the most common form of intra-familial abuse, various estimates suggest that 30 percent or more of children in the general population experience severe acts of violence inflicted by a sibling each year. Given that many young people in the child welfare system experience the family conditions associated with abusive sibling violence, recent publications have implored child welfare to embrace the notion that it is a form of child maltreatment. Practitioners and policymakers have yet to reach agreement on what constitutes physical or emotional abuse between siblings, and the perspectives of young people with lived experience of abuse are largely absent from research and scholarship. I designed the study, grounded in Critical Realism, to increase understanding of how sibling violence manifests in child welfare, contribute to theory development, and identify actions to protect children from harm. Based on in-depth interviews with eight foster care alumni, I offer a refined definition of sibling violence and four family conditions associated with sibling violence in child welfare. The findings also supported a systems-based theory reflecting four stable family member roles. My recommendations seek to leverage the infrastructure of the child welfare system while taking into consideration the limitations imposed by neoliberal social and economic policy.

In this research the prevalence, experiences and nature of child-to-mother violence from a high-risk geographical area were investigated. The aims of the study were to identify these factors within contemporary communities and develop validated recommendations for interventions to support affected mothers, children and families. This form of family pathology has been positioned within juvenile justice and medical models rather than family violence literature. It appears to be poorly understood, underreported and hidden from public view. Thus, it was difficult for some affected women to recognise what they were experiencing as abuse. In the literature, mothers were reported as the primary targets of violence and sons the predominant perpetrators. Incidence rates varied widely from samples collected 30 to 40 years ago. Other anomalies in the literature revealed power in mother-child relationships to be unclear, and the gender of targets of violence and perpetrators was not made explicit in the literature. In this study a mixed method design was used over four distinct phases: (1) development and validation of an instrument; (2) conducting a pilot study; and (3) population study; and (4) workshop with service providers. Psychometric tests on the instrument indicated a 0.97 correlation coefficient on a test re-test, and Cronbach’s alpha achieved correlation coefficient of 0.91 for the 24 item scale and 0.99 correlation coefficient for the 17 item scale. Results signify prevalence of child-to-mother violence in 50.9% [n = 1024] of the households surveyed. Key findings indicate 50.3% [n=521] of women were afraid in their family of origin, and 39.2% [n=521] of children had been witness to violence in the home previously. In addition, younger mothers experienced greater child-to-mother violence; as women’s level of education increased, their experience of child-to-mother violence decreased; single mothers experienced greater child-to-mother violence; and were more likely to live in households with access to casual employment or were unemployed. Perpetrators were predominantly sons, 58.7% [n = 521]. Half of the women who experienced child-to-mother violence spoke to someone; and experiences for women with a partner present in the home were divided between supportive and unsupportive behaviour from the partner. The most popular suggestions for support were affordable long-term counselling for youth and family, parent workshops, information and education, non-judgemental advocacy for mothers and their families, support groups for mothers, families and youth and peer mentorship programs. Women made salient their experiences related to child-to-mother violence which revealed the seriousness and complexity of this issue for women. As a result five key themes were developed: (1) Living in the red zone: The experience of child-to-mother violence, this theme referred to women’s sense of danger and difficulty in rasing an abusive child; (2) The damage is done: The breakdown of relationships, which described the breakdown and discord within relationships after experiencing child-to-mother violence; (3) Order out of chaos: Successful transition back into the family; identified the re-integration of relationships between the child/ren and mother; (4) Falling through the cracks: Barriers to service provision, drew attention to the difficulties women faced trying to access appropriate services; and, (5) Cry for help: Where to from here?, focused on suggestions by the mothers for support services. A workshop consultation with service providers revealed a number of broad recommendations: (1) Zero tolerance for violence, young people taking responsibility for violence; (2) Awareness of child-to-mother violence campaign; (3) Information and education packages; (4) Case management approach for families utilising services; (5) Co-operation between service providers; (6) 24 hour telephone service for advice; (7) Women centred support groups and group interventions; (8) Respite care; (9) Specialised counselling services; and (10) Mentoring programs. This study supported the view that power is a complex issue, particularly for women experiencing child-to-mother violence. Women developed feelings of ambiguity for their abusive child owing to resentment that built up for the child targeting them with abuse at the same time sympathising with the child for their particular circumstances. Providing support for women must be a priority. Key suggestions for support include: raising awareness through information and education packages, emergency phone support, building relationships, women centred support groups and peer mentoring. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Violence within marital dyads is a problem with deep historic roots in American culture. Although the family is idealized as a safe and loving haven from a cruel world, this ideal is often not achieved by many couples. This study develops an integrated theoretical perspective that combines feminist theory and social exchange theory to examine levels of domestic conflict. A regression model was constructed to test the hypothesis that identification with fundamentalist Protestant religious and moral beliefs and the economic dependence of women were factors contributing to high levels of violent conflict within marital dyads. The study analyzed data gathered from a probability sample of 3421 married couples. The dependent variable, marital conflict, was operationalized using a modified version of the Conflict Tactics Scale (Straus, 1979). This variable was regressed on the independent variables: Protestant fundamentalist religiosity, religious affiliation, Protestant moral/family values, wives' economic dependency and the economic, social and demographic variables cited in the literature for their relationship to dyadic violence. The study found that identification with a fundamentalist Protestant religious discourse was not significantly related to increased levels of dyadic violence. Agreement with the basic moral/family values of the fundamentalist Protestant discourse were significantly related to lower levels of conflict. Women's economic dependency was also significantly related to lower levels of conflict. These data support the conclusion that women who identify with conservative values and acquiesce to the male power structure by choosing a more traditional life-course of economic dependency are less likely to be involved in high conflict or violent marriages. / Graduation date: 1992

Thesis (M.Ed.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2001. / Bibliography: leaves 65-70.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 157-178). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Thesis (M.A. (Play therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2002. Graduate Programme in Psychology. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-116). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ71601.

This study provided an in-depth and immersive field study of the process of protective order hearings. The goal of this study was to examine the communication taking place in the courtroom on Protective Order (PO) day to provide a foundation for uncovering discourse dynamics that affect the experiences of applicants and respondents, as well as the role that legal decision makers play in the process of issuing protective orders for cases of family violence. There are numerous ways in which communication defines and affects the protective order process in the courtroom on PO Day. For the purpose of this study, the focus consisted of communication surrounding 1.) The institutionalized process (role of gatekeepers, access to representation by respondents, and the physical structure/environment of the courtroom---open, public, and fast-paced nature of the docket process), and 2.) Communication as the primary means of evidence (how communication constitutes credibility and the fact that applicants must face their alleged batterer in order to obtain an order of protection). This study focused on viewing institutional discourse in protective order hearings that extends beyond the official legal record in order to broaden our understanding of legal behavior, family violence, and discursive characteristics of the Protective Order courtroom culture. The analysis consisted of macro (immersive ethnographic fieldwork and detailed observations) and micro approaches (Action-Implicative Discourse Analysis). The findings uncovered multiple layers of communication challenges that manifested themselves in all steps of the PO process. Environmental communication challenges were present from the moment applicants initiated the application process and continued through their respective hearings. The physical space presented challenges to access and representation, and the gatekeepers provided differing (and sometimes unequal) levels of support for the applicants and respondents. The functional communication challenges stemmed from the constraints of the legal language to meet the necessary burden of proof for cases of family violence. Implications for future research by communication scholars, as well as for practitioners who work with victims and alleged batterers of family violence, are discussed. / text

Introduction: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a prevalent public health problem that brings many adverse outcomes to individuals and societies. Understanding, preventing, and reducing IPV is important to minimize the consequences. Instead of studying IPV as a single phenomenon, Johnson’s typology of domestic violence suggests that there are four types of IPV which have differential effects on survivors’ health. Violence and coercive control used by individuals in the relationship are the key components to categorizing the types of IPV. Hence before applying this categorization to the Chinese context, it is first essential to examine the coercive control. Aims: This study aimed (a) to examine pattern of coercive control in Chinese intimate relationships, (b) to establish a cut-off score on the Chinese version of the Revised Controlling Behaviors Scale (C-CBS-R) to differentiate the use of coercive control, and (c) to identify Intimate Terrorism (IT) and Situational Couple Violence (SCV) in Johnson’s typology and their impact on the mental health of women survivors. Methods: A cross-sectional, mixed-methods design study was conducted. Chinese women aged 18 or above who reported being physically abused by an intimate partner in the past 12 months were recruited from shelter and community settings. The study consisted of three parts: (a) semi-structured, in-depth individual interviews to examine the coercive control used in Chinese intimate relationships, (b) qualitative and quantitative data to establish a cut-off score on C-CBS-R, and (c) a survey using a researcher-administered questionnaire to categorize types of IPV and examine their mental health effects. A set of questionnaires was used to elicit participants’ experiences of IPV, frequency of physical violence used, controlling behaviors, depressive symptoms, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and demographic characteristics. Results: In Part 1 of the study, a pattern of coercive control was identified in the abusive intimate relationships from the interviews of 20 physically abused women. Then a cut-off score of C-CBS-R was identified as greater than 1.145 to differentiate control with and without a pattern in Part 2 of the study. Finally, a total of 334 physically abused women were recruited with 133 (40%) being identified as IT survivors while 137 (41%) were SCV survivors. IT women survivors were found to experience a significantly higher frequency of physical violence, physical injuries, and use of medical services than SCV survivors. The age difference between the woman and her partner, expressed fear of her partner, experience of financial hardship, and sexual coercion by an intimate partner in the previous year were significantly associated with the occurrence of IT. Using linear regression model analysis, IT women survivors were found to report more severe depressive and PTSD symptoms than SCV survivors with and without confounding by other factors. Conclusion: This study developed a cut-off score on C-CBS-R to differentiate the use of control and identified IT and SCV based on the use of control and violence by individuals according to Johnson’s typology. IT women survivors were found to experience more severe mental health impacts than SCV survivors, showing the differential effect on women survivors’ health. / published_or_final_version / Nursing Studies / Master / Master of Philosophy