Domestic violence (DV) affects communities across a variety of nations and cultures, at significant physical, psychological, and economic costs to families. In the United States Latino families affected by DV often face unique challenges influenced by changing ecologies and personal as well as political histories. Peer-led workshops are one way for communities to disseminate information about social issues like DV in a culturally relevant manner, and they have the potential to promote capacity for addressing DV within communities. The impact of peer-led DV was examined using an embedded mixed-method design, where participant feedback collected throughout the study served to enhance the nonequivalent control group survey portion of the study. It was hypothesized that sense of community would moderate the relationship between workshop participation and capacity measures of knowledge, communication, and identification with Latina community leaders. Data screening and linear regression found no effects of workshop participation for knowledge and communication. A linear regression supported the hypothesized workshop by sense of community interaction effect, where individuals with higher sense of community were more likely to connect with workshop leaders in the workshop condition. Themes that emerged from the analysis of qualitative data from individual questionnaires, researcher notes, and a group interview were: (1) connection to the larger community organization, (2) family communication about domestic violence, (3) interest in support for Latino youth and (4) community leader’s testimonies of their own experiences of violence. Together, quantitative and qualitative findings lend weight to the notion that peer interventionists can establish meaningful connections and trust with community members based on their own lived experiences. Further research is needed to link this strength in a peer-led DV program to gains in capacity domains like knowledge. Overall, the results of this study extend research on cultural specific DV community programs and provide recommendations for community organizations seeking to evaluate community-based programs.

This study examines programs and services designed to ameliorate and prevent intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual violence (SV) among women with a history of child sexual abuse (CSA) under the Violence Against Women Act and the Department of Justice Reauthorization Act, 2005. Fifty-seven (57) survey participants at the 30th National Symposium on Child Abuse Conference were selected for the study utilizing non-probability convenience sampling. The survey participants comprised of workers or volunteers in all aspects of child maltreatment. In sum, 55 (or 100%) of the participants revealed that they agreed that there is a critical need for more program and services designed to ameliorate and prevent IPV, DV and SV among women with a history of CSA.

The aim of this study was to explore the situation of immigrant women with temporary residence permit who face intimate partner violence and are living in Mid-Sweden. The study had a qualitative approach and four professionals with experience in meeting this group were interviewed using semi-structured questions. The sample consisted of respondents from social services, a women’s shelter, a NGO and a law firm. Findings show that due to controlling behavior by their partners the women are often isolated from society. Economical violence is explained as frequently occurring. Furthermore, the findings show that having a temporary residence permit makes it difficult to leave the abusive relationship, since it is connected to the risk of deportation. According to the respondents the women experience fear and worries related to their legal status. Moreover, the help available for them include supporting conversations, protected living and legal guidance. The findings indicate that for the women’s situation to be improved they need to gain information on their rights.

Kvinnomisshandel är idag ett komplicerat och tabubelagt folkhälsoproblem. 38 % av kvinnor runt om i världen har någon gång blivit utsatta för misshandel i en nära relation. Syftet med studien var att beskriva sjuksköterskors upplevelser av att möta kvinnor utsatta för misshandel av män i en nära relation. Studien genomfördes som en litteraturstudie där tio kvalitativa artiklar och en artikel med mixad metod användes i resultatet. Resultatet presenteras i fyra kategorier: Kvinnomisshandel – ett tabubelagt ämne bland vårdpersonal, Att axla sin professionella roll i mötet med misshandlade kvinnor, Kunskapens betydelse för omvårdnad och Organisationens påverkan på omvårdnad. Resultatet visade att sjuksköterskor upplevde en saknad av relevant utbildning i hur och när frågan om misshandel skulle komma på tal för att inte förolämpa och stöta bort kvinnorna. Sjuksköterskorna påpekade även att behovet av ett utökat samarbete med andra professioner skulle kunna vara till hjälp vid möten med kvinnor utsatta för misshandel i en nära relation. Det påpekades att sjuksköterskorna upplevde det som svårt att axla sin professionella roll och ge kvinnorna den hjälpen de behövde få. Inom sjukvården har sjuksköterskorna en viktig och framträdande roll i att hjälpa kvinnor utsatta för misshandel i en nära relation. / The dilemma of battered women is today a complex and taboo public health problem, 38 % of women around the world has at some point been exposed to intimate partner violence. The aim was to describe nurses experiences of encounter women exposed to intimate partner violence by men. The study was conducted as a literature study where ten qualitative scientific articles and one mixed method scientific article were selected. The result culminated in four categories: Battered women – a taboo subject among health care workers, Shouldering the professional role in the encounter with battered women, The importance of knowledge in nursing care and The organization's impact on the nursing care. Nurses´ experienced a lack of relevant education in how and when to ask women about intimate partner violence without insult and repelling the women. Nurses pointed out that the need for extended collaboration with other professions would be of great assistance in meeting women exposed to intimate partner violence. Nurses observed that it was difficult to shouldering their professional role and provide the assistance that the women needed to receive. The result showed that nurses have an important and prominent role in assisting women exposed to intimate partner violence.

The current study examined psychological distress in couples coping with a cancer diagnosis. Although it is widely recognised that spouses coping with a cancer diagnosis are at risk of psychological distress, debate exists within the literature regarding the amount of distress experienced by individuals, and about who is most at risk. Fifty-five couples coping with a cancer diagnosis completed questionnaires assessing psychological distress, social support and attachment style characteristics. Results indicated that partners psychological distress levels were more influenced by social support and attachment characteristics than patients were. Partners of those with cancer, who were higher on the insecure attachment dimensions, perceived providing and receiving less support and were less satisfied with support overall compared to less insecure partners. In addition to this, partner social support was significantly related to psychological distress, and attachment style was found to moderate this relationship. Specifically, partners were more vulnerable to psychological distress when they were higher on the insecure attachment dimensions and when support satisfaction was low or when they had a perception of low support receipt. Contrary to expectations, there were no significant findings for the patient group. Explanations and implications are discussed.

The overall aim of the present research is to contribute to the literature base regarding interventions for women who have experienced Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). The research utilised questionnaires and repertory grid technique to investigate the impact of The Freedom Programme, a group intervention for women who have experienced IPV. 24 participants at pre-intervention and 18 participants at post-intervention completed the measures. The findings suggest that the intervention can be beneficial in terms of lowering: severity of symptoms; utilisation of emotionally focused coping strategies, utilisation of less helpful coping strategies and Triadic Conflict (Bell, 2004). There was a tightening of construing at post-intervention. Participants reported the most helpful aspects of the intervention were ‘Universality’ and ‘Personal Contact’. The most unhelpful aspects were finding it difficult to speak in a group context and the practicalities of the group. The author concludes that the programme provides a valuable first step for women who have experienced IPV, however, development of services that follow on from the intervention need to be more focused to meet individual needs. Recommendations for future research include more longitudinal research, which encompasses Randomised Control Trail methodology reviewing packages of support. There is also a need to conduct research with harder to access women who have experienced IPV.

Författarna har studerat hur kvinnor utsatta för våld i en nära relation upplever bemötandet i vården, genom granskning av elva kvalitativa studier. Resultatet visar att känslan av skuld och skam är stor hos kvinnor som utsätts för våld i en nära relation. Kvinnorna vill berätta om sin situation, men endast om de upplever att sjuksköterskan vill lyssna, har tid och kan han-tera informationen. Flertalet kvinnor önskade att sjuksköterskan skulle fråga dem om våldet, de längtade efter att någon skulle ta kontroll över situationen. Oftast känner sig kvinnorna dömda, förlöjligade och respektlöst bemötta av hälso- och sjukvården efter de berättat om våldet som försiggår i relationen. Kvinnor som levt under hot och våld från sin man har ofta en bräcklig och skev självbild. Vilket ökar deras osäkerhet och förstärker eventuella negativa upplevelser i vården. I och med det kan ett dåligt bemötande från vårdpersonalen i värsta fall öka kvinnornas känsla av hjälplöshet och bekräfta skammen de bär på. Studien påvisar att hälso- och sjukvården är en mycket viktig instans för kvinnor utsatta för våld av sin partner, trots detta finns sällan kunskap hos personalen. Författarna har funnit brister i bemötandet och omhändertagandet av kvinnorna och även i kontakten med andra viktiga instanser. Vårdpersonalen behöver kunskap, handlingsplaner och riktlinjer för att kunna lotsa kvinnorna vidare i deras väg mot ett liv utan hot och våld. När väl kvinnan samlat mod till sig för att erkänna sin situation i vården och inte blir tagen på allvar kan det i vissa fall få förödande konsekvenser. Medan en genuint intresserad sjuksköterska som har kunskap och är villig att lägga sin tid på kvinnan och relationen till henne, kan vara livsavgörande. Sjuksköterskan kan hjälpa henne en bit på vägen till ett liv utan smärta, rädsla och ensamhet. / Background: Violence against women is a major global public health issue, which has an impact on women’s lives and mental health. Aim: To explore healthcare experiences of women exposed to intimate partner violence. Method: Literature based study with eleven qualitative studies. Results: The women who sought help felt ashamed for the violence and most of them didn’t get the help they needed. They felt that the caregivers didn’t believe in their stories or their experiences. The health care professionals made them feel like objects and not human beings. Few women had a good experience of the care they were given, in those cases the caregivers had asked the women about the violence and gave them time to talk and made them feel safe and comfortable. Conclusion: Nearly all of the women had feelings of shame and guilt. They wanted the caregiver to ask them about the violence, because they found it hard to reveal it themselves. Caregivers need more knowledges about intimate partner violence and its impact on the women to offer right kind of help.They also need guidelines to know how to meet and help these women.

Bakgrund: Våld i nära relationer är ett globalt folkhälsoproblem. Främst drabbar det kvinnor som i högre grad än män utsätts för upprepat våld och våldet tenderar också att vara grövre. Våldet har många negativa konsekvenser på kvinnans hälsa, både fysiska och psykiska. De våldsutsatta kvinnorna söker ofta vård på bl.a. hälsocentraler eller akutmottagningar för exempelvis benbrott, buk och bröstskador. Sällan berättar de om våldet som föregått skadorna. Vårdpersonal inom hälso- och sjukvården har en lagstadgad skyldighet och ett ansvar att identifiera och ge dessa kvinnor en god vård.   Syfte: Syftet var att undersöka de hinder vårdpersonal kan möta vid identifiering av våld i nära relationer.   Metod: En systematisk litteraturstudie med induktiv ansats användes. Datainsamlingen resulterade i 9 artiklar som granskades gällande kvalitet och etiskt ställningstagande. För att analysera artiklarna valdes en analysmetod beskriven av Forsberg och Wengström (2013).   Resultat: Resultatet utmynnade i fyra kategorier; hinder relaterat till kunskapsbrist, hinder relaterat till språket, hinder relaterat till arbetsplatsen eller professionen samt hinder inom kvinnan som alla kunde påverka identifieringen och avslöjandet av våld i nära relationer.   Slutsats: Att möta och identifiera våld i nära relationer är ett komplicerat men viktigt arbete inom sjukvården där ytterligare kunskap, forskning och utbildning är nödvändigt.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) in sexual and gender minority relationships is an underexplored and misunderstood phenomenon. Much of what has been investigated has explored IPV from a heterosexual lens, without taking into account the complexities of these relationship dynamics. Further, outcomes of IPV traditionally focus on negative sequelae, such as depression or anxiety. In this study, we examined the propensity to forgive partner abuse as a means of adaptively coping with the trauma. Further, we looked at resilience as a possible factor in the process of forgiveness. We hypothesized that psychological resilience significantly moderates the forgiveness process in sexual and gender minorities who have experienced IPV. Our sample of 77 gender- and sexual-minority participants completed measures of psychological and physical IPV, resilience, and forgiveness. A regression analysis found our model accounted for 36% of the variance in forgiveness of self (adj. R2=.36, F (4, 72) = 10.34, p < .01) and 20% of forgiveness of others (adj. R2=.20, F (4, 72) = 5.01, p < .01). However, there was no significant moderating effect, nor was IPV a significant contributor to forgiveness. Results suggest trauma does not influence one’s likelihood to forgive, though some personal trait, such as resilience, is more likely to contribute to the forgiveness process. Implications are discussed.

Bakgrund: Andelen kvinnor i världen som utsatts för våld i nära relation av en man är mellan 15–71 %. Våldet kan vara fysiskt, psykiskt och sexuellt, samt försummelse. Sjuksköterskor kan möta dessa kvinnor i alla olika vårdande verksamheter. Syfte: Att beskriva sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att fråga om våld i nära relation i mötet med kvinnor som besöker hälso- och sjukvården. Samt att beskriva studiernas undersökningsgrupper. Metod: En deskriptiv litteraturstudie där 12 stycken vetenskapliga artiklar ingick. Nio stycken artiklar var kvalitativa, två var kvantitativa och en var mixad metod. Dessa har granskats och sammanställts. Huvudresultat: Sjuksköterskor hade inte som rutin att fråga kvinnor om våld i nära relation, utan det skedde främst vid synliga fysiska skador. Kunskap var en viktig faktor för att sjuksköterskan skulle fråga. Flera ansåg det som sin roll att fråga, medan andra ansåg motsatsen. Sjuksköterskor upplevde barriärer till att fråga och de påverkades känslomässigt av mötena med de våldsutsatta kvinnorna. Samtliga studier angav deltagarantal. Majoriteten av deltagarna var kvinnor, dock angav inte alla studier vilket kön, eller antal år i yrket, som deltagarna i studiernas undersökningsgrupper hade. Slutsatser: Kunskap kan vara både en motiverande faktor för att fråga om våld i nära relation, samtidigt som bristen på kunskap kan utgöra en barriär. Sjuksköterskans erfarenheter av att fråga för också med sig en känslomässig påverkan på sjuksköterskan. Det är viktigt att det finns tillräckligt med kunskap och stöd gällande våld i nära relation inom verksamheterna för att möta både kvinnans och sjuksköterskans behov. / Background: The proportion of women in the world who are victims of intimate partner violence by a man is estimated between 15-71 %. The violence can take the form of physical, psychological and sexual impact and neglect. Nurses can meet these women in all health care settings. Aim: To describe nurses’ experiences of inquiring women about intimate partner violence in the health care setting. Also, to describe the study sample of the studies. Method: A descriptive literature review was conducted. 12 scientific articles were included. Nine of them were qualitative, two of them were quantitative and one was a mixed method. Main result: Nurses did not routinely inquire women about intimate partner violence, it was mainly conducted when the women had visible physical injuries. Knowledge was an important facilitator for the nurse to inquire about intimate partner violence. Many considered it as their role to inquire, while others believed the opposite. Nurses experienced barriers to inquireabout intimate partner violence. Nurses were emotionally affected by the meeting with the abused women. All studies reported the number of participant in their studies. The majority of the participants were women. However, not all studies specified genderof the participants or the number of years in the profession. Conclusion: Knowledge can be a motivating factor, while the lack of knowledge can be a barrier. The nurse’s experiences of inquiring about intimate partner violence brings an emotional impact on the nurse. It is important that there is sufficient knowledge and support regarding intimate partner violence in the health care setting to meet both the woman’s and the nurse’s needs.