The phenomenon of age-disparate relationships between younger men and older women is relatively under- researched and therefore open to misunderstanding. The common assumption is that the younger men enter these relationships with a view to benefiting in terms of money or material goods. This qualitative study explored the experiences of five young men from around Pretoria who are in relationships with older women to understand their motivations for entering into those relationships and their experiences in the relationships. The in-depth interviews were thematically analysed and themes that emerged indicated that, unlike what has previously been found among young women who are in relationships with older men (namely that the young women are often coerced and therefore do not have much power in their relationships), the young men entered the relationships willingly and rely on cultural norms that allow them to navigate and negotiate their roles in the relationships. It is therefore recommended that age-disparate relationships not be discouraged; instead, interventions should focus on assisting young people develop agentic power in such relationships. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

My dissertation, The Female Body, Motherhood, and Old Age: Representations of Women in Hell in Sixteenth and Seventeenth Century Japan, examines the literary and visual representations of women in hell in late medieval and early modern Japan, with particular attention to the female body, motherhood, and old age. My focus is the late Muromachi and early Edo periods, when a constellation of new hells began to be conceptualized that had serious ramifications for representation of women. I examine a group of otogizōshi texts and hell paintings of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, which were disseminated widely through different media (picture scrolls, screen paintings, and narrative texts) and which generated a set of motifs representing women in the afterlife. I relate the emergence of these motifs to the larger history of the discursive construction of the female body and the evolution of representations of hell in premodern Japan. I argue that in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, representations of women in hell in these texts and paintings shifted in their focus to domestic relationships, specifically mother-child and wife-husband relationships. This change is best exemplified by the late medieval set of gendered hells (The Hell of Barren Women, The Hell of Two Wives, and Children’s Limbo), which represent the body of the woman from three perspectives: 1) as infertile (as in the Hell of Barren Women), 2) as related to animals (such as the serpentine queen in Daibutsu no go-engi (The Venerable Origins of the Great Buddha) and the serpent-women in the Hell of Two Wives), and 3) as stigmatized or punished for excess desire/attachment in their mother-child and wife-husband relationships (as in the Hell of Two Wives). This dissertation also analyzes woman as erotic object, as mother, and as aging body from a comparative Japan-China perspective. By comparing similar motifs that emerged at approximately the same historical moments—the snake queen falling into hell in Daibutsu no go-engi with the snake queen in “Empress Xi turning into a python,” and Datsueba (Clothes-snatching Hag) with Meng Po (Lady of Forgetfulness)—I am able to highlight distinctive features of these new hells for women as well as compare the differing functions of hell shown by these Japanese and Chinese examples. In Chapter 1, “Women Falling Into Hell in Early Medieval Japan,” I analyze three early medieval tales of women journeying to and from Tateyama hell in the eleventh-century Dai Nihonkoku Hokkekyō genki and twelfth-century Konjaku monogatari shū in order to provide background for my later discussion on the new concerns for women that emerged in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. I show how the salvation of the deceased female protagonists depended on the proper rituals being performed by family members and I make clear the significance that motherhood was accorded in early medieval Buddhist tales of women in hell. I then examine how representations of women evolved and became more complex in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries with the emergence of the Hell of Barren Women, where childless women are punished, and the Hell of Two Wives, in which two serpent women coil their bodies around a man with whom they had become involved in a triangular relationship. In Chapter 2, “Barren Women Hells and Daibutsu no go-engi (The Venerable Origins of the Great Buddha),” I show how the Hell of Barren Women stresses the reproductive responsibilities of women. The representations of the Hell of Barren Women, reflecting a growing female audience in the late Muromachi and early Edo periods, are clear evidence of a belief that it is motherhood that is a woman’s passport to salvation. In Chapter 3, I examine “The Serpentine Queen and the Chinese Tale of Empress Xi Hui Turning Into a Python.” A comparison with Daibutsu no go-engi shows that the Chinese stories about Empress Xi focus more on the feelings and observations of the living, while Daibutsu no go-engi stresses the accumulation and elimination of negative karma. Chapter 4, “The Hell of Two Wives: Transformed Women and the Jealousy of Joint-Wives,” examines the motif of the “transformed woman” found in the Lotus Sutra, the eleventh-century Hokke genki, and the mid-sixteenth century Dōjōji engi, showing how a negative connection between women and the dragon-serpent body was established, and how the animalized female body relates to the question of desire. The entwined threesome in the Hell of Two Wives not only exemplifies a domestic narrative of betrayal and resentment; it also shows a transition from a general stigmatization of the female body towards a more specific condemnation of lust, jealousy, and resentment—which are all gendered female. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, women’s roles evolved to reflect a desire to maintain the stability of family. At the same time, these representations began focusing more on situations in which women’s efforts to control body or mind met with failure. Chapter 5, “Old Women as Keepers of the Borders: Datsueba and Meng Po,” analyzes two figures of hags in hell: Datsueba in Japan and Meng Po in China. While Datsueba watches over the dead as they descend to the depths of hell to receive judgment, Meng Po cares for them as they make their way out of hell to achieve reincarnation. I argue that both Datsueba and Meng Po reinforce the border of hell by depriving the deceased of their social identities, but while Datsueba punishes and purifies the deceased, Meng Po focuses on the transitional stage between death and the next life, and her memory-erasing function shows that, paradoxically, in Chinese hell deceased souls are not liberated from the basic Confucian relationships that are so important to the living.

Syfte: Litteraturstudien syftar till att studera äldre kvinnor som utsatts för våld i nära relationer med utgångspunkt från kvinnornas perspektiv. Studien syftar till att lyfta fram hur äldre kvinnor påverkas, vad de uttrycker för behov av stöd, hur de beskriver problematiken med att lämna ett våldsamt förhållande samt förövarens påverkan på kvinnan.   Metod: I studien granskas 13 artiklar. Studien är en kvalitativ litteraturstudie med tematisk analys. Resultat: Studien resulterar i 3 huvudteman med 2 underteman vardera. Huvudtemana behandlar: (1) behov av stöd, (2) förövarens påverkan, och (3) känslor av skam och skuld.  Slutsats: Kvinnorna uttrycker ett behov av anpassade formella insatser samt berättar att de finner stor hjälp i stödgrupper. Kvinnornas förövare kontrollerar genom isolation och skrämsel. Kvinnorna upplever skuld och skam över deras situation samt tar på sig ansvar för våldet vilket påverkar deras psykiska mående. / Aim: This literature study aims to study older women who are exposed to IPV told from the women’s perspective. The study wants to highlight how older women are affected, what kind of support they want, difficulties in leaving and the perpetrator’s impact. Method: The design is a qualitative literature study using thematic analysis on 13 articles.  Results: The study resulted in 3 main themes with 2 sub-themes each. The main themes highlights: (1) the need for support, (2) the perpetrator’s impact, and (3) the shame and guilt. Conclusion: The women express a need for adapted formal support and express that they find great help in support groups. The women's perpetrators control them through isolation and intimidation. The women experience guilt and shame over their situation and take on responsibility for the violence which affects their mental health.

The aim of this study is to investigate how social workers, within the social services, supports and helps older women who have been/are victims to violence in close relationships. The purpose is also to gain understanding of the social workers experiences with this group. Interviews with social workers within this area, relationship violence unit in Stockholm, has been a method to collect information for the purpose of this study. The material has been analyzed from several points of view: organizational, grass- roots bureaucracy, discretionand intersectionality. As a result, to this study, some lacking in discretion are shown. The results shows lacking in discretion in forms of e.g resources, and interactivity among different units regarding this group. In conclusion, improving arrangement concerning elderly violence victims are being discussed. / Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur socialsekreterare inom socialtjänstens relationsvåldsenheter arbetar för att hjälpa och stödja äldre kvinnor som har blivit utsatta för våld i nära relationer. Vidare var syftet med studien att få en ökad förståelse för socialsekreterares erfarenheter av arbetet med våldsutsatta äldre kvinnor. För att kunna besvara studiens syfte och dess frågeställningar har empiri inhämtats genom enskilda intervjuer med socialsekreterare verksamma inom socialtjänstens relationsvåldsenhet i Stockholms Stad. Empirin har analyserats utifrån de teoretiska begreppen: organisation, handlingsutrymme och intersektionalitet. Studiens resultat visar på brister vad gäller samverkan, sviktande kompetens samt utmaningar gällande handlingsutrymmet. Vidare redogörs för betydelsen av att äldre kan vara särskilt sårbara, samt hur behovet av stöd ställs i relation till bristfälliga resurser. Avslutningsvis diskuteras möjliga förbättringsområden inom relationsvåldsenheten för att öka möjligheten att tillgodose våldsutsatta äldre kvinnors stödbehov.

SAMMANFATTNING   Enligt den internationella etiska koden för sjuksköterskor (ICN) så ska sjuksköterskan handla för att skydda enskilda personer när deras hälsa hotas av andras handlingar. Personer med demenssjukdom kan få svårigheter att uttrycka sina behov, vilket ställer krav på omgivningen att kunna läsa av kroppsspråk vid illabefinnande. Personcentrerad vård rekommenderas vid demenssjukdom. Äldre kvinnor med demenssjukdom löper dubbel risk än andra äldre att utsättas för våld i form av vanvård från vårdare. De utsätts oftare för våld av personer som är kända för dem snarare än en främling. Tecken på våldsutsatthet skiljer sig hos personer med demenssjukdom jämfört med andra våldsutsatta och de blir inte alltid bemötta och betraktade som ett brottsoffer. Våld kan vara psykiskt, fysiskt, sexuellt, ekonomiskt eller bestå av vanvård och försummelse och är ett allvarligt hot mot kvinnornas hälsa. Syftet var att beskriva sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av möten med kvinnor 65 år och äldre med demenssjukdom, utsatta för våld i nära relation i ordinärt boende. Studien är genomförd med en kvalitativ forskningsansats. Resultatet baserades på sju intervjuer med sjuksköterskor, vilka arbetade i hemsjukvården inom kommunal vård- och omsorg. Data samlades in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer, med stöd av en intervjuguide. Kvalitativ innehållsanalys användes för att analysera intervjudata.   Resultatet visade att de vanligaste våldsutövarna var makar/manlig partner. Ansträngd och utlämnad anhörigvårdarsituation kunde leda till våldsutövning. Kvinnornas våldsutsatthet förmedlades via kroppsspråket, beteendeförändringar och identitetsförvirring. Möten med våld kunde framkalla sårbarhet hos sjuksköterskor. Insikt om våld uppstod under intervjuerna: som till exempel vikten av lika omhändertagande som yngre våldsutsatta och erfarenheter kring specifik omvårdad. Att vård- och omsorgspersonal samt anhöriga får kunskap om demenssjukdomar och att öka medvetenhet om våld beskrevs som betydande i våldsförebyggande arbete. Likaså vikten av tidig information, utbildning och samtalsstöd till anhöriga. Sjuksköterskor kan möta äldre kvinnor med demenssjukdom som är utsatta för olika former av våld. Anhörigvårdare kan börja utöva våld mot kvinnorna som en konsekvens av livet med demenssjukdomen. Kvinnornas hälsa och identitet påverkas av våld och demenssymtomen kan förvärras. Dessa kvinnor får inte alltid samma omhändertagande som andra våldsutsatta yngre, vilket de har rättighet till. Viktiga delar i omvårdnaden av kvinnorna kan vara att inge trygghet och en känsla av inkludering. Även kontinuitet och personkännedom om kvinnorna kan vara av betydelse för att förebygga ohälsa. Anhöriga och vård- och omsorgspersonal behöver få kunskap om demenssjukdomar och våld för att kunna förebygga våld. Anhöriga är även i behov av tidig information och stöd från professioner inom hälso- och sjukvård och kommunal vård- och omsorg för att underlätta vårdarsituationen.   Nyckelord: Demenssjukdom, våld i nära relation, våldsutsatta äldre kvinnor, personcentrerad vård, intervjustudie / ABSTRACT   According to the international Code of Ethics for Nurses (ICN), a nurse should act to protect individuals when their health is being threatened by the actions of others. People with dementia may have difficulties expressing their needs, which imposes on the environment the ability to read the body language if not well-being. Person-centered care is recommended when suffering from dementia. Elderly women with dementia runs a double risk of violence than other elderly people to be subjected to violence in the form of neglect by carers. They are more often subjected to violence by people known to them rather than a stranger. Signs of abuse are different for people with dementia compared to others and people with dementia tare not always treated and regarded as victims. The violence can be mental, physical, sexual, economical, consist of neglect and they are all serious threats to women's health.   The aim was to describe the nurses' experiences of encounters with women of 65 years of age and older with dementia, victims of violence in close relationships in ordinary accommodation.   The study is conducted by a qualitative research approach. The result was based on seven interviews with nurses who worked in home care in municipal health care. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, with the support of an interview guide. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze interview data.   The results showed that the most common practitioners of violence were spouses/male partners. Situations of tension and lacking support for relatives could lead to violence. Women's vulnerability conveyed through body language, behavior change and identity confusion. Meetings with violence makes the nurses’ situation vulnerable too. Understanding of violence occurred during the interviews, as well as the importance of equality of care as younger battered and experiences around specific cared. If the health and social care staff and the relatives gain knowledge about dementia and increasing awareness of violence, the result is significant in violence prevention efforts. Likewise, was the importance of early information, education and counselling to relatives.   Nurses can meet elderly women with dementia who are exposed to various forms of violence. Family carer can begin to practice violence against women as a consequence of life with dementia. The health and identity of women are affected by violence and symptoms of dementia may deteriorate. These women do not always receive the same care as other younger people vulnerable to violence, for which they are entitled. Important aspects of the care of women can be to provide security and a sense of inclusion. Continuity and personal awareness of women can also be important for preventing ill health. Relatives and healthcare professionals need knowledge about dementia and violence in order to prevent violence. Relatives are also in need of early information and support from health care professions and municipal care to facilitate the care situation. Keywords: dementia, violence in close relationships, abused older women, person-centered care, interview study

Syfte/frågeställningar: Studiens syfte är via en scoping-review diskutera och analysera olika perspektiv på äldre kvinnors våldsutsatthet av en manlig partner. För att specificera syftet och tydliggöra vilka ämnen arbetet är avgränsat till har följande frågeställningar formulerats: På vilket sätt är äldre kvinnor en särskilt utsatt grupp när det kommer till våld i nära relationer? Hur hanteras äldre kvinnors våldsutsatthet av professionella aktörer i jämförelse med unga kvinnors våldsutsatthet? Hur behöver hjälp och stöd utformas för att lyckas bemöta äldre våldsutsatta kvinnors behov?Bakgrund: Våld i nära relationer är ett allvarligt samhällsproblem som drabbar olika målgrupper. Vissa målgrupper beskrivs vara särskilt sårbara, däribland äldre kvinnor. Dessa är sårbara bland annat till följd av egna och andras värderingar, som försvårar uppbrott och möjlighet till adekvat stöd. Mörkertalet gällande mäns våld mot kvinnor är stort, samtidigt som det konstateras att våld mot äldre kvinnor är ett växande problem.Metod: Genom en scoping-review undersöks det befintliga forskningsfältet för manligt partnervåld mot äldre kvinnor.Resultat: Studien resulterar i fyra olika huvudteman med två eller tre underteman. Funna huvudteman är: (1) Ett försummat kunskapsområde, (2) En multipel utsatthet som kräver en intersektionell analys, (3) Föråldrade föreställningar och förväntningar, (4) Attityder och bemötande.Konklusion: Äldre kvinnor är en särskilt utsatt grupp som behöver bemötas och ges insatser utifrån olika aspekter som följer av att vara äldre och att vara kvinna. Det framhålls också att äldre kvinnor är en mindre prioriterad grupp inom forskning och hos professionella, i jämförelse med yngre kvinnor utsatta för våld av en manlig partner. Mer kunskap behövs om målgruppen, men kunskap behövs också hos målgruppen själv, bland annat gällande våldsdefinitioner och befintlig hjälp. / Purpose/Questions: The purpose of this study is to discuss and analyze different perspectives on older women´s exposure to violence, perpetrated by a male partner. In order to specify our purpose and to clarify what topics this study is delimited to, following questions were defined: In which ways are older women a particularly vulnerable group regarding domestic violence? How is older women's exposure to violence handled by professionals, in comparison to younger women´s exposure to violence? What does help and support need to consist of in order to meet older women´s needs, when exposed to violence?Background: Domestic violence is a serious problem in society which affects different groups of people. Some groups are particularly vulnerable, including older women. These women are vulnerable among reasons such as their own and other people's values, which obstruct the possibility to break free and acquire adequate support. Men´s violence against women is a problem where the hidden statistics are stated, despite this it is assumed to be a growing problem.Method: Using a Scoping review the field of research regarding male partners violence on older women is examined.Result: The study finds four different main-themes consisting of two or three subthemes. The developed main-themes are: (1) A neglected area of knowledge, (2) A multiple exposure which demands an intersectional approach, (3) Outdated beliefs and expectations, (4) Attitudes and treatment.Conclusion: Older women are a particularly vulnerable group who needs to be treated and given support based on different aspects following being old and being a woman. It is emphasized that old women are less prioritized in research and by professionals, in comparison with younger women who are violently perpetrated by a male partner. The knowledge concerning older women and violence needs to be expanded, while old women themselves need to be enlightened, such as current definitions of violence and available support.

No description available.

No description available.

Syftet med studien var att undersöka professionellas förståelse av äldre kvinnors utsatthetför våld i nära relationer samt deras perspektiv på vilka omständigheter som påverkarhuruvida äldre kvinnor söker och får stöd för sin våldsutsatthet eller inte. Studiengenomfördes med hjälp av kvalitativ metod i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer med elvaprofessionella jourkvinnor från nio olika kvinnojourer. Den insamlade empirin analyseradesutifrån en kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultatet analyserades med den ekologiskasystemteorin som ramverk, och fördjupades genom normaliseringsprocessen, ålderism ochlivsloppet. Resultatet av studien visade att professionella inom kvinnojourer beskriver äldrekvinnors utsatthet för våld i nära relationer som ett utbrett problem där ett stort mörkertalråder och att äldre kvinnor drabbas av samma typ av våld som yngre kvinnor. Äldre kvinnorframhölls även som en särskilt sårbar grupp och kvinnans sociala nätverk visade sig varaavgörande för hennes möjligheter att förändra sin situation. Resultatet av studien visade ävenatt det finns flera omständigheter som påverkar äldre kvinnors möjligheter att söka stöd försin våldsutsatthet. Tidigare och samtida normer och värderingar visade sig ha påverkat äldrekvinnors upplevelser av att vara våldsutsatt. Föreställningar om att våld inte förkommer iäldre personers relationer påverkar kvinnans möjligheter att tillägna sig stöd från samhället.Studiens slutsats understryker ett behov av ökad kunskap och medvetenhet om äldrekvinnors utsatthet för våld i nära relationer, både i samhället i stort och för professionellasom möter målgruppen samt att det finns behov av att utveckla stödet till äldre våldsutsattakvinnor. / The aim of this study was to examine professionals’ understanding of older women’sexposure to domestic violence and their perspective on which circumstances that affectwhether or not older women seek and acquire support for their exposure to violence. Thestudy was conducted through a qualitative method in the form of interviews with women’sshelter professionals. The empirical data was analyzed using qualitative-content analysis.The result was analyzed using the Ecological System Theory, normalization process, ageismand the life course. The study’s result showed that older women’s exposure to domesticviolence is a widespread problem where there are many unreported cases. Older womenwere also highlighted as a particularly vulnerable group and the woman’s social networkwas shown to be crucial to her ability to change her situation. The study’s result also showedthat there are several circumstances that affect older women’s opportunities to seek supportfor their exposure to domestic violence. Former and current norms and values were shownto affect older women’s experience of being victims of violence. The preconception thatviolence does not occur within older person’s relationships affect the woman’s possibilitiesto acquire support from the society. The conclusion of the study emphasizes a need forincreased knowledge and awareness about older women’s exposure to domestic violence,both in society at large and among professionals who meet the target group, and a need todevelop support for older women exposed to violence.

The aim of this qualitative study was to understand how older women experience their roles as care-givers to HIV/AIDS affected households in the Atteridgeville community and to identify specific problems they encounter. Twelve older women attending three elderly day care centres in Atteridgeville participated in the study. Purposive sampling was done and data was collected through two focus group interviews. Colaizzi‟s seven-step method of data analysis yielded the following four main themes: Caring for adult children with HIV/AIDS, Caring for HIV affected and infected grandchildren, Multiple role players involved in caring for HIV/AIDS persons, The impact on the lives of care-givers. Factors with a positive and negative impact on caring for HIV/AIDS households were identified. The study raises awareness for the need for social workers in Atteridgeville to intervene in assisting older women in their challenging role of caring for HIV/AIDS households / Health Studies / M.A. (Public Health)