Men abuse women every day. It has become a Health Problem which we affects all of us. Help is available for those women who have the strength to seek it. Health care personnel are often these women’s only contact with the surrounding world. As professionals, health care personnel need the right knowledge and resources in order to help abused women. Our aim with this study was to describe abused women’s experiences when they seek health care, and also to document health care experiences and attitudes towards these women. A literary review of 14 scientific articles was conducted. The result was then divided into two sections: women’s perspectives and health care personnel’s perspectives. Abused women felt a lack of confidence with the health care personnel. They had been violated, and felt that the health care personnel did not listen. The health care personnel felt that they needed more training and resources in order to work with abused women and help them. The lack of health care personnel’s ability to create a safe and confident environment where women feel that they can open up and ask for help is a major social problem. In order to correct these flaws, people need to take a stand in the matter. / Dagligen misshandlas kvinnor av män. Det är ett folkhälsoproblem som alla har ansvar för att lösa. Hjälp finns att få för de kvinnor som har styrkan att söka den. Oftast är vården enda kontakten som kvinnorna har med omvärlden. Vårdpersonal möter dessa kvinnor i sin yrkesroll och de behöver ha den rätta kunskapen och de rätta verktygen för att kunna hjälpa kvinnorna. Syftet med studien var att med aktuell litteratur beskriva hur kvinnor som blivit misshandlade av sin partner upplever mötet med vården, samt vårdpersonalens erfarenheter och inställningar till mötet med misshandlade kvinnor. 14 internationellt vetenskapliga artiklar granskades och sammanställdes sedan i två delar . I den ena fokuseras på kvinnornas perspektiv och i den andra vårdpersonalens. Misshandlade kvinnor upplevde att de hade lågt förtroende för vårdpersonalen. De kände sig kränkta och inte hörda. Vårdpersonalen å sin sida kände att de inte hade adekvat utbildning, resurser och verktyg för att kunna möta misshandlade kvinnor. Det finns brister hos vårdpersonalens kompetens för att skapa en trygg och förtrolig plats där kvinnorna upplever att de kan söka stöd och råd. För att häva dessa brister krävs det att alla människor tar ställning i frågan om kvinnomisshandel.

The Trappan Model is one of the most implemented treatment programs for children who have experienced domestic violence. This study undertakes a wider evaluation of the model through a pilot study. The approach is both quantitive and qualitative. Theory as well as the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire have been used to fulfil the aim. The design is pre-post. The respondents are thirteen children who have undergone Trappan treatment programs in Uppsala during 2007. Pre-tests and comparison groups have been used to ascertain the psychological, emotional and behavioural health of the children prior to treatment. It is evident that the children have fewer peer relationships than other children before treatment, positive changes have occurred after treatment regarding the active social development of the children.

Syftet med denna uppsats var att undersöka hur olika samhällsinstansers syn på våld i samkönade parrelationer och vad de gör för att arbeta kring denna problematik. Ämnet studerades med en kvalitativ ansats. Urvalet av den teoretiska populationen utfördes genom strategiskt urval. Den insamlingsmetod som användes för data var delfimetoden. Vid analysen användes tidigare forskning samt queerteorin som teoretisk utgångspunkt. Analysen resulterade i tre huvudkategorier/teman; synen på våld i samkönade parrelationer, utbildning & samverkan samt bemötande. De slutsatser som drogs var att ämnet behöver synliggöras bättre och att utbildning/information bör ges i större utsträckning, både kring våld i samkönade parrelationer, men även kring andra sexuella läggningar än heterosexualitet generellt. Utbildning/information efterfrågas även för att kunna erbjuda samma stöd och hjälp för alla individer som utsatts för våld i en nära parrelation.

Domestic violence and sexual assault rates are higher on Indian reservations than anywhere else in the country. This text works toward an understanding of sexual violence as a legacy of colonialism. Rather than being rooted in inherent racial or cultural differences, current rates of sexual violence on Indian reservations are a continuation of a historical pattern in which colonizers used rape as a weapon to control, contain, and conquer the Indians. The unique history of racist and sexist oppression inflicted on Native Americans through the institutionalized denial of kinship, culture, sovereignty, and body autonomy has exacerbated the violence while frustrating the healing process. This paper describes how the boarding schools, Indian child removal, PL 280, the Oliphant decision, cultural appropriation, and the sexualized stereotyping of Indian women led to high rates of sexual violence on Indian reservations. It then explores how the Tulalip Tribes of Washington State have been proactive in fighting to end sexual assault and violence on their reservation, through retrocession, a holistic approach to batterer reform, and victim advocacy, while simultaneously lobbying in support of legislation such as the Violence Against Women Act, which would allow the Tribes to acquire criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians.

Domestic violence remains a serious social issue. In North America, millions of women are victimized each year, and many of these women are victims of violence at the hand of their intimate partners. A small but growing body of research on domestic violence has shown that companion animals are among the victims of such violence. Abuse of or threats to the pets are used to control, manipulate and emotionally abuse the female partner. However, the majority of this research has focused on the perspective of the abused female partner; the male perspective is missing. Through semi-structured interviews with ten incarcerated men who have committed intimate partner violence (IPV), this thesis explores the abuser’s motivations for abuse of the pet as well as their perspective of pets in the context of a violent relationship. The findings indicate that, contrary to previous research, most men do not abuse pets in the relationship, and in fact have positive relationships with their pets. Just as pets are sources of comfort for women in abusive relationships, pets can be sources of comfort and support for the abusive men as well. When incorporated into violence intervention and treatment programs, relationships with pets can provide a venue for men construct a masculine identity in a positive way, and the treatment of animals can illustrate how violence is not an effective solution.

Recent research has found high rates of abuse in gay male relationships; however, little is known about their lived experience. This study aims to explore (1) the social construction of abuse in gay male relationships, (2) its discursive effects on clinical practice and (3) the lived experience of gay men involved in abusive relationships. This study included three sets of data. Using a discourse analysis, articles published in popular queer media and academic literature were analyzed to understand the social construction of partner abuse. Three focus groups, with 16 service providers, were conducted to examine the discursive effects of partner abuse on clinical practice. In-depth interviews with 21 gay men involved in partner abuse were conducted to understand their lived experience. Transcripts of the focus groups and interviews were reviewed in detail to highlight themes and concepts. Analysis revealed that gay male partner abuse is not a self-evident or natural category but, rather, socially constructed. Current discourse created two opposite categories (the victim who is powerless and helpless; the perpetrator powerful and evil) that both informed and limited the way in which service providers saw and, thus, worked with gay men involved in partner abuse. Yet, as shown in the analysis, the lived experience of partner abuse does not always fit neatly into the rigid victim and perpetrator roles. Instead, the roles are frequently unclear and contradictory. We social workers need to be aware of the discursive effects of gay male partner abuse and critically examine how they impose certain assumptions on us. Instead of seeking a “true” experience of partner abuse, we need to help these men search for meaning within the events that are relevant to them, regardless of how they fit into the normative discourse of gay male partner abuse.

Sammanfattning Syftet med studien var att utvärdera hur barnperspektivet beskrivs och tar sig uttryck på det skyddade kvinnoboendet Siri i Uppsala, ur personalens perspektiv. Verksamheten riktar sig primärt till våldsutsatta kvinnor, men även kvinnornas barn är i behov av stöd och skydd. Av tidigare forskning framgår att barn som har upplevt våld löper risk att utveckla psykiska och sociala problem, vilket därmed innebär att de kan ha särskilda behov som Siri försöker tillgodose. Utvärderingen präglas av en kvalitativ ansats och har genomförts med hjälp av utvärderingsmetoden programteori. Programteorin beskriver hur barnperspektivet är tänkt att genomföras i Siris verksamhet. Utvärderingen ger svar på om personalen upplever att arbetet med barnen genomförs på det sätt som det är tänkt, om arbetet är kunskapsbaserat och om det förefaller vara så att Siri kan nå de mål som programteorin föreskriver. Kvalitativa intervjuer av semistrukturerad karaktär genomfördes med personal med olika utbildningsbakgrund som arbetar eller har arbetat på Siri. Vid analysen har, förutom programteorin, de teoretiska begreppen omsorgs- och delaktighetsperspektivet samt Harts delaktighetsstege använts. Av resultatet framkom att respondenternas uppfattningar gällande Siris målsättning i arbetet med barnen samt vilka aktiviteter det är tänkt att barnen ska erbjudas, överensstämmer med hur de beskrivs i programteorin. Det framkom även att aktiviteterna är förankrade i tidigare forskning gällande behov hos barn som har upplevt våld. I praktiken genomförs emellertid inte alltid de aktiviteter som det är tänkt att Siri ska erbjuda barnen. Hinder för genomförandet som lyfts fram i studien är personal- och bemanningsfrågor, att aktiviteterna inte har hunnit bli välförankrade i praktiken och att Siri är en svårplanerad verksamhet. Till vissa delar förefaller barnperspektivet vara knutet till olika personer även om personalen till stora delar var överens om att verksamheten har ett utvecklat barnperspektiv. Gällande barnens delaktighet på Siri framkom ett dilemma. Då mamman har det yttersta ansvaret för barnet kan personalen inte uppmuntra till mer delaktighet för barnet än vad mamman tillåter, varför olika barn upplevs ha olika möjlighet till delaktighet. Nyckelord: barnperspektiv, skyddade boenden, barn, omsorgsperspektiv, delaktighetsperspektiv / Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate how the child perspective is described and expressed at the domestic violence shelter Siri in Uppsala. The organisation primarily focuses on women but their children are also in need of shelter and support. Research shows that children who have been exposed to domestic violence are at risk of developing mental and social problems. This means there is a possibility that they have special needs which Siri is trying to provide for. This evaluation is based on program theory and has a qualitative approach. The program theory describes how the child perspective is meant to be implemented in the organisation. The evaluation answers whether the staff experience that the program theory is being implemented as it is meant to be implemented. Furthermore the evaluation answers if the theory is evidence based and if Siri can reach the goals expressed in the program theory. The study is based on semi-structured interviews with members of the staff. The framework for analysing the results, besides the program theory, was the care perspective, the rights perspective and Rogers Harts ladder of children’s participation. The results show that the respondents’ opinions about the organisation’s activities and goals are consistent with the program theory, and that the theory seems to be based on previous research about needs of children who have been exposed to domestic violence. The activities that Siri intends to provide the children are not, however, always implemented in practice. The respondents expressed that the difficulties to implement the activities in the organisation mainly depends on staff issues, but also the fact that Siri is an unpredictable organisation. Furthermore the results show that the organisations’ child perspective, to a certain extent, depends on which member of the staff that is working; the child perspective varies from person to person. In general, however, there was an agreement among the respondents that the organisation is characterised by a child perspective. Keywords: child perspective, domestic violence shelter, children, care perspective, rights perspective

No description available.

A family violence prevention program for incarcerated male offenders was evaluated. One hundred and one (101) offenders incarcerated in minimum and medium security facilities participated in a high intensity family violence prevention program offered by Correctional Services of Canada. Thirteen psychological, attitudinal, and behavioural measures were administered to the offenders. The measures were administered either pre-treatment only, pre-and post-treatment, or post-treatment only. Five measures were self-report measures completed by offenders, and eight were administered and scored by qualified corrections personnel. The offenders showed a number of positive pre- to post-treatment changes. Following treatment, offenders reported that they were less likely to rationalize their abusive behaviour or believe that being a man grants one special privileges and entitlements over women. Offenders were less likely to support the use of power and control tactics over women or to endorse an assortment of myths that can foster inequality and abuse. Following treatment, offenders were judged to have shown an improvement in their willingness to sympathize with their partner as well as an improvement in their conflict-resolution skills. Offenders were also judged to show substantial pre- to post-treatment improvements in their compliance with, and response to, treatment, as well as demonstrating an improved ability to apply the knowledge and skills learned from treatment. The Statistical Information on Recidivism (SIR) Scale failed to demonstrate concurrent and predictive validity on a sub-sample of these domestic violent offenders.

My dissertation is a critical ethnography of grassroots feminist agencies and immigrant organizations involved in the governance of gender violence in Toronto, Ontario. Along with examining the agencies operating on the outskirts of the law, I also observe the organizations that contract directly with the provincial government to counsel abusers prosecuted through the city’s specialized domestic violence courts. Drawing on the methodological and theoretical insights of socio-legal studies, postcolonial feminism, and governmentality scholarship, my research explores the governance of domestic violence through the community. Specifically, I examine how the voluntary sector performs the state’s work of prosecuting domestic violence, punishing offenders and building citizens. My research reveals the significant influence that community organizations exert on the prosecution of gender violence and in defining the conditions of punishment for offenders. Through court observation of Toronto’s domestic violence plea court, I show how grassroots administrative workers transform into hybrids of the prosecutor and defense within governance networks. In addition, based on interviews with service providers delivering counseling to offenders, I document how non-profit organizational habits add distinctive flavors to the administration of punishment, materializing in governing regimes that emphasize care in some contexts and discipline in others. Finally, I also explore the dual constructions of immigrant counselors as both the experts and the “others” to the nation with regards to gender violence. In contrast to assumptions of ignorance amongst the immigrant “other” in the liberal imaginary, my findings indicate that the notion of women’s empowerment is nothing new or unfamiliar within Toronto’s diasporic communities; several of the immigrant anti-violence experts involved in this research credit their politicization and training “back home” as foundational to their involvement in feminist and the anti-violence movement. These findings challenge liberal assumptions of the East as a space devoid of the cultural material of women’s empowerment, which form the backbone of Western performances of modernity.