Partner Abuse (partner + abuse)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


THE NEED FOR A MULTI-FACETED RESPONSE TO INTIMATE PARTNER ABUSE PERPETRATED BY AFRICAN-AMERICANS

CRIMINOLOGY AND PUBLIC POLICY, Issue 2 2007
HILLARY POTTER
First page of article [source]


Prevalence and associations of partner abuse in women attending general practice: a cross-sectional survey

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 5 2002
Kelsey L. Hegarty
Objective: To deter mine the prevalence and socio-demographic associations of physical, emotional and sexual abuse by a partner or ex-partner for women attending Australian general practices. Method: In 1996, women attending 20 randomly chosen Brisbane inner south region general practices were screened for a history of partner abuse using a self-report questionnaire. Multivariate analyses were conducted on the data, using presence of abuse or not adjusting for cluster effect to obtain prevalence rate ratios for socio-demographic background data and history of violence in the family of origin. Results: Thirty-seven per cent (CI 31.0,42.4) of the survey participants (n=1,836, response rate 78.5%) admitted to having ever experienced abuse in an adult intimate relationship. One in four women (23.3%) had ever experienced physical abuse, one in three (33.9%) emotional abuse and one in 10 (10.6%) sexual abuse. Abused women were 64.1 (CI 44.4,94.1) times more likely to have ever been afraid of any partner than non-abused women. Of women in current relationships (n=1,344), 8.0% self-reported physical or emotional or sexual abuse in the past 12 months and 1.5% all three types of abuse. Associations of abuse included being younger (<60 years), separated or divorced, having a history of child abuse or domestic violence between their parents. Conclusion: Partner abuse is very common in women attending general practices and clinicians need to be alert to possible indications of partner abuse (age, marital status, past history of abuse). [source]


Is peer injecting a form of intimate partner abuse?

HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE IN THE COMMUNITY, Issue 5 2007
A qualitative study of the experiences of women drug users
Abstract Women are over-represented as the recipients of injections of illicit drugs and are often injected by their intimate partners. This study used qualitative research to explore women drug users' experiences of abuse from intimate partners when being injected with illicit drugs. In-depth interviews were conducted with 45 women drug users in the city of Leeds and the area of North Nottinghamshire, UK. The practice of peer injecting illicit drugs places women recipients at risk of physical, economic and emotional abuse from their male intimate partner injectors. However, this was not a universal feature. In trusting, supportive intimate partner relationships peer injecting took place through reciprocal arrangements. Moving away from peer injecting was technically and emotionally difficult for women and rarely straightforward. The implications of the work are discussed as clinicians and wider drug service staff should be aware of the possibility of abuse and enquire about peer injecting when consulting with women injecting drug users. However, clinicians should avoid working within a simplistic clinical framework that views all peer injecting as intrinsically abusive. More research is needed to provide evidence for best practice. Until then, generic principles of best practice management of intimate partner abuse could apply, including enhancing women's motivation to effect change in an abusive situation. [source]


THE INTIMATE JUSTICE SCALE: AN INSTRUMENT TO SCREEN FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE AND PHYSICAL VIOLENCE IN CLINICAL PRACTICE

JOURNAL OF MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY, Issue 1 2004
Brian Jory
This article describes development of the Intimate Justice Scale (IJS) and reports on a clinical study of the validity, reliability, and clinical usefulness of the instrument. Rather than measuring specific acts of abuse, the IJS measures ethical dynamics of couple relationships, which areevident in patterns of action and attitude expressed over the course of the relationship. Ethical dynamics appear to correlate with partner abuse. The study suggests that the IJS may reliably identify victims of abuse and may discriminate between minor and severe levels of abuse. The IJS can be completed and scored in less than 10 min and may be useful for screening in mental health, medical, and social service agencies. Clinical guidelines and a case example are presented. [source]


The Risk of Partner Violence Among Low-Income Hispanic Subgroups

JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 3 2005
Sonia M. Frias
Women with few social resources are at elevated risk of partner abuse. Certain evidence suggests that African American and Hispanic women, who are overrepresented in the lower socioeconomic strata, are at particularly high risk. We compare women's risk of partner violence, defined as moderate and severe, among 2,400 low-income African American, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic Whites from "Welfare, Children and Families: A Three City Study" and find that these groups differ in their risk of degrees of violence. Specific nation-of-origin Hispanic subgroups also manifest important differences in their violence risk profiles. We argue that a better understanding of victimization requires more detailed ethnic categorization and a more refined understanding of the meaning of domestic violence for different groups. [source]


The Role of Alcohol Use in Intimate Partner Femicide

THE AMERICAN JOURNAL ON ADDICTIONS, Issue 2 2001
Phyllis W. Sharps Ph.D., R.N.
The purpose of this study was to examine alcohol use by victims and perpetrators as a risk factor for intimate partner violence and femicide. A case control design was used to describe alcohol use among Femicide/Attempted Femicide victims (n = 380,), Abused Controls (n = 384) and Non-Abused Controls (n = 376), and their intimate partners. Telephone interviews of proxies (family members or friends) of femicide victims and actual survivors of attempted femicide were conducted in 10 cities. The purpose of the interviews was to gather information about relationship violence and alcohol use by femicide victims, attempted femicide survivors, and their perpetrators. Telephone interviews of controls, recruited from the same cities by random digit dialing, were also conducted. Perpetrator problem drinking was associated with an eight fold increase in partner abuse (eb = 8.24, p < .0001) and a two fold increased risk of femicide/attempted femicide (eb = 2.39, p = .001), controlling for demographic differences. [source]


Prevalence and associations of partner abuse in women attending general practice: a cross-sectional survey

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 5 2002
Kelsey L. Hegarty
Objective: To deter mine the prevalence and socio-demographic associations of physical, emotional and sexual abuse by a partner or ex-partner for women attending Australian general practices. Method: In 1996, women attending 20 randomly chosen Brisbane inner south region general practices were screened for a history of partner abuse using a self-report questionnaire. Multivariate analyses were conducted on the data, using presence of abuse or not adjusting for cluster effect to obtain prevalence rate ratios for socio-demographic background data and history of violence in the family of origin. Results: Thirty-seven per cent (CI 31.0,42.4) of the survey participants (n=1,836, response rate 78.5%) admitted to having ever experienced abuse in an adult intimate relationship. One in four women (23.3%) had ever experienced physical abuse, one in three (33.9%) emotional abuse and one in 10 (10.6%) sexual abuse. Abused women were 64.1 (CI 44.4,94.1) times more likely to have ever been afraid of any partner than non-abused women. Of women in current relationships (n=1,344), 8.0% self-reported physical or emotional or sexual abuse in the past 12 months and 1.5% all three types of abuse. Associations of abuse included being younger (<60 years), separated or divorced, having a history of child abuse or domestic violence between their parents. Conclusion: Partner abuse is very common in women attending general practices and clinicians need to be alert to possible indications of partner abuse (age, marital status, past history of abuse). [source]


Overcoming the barriers to disclosure and inquiry of partner abuse for women attending general practice

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 5 2001
Kelsey L. Hegarty
Objectives: To determine the barriers to and rates of disclosure of partner abuse by women attending GPs. Methods: In a qualitative study, abused Melbourne women were interviewed about their experiences with GPs. Following this, adult women attending a random sample of Brisbane general practices were surveyed. Multivariate analyses were conducted on the data, using levels of disclosure and GP inquiry adjusting for cluster effect to obtain prevalence rate ratios. Results: Thirty-seven per cent of the survey participants (n=1836, response rate 78.5%) admitted to having ever experienced abuse in an adult intimate relationship. One-third (36.7%) of these abused women (n=674) had ever told a GP and 87.8% had never been asked by their GP about partner abuse. Women who disclosed were almost twice as likely than women who have not: to be middle aged, have experienced combined physical, emotional and sexual abuse and be afraid of their partner. They were more than twice as likely to have been asked about abuse. A GP's good communication skills facilitated disclosure. The main barriers to disclosure were that women saw the problem as their own i.e. internal barriers. The data from the qualitative study (n=20) are used to illustrate these findings. Conclusion: Educational interventions that improve GPs' communication skills might result in increased disclosure and early intervention in partner abuse. GPs need sensitive attitudes, greater skills, knowledge and support to manage the consequences of disclosure. [source]


Violence against pregnant women: prevalence and characteristics.

BJOG : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS & GYNAECOLOGY, Issue 9 2005
A population-based study in Nicaragua
Objective This study aims to estimate the prevalence and characteristics of partner abuse during pregnancy as well as to investigate associated social factors in León, Nicaragua. Design Cross-sectional community-based study. Setting All pregnant women from 50 randomly selected geographical clusters out of 208 in the municipality of León, Nicaragua. Sample A total of 478 pregnant women were included; only one woman refused to participate. Method The domestic violence questionnaire from the WHO-co-ordinated Multi-Country Study on Women's Health and Life Events was used with each participant being interviewed twice during pregnancy. Main outcome measures Prevalence and characteristics of partner violence during pregnancy. Results The prevalence of emotional, physical and sexual abuse during pregnancy was 32.4%, 13.4% and 6.7%, respectively. Seventeen percent reported experience of all three forms of violence. Two-thirds of the victims reported repeated abuse. Half of the abused women had experienced punches and kicks directed towards the abdomen and 93% had been injured. Most women had not sought health care in relation to the abuse, but those who did were usually hospitalised. Factors such as women's age below 20 years, poor access to social resources and high levels of emotional distress were independently associated with violence during pregnancy. Conclusion Violence against pregnant women in Nicaragua is common and often repeated. Although these women have poor access to social resources and high levels of emotional distress, they are rarely assisted by the health services. Innovative strategies are needed to provide support and counselling. [source]