Attitudes and beliefs about domestic violence: results of a public opinion survey: I. Definitions of domestic violence, criminal domestic violence, and prevalence

This study reports analyses and findings from a public opinion survey designed to explore beliefs about domestic violence (DV)-what it is, when it is against the law, and how prevalent it is. The project interviewed 1,200 residents from six New York communities. The analyses reveal substantial firsthand and secondhand experience with DV and strong consensus that acts of physical aggression should be labeled as DV, but substantially less certainty about the illegality of the abusive behaviors. Overall, the respondents were less inclined to define women's aggressive behavior in pejorative or unlawful terms than men's. Respondents believed that DV was common in their communities, and that it affected a significant minority of couples. Multivariate analyses provide little support for conventional wisdom about the impact of socioeconomic background on tolerance for or knowledge about DV, although gender, generation, and secondhand familiarity with DV incidents play a role in opinions and beliefs.     

Measures and mechanisms to strengthen international cooperation among prosecution services

International cooperation among prosecution services is an urgent necessity and cooperation mechanisms are evolving rapidly to keep pace with new technologies. Their evolution over the last decade or so reflects the new determination of States to work more closely with each other to face the growing threats of organized crime, corruption and terrorism. Because of the dynamic nature of these crimes, Member States must constantly refine and perfect their strategies. Yet, in spite of the considerable progress achieved at the bilateral, regional, and international levels, international cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of serious crimes still needs considerable strengthening. This paper reviews some key issues, trends, and innovative practices with respect to both formal and informal international cooperation in criminal matters. It considers some of the practical issues that have recently emerged during the implementation of these measures and strategies as well as some of the solutions that are being advanced.     

Patterns of injuries in domestic violence in a romanian population

In Romania, the quantification of traumatic injuries is achieved in medical- legal services; therefore, each domestic violence (DV) victim needs a medical-legal certificate to prove in a court of law the presence of traumatic injuries. In this study, we aimed to determine the pattern of traumatic injuries in DV. A total of 219 consecutive DV cases were included. For each victim, a detailed medical-legal examination was performed, including specialized consults, if needed. Results were analyzed statistically using the SPSS software. Traumatic injuries in DV cases were usually located in the head, face, and neck areas and had a low severity index. Severe lesions were found in less than 10% and no sexual aggression was found. The severity increases with age and is higher for males than females. The pattern of DV-associated injuries we have encountered is similar to the one found in other similar studies. Knowing this pattern may be useful in clinical practice to detect cases of DV.     

Trends in understanding and addressing domestic violence

This article is a response to three questions posed by the editor about past and future research on interpersonal violence by focusing in this essay on domestic violence:(a) What is the most important thing we have learned about this social problem in the last 20 years, (b) what is the most important thing we need to learn about it in the next 10 years, and (c) what is the most promising methodological innovation in the last 20 years for the study or treatment of domestic violence? This assessment suggests that the field has witnessed considerable advances in domestic violence research and policy but that many as yet untapped opportunities exist to improve both knowledge and practice.     

Exposure to interpersonal violence as a predictor of PTSD symptomatology in domestic violence survivors

This study examines the interrelationships between childhood abuse, exposure to maternal domestic violence, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology in a multiethnic sample of 111 adult female residents of a domestic violence (DV) shelter. Participants completed structured interviews about the DV and their prior violence exposure, as well as the Impact of Event Scale-Revised. As hypothesized, there was high co-occurrence between exposure to maternal DV and childhood physical and sexual abuse, and the frequency of lifetime violence exposure predicted PTSD symptomatology. A series of multiple regressions indicated a more complex pattern of relationships, in which specific forms of prior violence exposure predicted different PTSD symptom dimensions. A history of witnessing maternal DV predicted intrusion symptoms, and a history of childhood sexual abuse predicted hyperarousal symptoms. Ethnicity was not related to levels of violence exposure or to PTSD symptoms. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Injuries of women and men in a treatment program for domestic violence

Both conflict tactics and injuries resulting from marital violence were assessed for both members of the dyad in a sample of 180 couples referred to a treatment program for domestic violence in three military bases. Though both men and women reported engaging in topographically similar aggressive acts, the percentage of women reporting injuries, especially severe injuries, was much higher than the corresponding percentage of men. Injuries were also related to use of more severe aggressive behaviors as assessed by the Conflict Tactics Scale. These results provide support for conceptualizations of spouse abuse which stress the importance of addressing impact dimensions of aggression in addition to topographic dimensions in comparing this phenomenon across genders.     

惩防家庭暴力建构和谐家庭——多维视角下的家庭暴力问题

家庭是社会的细胞,在构建社会主义和谐社会的历史背景下,认真反思并全面破解家庭暴力问题,其理论意义和现实意义均格外重大。文章从经济、社会、文化、历史、法律等角度对家庭暴力问题作出了解读,希冀全面准确地揭示家庭暴力的内涵、根源与防治对策。     

“公诉转自诉”案件中之自诉权探微

分析“公诉转自诉”制度设置的合理性和存在缺陷，并在此基础上从制度保障和救济措施两方面提出立法建议。     

Psychopathology in women arrested for domestic violence

This study examined the prevalence of psychopathology among women arrested for violence and whether the experience of intimate partner violence (IPV) was associated with Axis I psychopathology. Women who were arrested for domestic violence perpetration and court referred to violence intervention programs (N= 103) completed measures of IPV victimization, perpetration, and psychopathology. Results revealed high rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder, substance use disorders, borderline personality disorder, and antisocial personality disorder. Violence victimization was significantly associated with symptoms of psychopathology. Logistic regression analyses showed that sexual and psychological abuse by partners were associated with the presence of PTSD, depression, and GAD diagnoses. Results highlight the potential importance of the role of violence victimization in psychopathology. Results suggest that Axis I and Axis II psychopathology should routinely be assessed as part of violence intervention programs for women and that intervention programs could be improved by offering adjunct or integrated mental health treatment.     

Culture and interpersonal violence research: paradigm shift to create a full continuum of domestic violence services

This article addresses the importance of culture within the context of domestic violence. It takes the position that to work more effectively with diverse cultural groups, the development of a full continuum of services that includes eliminating the violence and keeping families together is required. The authors believe that intervention models developed in the fields of HIV/AIDS may provide important examples for future work.     

Digital photographic evidence and the adjudication of domestic violence cases

This study reported the impact of digital photographic evidence on domestic violence case outcomes in two Indiana counties. It analyzed whether outcomes differed between cases with digital photographic evidence (treatment group) and cases with no photographic evidence (comparison group). Examined impacts included guilty pleas, convictions, and sentence severity. Data included in the analysis came from case files and police and prosecutor interviews. Findings suggest that digital photographic evidence can be a useful prosecutorial tool – treatment group members were more likely to plead guilty, be convicted, and receive more severe sentences.     

Finding common ground in the study of child maltreatment, youth violence, and adult domestic violence

For several decades, we have witnessed a surge in public policies aimed at ending child maltreatment, youth violence, and adult domestic violence. Commensurate with this increased interest has been a growing body of research on each issue's etiology, affected population, and the public policy and prevention impacts. Even a cursory review of the literature suggests a number of commonalities across these forms of violence. As such, it seems timely and prudent to craft a research framework that facilitates the identification and dissemination of practice and policy innovations that can address all three concerns. This article articulates an overarching framework to guide researchers in better identifying common avenues of study. After summarizing the commonalities found across the three areas, the authors identify cross-cutting issues that have particular relevance for advancing our understanding of violence and its effects on personal and social interactions.     

Coordinated community response to family violence: the role of domestic violence service organizations

There is increasing awareness that domestic violence (DV) and child maltreatment often overlap and that there are significant negative consequences to women and children who are victims in the same families. The present study contains data from a participatory evaluation of a multisite national demonstration project on family violence (the Greenbook Initiative), funded jointly by the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services and Justice. The goal of this initiative was to increase community capacity to assist dually victimized families. This article focuses on the DV service organizations in the demonstration with regard to collaborations with other agencies and work within the DV system to respond to dually victimized families. Findings suggest that DV agencies participated in leadership roles, cross-system collaborations, and cross-system trainings throughout the initiative. Within-agency practice changes were less apparent. Research and policy implications are discussed.     

Domestic violence: A national study of the nature, size and effects of domestic violence in the Netherlands

This article reports on a large-scale nation-wide study conducted by Intomart among 1,000 randomly selected Dutch adults (male and female) about their experiences with domestic violence. An important goal of the survey was to generate general information on domestic violence. It turns out that nearly half of the Dutch population (45%) has at one time been a victim of some form of non-incidental domestic violence. It was also demonstrated that both men and women become victims of domestic violence, and the high percentages of victimization during childhood are particularly striking. Furthermore, it turned out that domestic violence often involves a combination of physical, mental and sexual forms of violence.     

Empirical Research of the Court's Role in Combating Domestic Violence ——Take grassroot people's court of Chongqing City one district hearing domestic violence cases as example

通过实证调研,其结果显示家庭暴力的发生率仍然较高,并且当事人呈现出性别、年龄、职业等方面的特点.人民法院在涉家庭暴力案件的审理过程中,既有家庭暴力认定、举证责任分配、人身安全保护裁定送达、调解方法上的有益经验,也面临着防治家庭暴力立法及反家庭暴力联动机制不完善、人身安全保护裁定的局限性、取证难等一些困境.建议我国尽快制定一部统一的“家庭暴力防治法”,在加强防治家庭暴力宣传的同时,明确规范各相关部门的职责与责任,加强各部门之间的联动协作.     

11例老年人在家庭暴力中所受损伤分析

我国已开始呈现老龄化的趋势，老年人的问题已日益成为社会的主要问题。由于老年人的特定生理、社会特征，使得他们在社会上常常成为犯罪的攻击目标，在家庭内，常常受到成年子女的虐待。本文试图从法医学角度探讨老年人在家庭暴力中所受损伤的特点，为有效的保障和维护老年人的合法权益，提出参考性意见。资料和结果1．资料入选对象符合下列条件：年龄50岁以上；家庭暴力伤害案件中，损伤后存活；有详细的案情记录和法医完整的体检记录。2．结果（1）被害人的情况：从我室1996年度1000例法医学鉴定中，筛选出家暴案件54例，其中有11例符合…     

Mental and physical health symptoms of family court intimate partner violence petitioners

This paper explores the impact of intimate partner violence on victim health and proposes interdisciplinary coordination between legal and mental health services as a means to assist victims. Data was collected from 95 female petitioners at an upstate New York Domestic Violence Intensive Intervention Court (DVIIC). Study participants completed surveys on physical health, mental health, and social functioning. Survey results demonstrated decreased mental health and social functioning as well as a strong willingness to utilize court-based mental health services if offered. Findings from this study support court-based settings as appropriate sites for addressing mental health needs through collaborative efforts between legal and mental health professionals.