Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence Amongst Women of Reproductive Age in Lagos,Nigeria: Prevalence and Predictors

Research on predictors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in Sub-Saharan Africa is contradictory, necessitating further investigation. This study sought the prevalence and predictors of IPV among women in Lagos, Nigeria. Questionnaire data from 934 women visiting an obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Lagos were analyzed using multivariable methods. The 1 year prevalence of IPV was 29%, with significant proportions reporting psychological (23%), physical (9%) and sexual (8%) abuse. In-access to information, women’s autonomy and contribution to household expenses independently predicted IPV. The findings provide new incites for IPV prevention in Lagos with implications for further research.     

Expanding ‘Community’ in the Community Response to Intimate Partner Violence

Community coordination refers to a formalized system of collaboration between various social service agencies to help meet the needs of specific populations. In cases of intimate partner violence (IPV), community coordination includes a system of policies, information sharing, and referrals between the criminal justice system and counseling centers and shelters for survivors. The life model of social work practice suggests that social workers utilize both formal and informal groups as environmental resources for clients. In an effort to address the failures of community coordinated responses to IPV, community needs to be reconceptualized to include these additional groups, especially employers.     

Participation in Laboratory Research Result in Emotional Distress with One’s Partner: Comparing Violent and Nonviolent Couples

The present study compared impact of participating in laboratory research assessments on couples experiencing partner violence and nonviolent couples. Across two studies, 192 couples participated in a variety of potentially distressing laboratory procedures, including discussing relationship problems, viewing videotapes of their discussions, and completing questionnaires about personal and relationship problems. At the end of each laboratory session, participants rated their emotions about their partners as a result of having participated in the study procedures. Couples, recruited from the community, were placed into one of three groups: experiencing violence (V), nonviolent but maritally distressed (NVD), and nonviolent and nondistressed (NVND). Overall, study participants did not report high levels of negative feelings toward their spouses at the end of lab sessions. Few differences between V and NVD spouses were statistically significant, suggesting that violent spouses are not at greater risk than NVD spouses for negative feelings following study participation, although the finding of greater fear among V partners in one study deserves future attention. Relative to V and NVD couples, happy couples reported more positive and fewer negative feelings; NVD wives were the most likely to report negative emotions, in sessions involving a marital problem discussion. These findings can be used in discussions with Institutional Review Boards about the potential risks of laboratory procedures for violent couples recruited from the community.

The Police Reporting Behavior of Intimate Partner Violence Victims

In the current research, we draw on Canadian national data to examine the police reporting decisions of married and cohabiting intimate partner violence victims. Our analyses examine how police notification decisions are influenced by the demographic characteristics of victims and incident-specific factors. We find that the victims who contact the police more often live in a cohabiting relationship and with children. In contrast to predictions, we find that visible minority women more often call the police. Income, education, and employment status do not appear to shape the police reporting decisions of women. Finally, women who call the police are also likely to have experienced severe forms of violence including threats with weapons, injury, and the destruction of their property.     

警务危机谈判员的选拔模式初探

随着谈判理念的深入,培训工作的铺开,谈判组工作机制的建立,谈判事业要从一个经验型的时代走向科学型的时代,选拔工作需要规范化和专业化。应从谈判功能应该分区域、岗位角色应该具体化和岗位职责应该轮换的角度去阐述危机谈判员选拔的指导思想。综合国内外实践情况,阐述了一个四步走的基本选拔模式。     

经济全球化背景下我国银行业经营体制的重构

经济全球化是21世纪世界经济最显著的特征。中国加入WTO标志着更加全面深入地融入世界经济。在经济全 球化背景下,中国现有的银行业经营体制必将面临根本变革。这种变革既是对其历史选择的必然结果,也是对其 经济透视、法律分析的必然结论。     

加入WTO后西北地区产业技术选择的可能模式初探

本文较为系统的分析了我国加入WTO后 ,西北地区所面临的来自发达国家和地区的产业挤压 ,西北地区难以按常规模式发展的原因 ,以及西北地区重新进行技术选择的原则和可能条件。初步探讨了西北地区技术选择的模式。     

Partner Assaultive Men and the Stages and Processes of Change

Researchers have recently suggested that the Transtheoretical Model of behavior change (TTM; Prochaska, J. O. DiClemente, C. C., and Norcross, J. C., 1992, Am. Psychol. 47: 1102–1114) might help in understanding the mechanisms through which partner assaultive men attempt to change their abusive behavior. In the present study, we present data from 2 psychometrically sound scales designed to assess the stages and processes of change in a cross-sectional sample of 250 men attending 2 batterer's intervention and prevention programs: the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment Scale for Domestic Violence (URICA-DV; Levesque, D. A., Gelles, R. J., and Velicer, W. F., 2000, Cog. Therapy Res. 24: 175–200), which assesses movement through the stages of change, and the Processes of Change Scale (POC), developed by the authors to assess self-reported usage of behavior change processes. Cross-validated cluster analyses indicated a three-cluster solution based upon URICA-DV scores: Immotive, Unprepared Action, and Preparticipation. Results indicated that individuals in more advanced stages of change reported using more behavior change processes, although this did not appear to result from being in treatment for a longer period of time. These data are interpreted in light of recent data indicating relatively small effect sizes for batterer's treatment programs and how assessment of the stages and processes of change might assist in matching men to different levels of treatment.     

促进我国环境产业发展的政策取向

在加入WTO更加开放的背景下,我国超越“环保产业”的狭义内涵,发展与国际接轨的更加广义的“环境产业”已是大势所趋。环境产业是政策依赖性较强的产业,因此,必须改变我国相关政策体系对环境产业促进作用低效的现状,围绕培育环境产业市场体系和机制、扶持有效供给、拉动有效需求等,完善政策体系,提高政策的有效性。这是促进环境产业实现跨越式发展,成为我国新技术创新的动力和新的生产力增长点的重要基础。     

A Multidimensional Definition of Partner Abuse: Development and Preliminary Validation of the Composite Abuse Scale

The lack of definitional consistency about domestic violence and the absence of a well-validated comprehensive abuse screening questionnaire have been major methodological flaws in domestic violence research. While there are several screening questionnaires in use, they either are narrowly defined and do not have discrete measures of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse or have not been validated on both abused and nonabused samples. This study presents the development and preliminary validation of a new partner abuse screening questionnaire (Composite Abuse Scale; CAS). Items measuring the three areas of partner abuse were extracted from four published scales: the Conflict Tactics Scale, Measure of Wife Abuse, Inventory of Spouse Abuse, and Psychological Maltreatment of Women Inventory. A survey using these items was sent to all nurses working at a large Australian public, inner-city teaching hospital. Factor analyses of the responses of 427 participants revealed four dimensions: Severe Combined Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Physical Abuse, and Harassment. Preliminary evidence is presented on validity and a high scale reliability is reported fof each subscale.