Continuous Traumatic Stress: Examining the Experiences and Support Needs of Women After Separation From an Abusive Partner.

Intimate partner violence causes significant, long-lasting harm to almost one-third (27%) of the world's population of women. Even when women leave abusive relationships, some men continue to exercise control over their ex-partners through psychological control, threats, violence, stalking, and other forms of harassment. In this qualitative study, 52 purposively sampled women who self-identified as victims or survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) from male partners were interviewed. Data were analyzed with a theoretically informed thematic analysis, supported by Nvivo® software. We found that leaving a violent relationship was a long-term process fraught with difficulty and ongoing risks of psychological harm. The concept of Continuous Traumatic Stress (CTS), first developed to understand the impact of state-sponsored violence and war, was found to be a particularly useful tool for the analysis of the impact of post-separation abuse. Additionally, CTS encourages researchers and practitioners to think anew about resilience-centered approaches to improving protection and access to justice for female victims.

Understanding Violence Against Women in the Caribbean Through an Exploration of Men's Perspectives.

Qualitative research with 60 males (16-80 years) from two Caribbean countries was carried out to explore men's perspectives on domestic violence (DV). An inductive latent/thematic approach to data analysis supported by analytic software led to five key domains being identified: (1) meanings of violence; (2) patrinormative culture; (3) normalization of violence; (4) male victimization; and (5) blame attribution and empathy. Patriarchal values, together with childhood exposure to violence, were found to reduce empathic capacity and contribute to the normalization of DV. In addition, the minimization of male victimization and the lack of behavior-change support services for men were identified as contributory factors.

Child Sexual Abuse as Lifespan Trauma Within the Context of Intimate Partner Violence: Experiences of Caribbean Women.

Background: There is a dearth of research which explores sexual abuse from perspectives of Caribbean women, despite its high prevalence in the region. While sexual violence is universal, tackling it requires a deep understanding of the contextual specificities in which it arises and of the intersections of gender with other sources of oppression and marginalisation. It also calls for the recognition that intimate partner violence against women is not separate from, but linked to violence against girls, not only because both are forms of gender-based violence but because together they speak to its historical, persistent and accumulative effects. Methods: In-depth intensive interviews were carried out with 35 women from Barbados and Grenada, aged 18-60 years who had experienced intimate partner violence under one of the following circumstances: during pregnancy (n = 15), as a woman a with disability (n = 8), as a woman living with HIV (n = 12). Interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed and thematically analyzed. Results: The participants experienced multiple forms of violence within their relationships, often concurrently. Twenty-one of the women had been subject to sexual violence and of these, 19 had experienced sexual abuse as children; these experiences were viewed as interconnected and bolstered by the high level of violence-acceptance reported within communities. Women were subject to different forms of control by their partners depending upon prevailing discourses related to their circumstances (as pregnant, disabled, or HIV positive); being 'vulnerable' was synonymous with having one's agency as an independent, autonomous person constrained and little external help was available. Conclusion: The study identified a clear chain of sexual behaviors, each of which fuel different layers of the problem: the prevalence of early sexualization of children is associated with the prevalence of child sexual abuse; child sexual abuse is pervasive in large part, because of the normalisation and social acceptance of violence against women and girls; "cultural" normalcy, in turn, fuels attitudes which contribute to sexual violence against women and women in especially vulnerable circumstances face additional risks. Integrated policy, which tackles these as interconnected issues is called for.

Gender-Based Violence-Supportive Cognitions in Adolescent Girls and Boys: The Function of Violence Exposure and Victimization.

Violence against women and girls is widespread in the Caribbean, which may be due to heightened acceptance of such acts in this specific social context. In spite of this, studies investigating attitudes toward violence and their correlates among participants drawn from the region are missing. To address this void in the literature, we examined associations between violence exposure and victimization and two gender-based violence-related cognitions (attitudes toward male physical domestic violence and social norms regarding physical violence against girls) as well as general beliefs about violence using structural equation modeling. Participants were a sample of adolescent girls (n = 661; M age = 13.15) and boys (n = 639; M age = 13.22) from two Eastern Caribbean countries, Barbados and Grenada, recruited from 10 primary schools, nine secondary schools, and two youth offender centers. In considering that girls and boys were previously demonstrated to differ in their experiences as well as tolerance of violence, structural models were specified and tested separately for the two sexes. Results indicated that violence victimization was positively strongly associated with attitudes toward male physical domestic violence and social norms regarding physical violence against girls among boys. Increased violence victimization among girls, in turn, correlated with increased acceptance of social norms regarding physical violence against girls, but this relationship was weak. Violence exposure did not have any significant associations with any of the attitudinal variables included in the study. We discuss the importance of these findings for the development of appropriate gender-based violence prevention strategies for youths from the Eastern Caribbean.

Is Female Psychopathy Linked with Child Abuse? An Empirical Investigation using a Person-Centered Approach.

Childhood abuse is associated with increased psychopathic features among girls, but most prior research is based on data from correctional samples of female delinquents and less is known about how specific forms of childhood abuse affect specific features of psychopathy. Using a school-based community sample of 696 girls aged 9-17 years from Barbados and Grenada, the current study examined latent profiles of psychopathic personality traits and their associations with physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. Latent profile analysis (LPA) revealed four distinct psychopathy groups among girls, including a 'low psychopathy' group (41.9% of girls), 'high psychopathy' group (4.8%), 'high interpersonal manipulation and egocentricity' group (37.4%), and a 'moderate psychopathy' group (16%). There was considerable evidence of physical abuse, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse among participants. Sexual abuse was associated with a 116% increased likelihood of membership in the high psychopathy group and a 57% increased likelihood of membership in the high interpersonal manipulation and egocentricity group. These results indicate that sexual abuse is a powerful distal factor in the development of psychopathic personality functioning, especially more severe variants.

Profiles and behavioral consequences of child abuse among adolescent girls and boys from Barbados and Grenada.

The current study used latent class analysis to uncover groups of youths with specific abuse (physical, emotional, and sexual) profiles in and outside the family, and identify how membership in each abuse group is associated with behavioral outcomes. Data were collected among a sample of male (n = 662; Mage = 13.02 years) and female (n = 689; Mage = 12.95 years) children and adolescents (9-17 years old) from Barbados and Grenada. Self-report surveys were completed by participants in school settings. Three latent classes of child abuse were distinguished among boys, including 'low abuse' (39.2% of the sample), 'physical and emotional abuse high outside/medium in the family' (43.2%), and 'high overall abuse' (17.6%). Among girls, four unique classes were recovered: 'low abuse' (40.7%), 'high physical and emotional abuse outside the family' (7.6%), 'high emotional and moderate physical abuse' (33.9%), and 'high overall abuse' (17.8%). Compared with members of low abuse groups, youths who reported having experienced high/moderate levels of various forms of violence, including those who were abused in multiple ways and across the two settings ('high overall abuse'), were significantly more likely to engage in violent and hostile behavior. Abused and non-abused youths did not differ on non-violent conflict resolution skills. The significance of present findings for future research and practice is discussed.

What do we know about child abuse and neglect patterns of co-occurrence? A systematic review of profiling studies and recommendations for future research.

Latent class (LCA) and latent profile (LPA) analysis represent methodological approaches to identify subgroups of maltreated individuals. Although research examining child abuse and neglect (CAN) profiles is still rare, the application of person-centered techniques to clarify CAN types co-occurrence has substantially increased in recent years. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to provide a summary and critical evaluation of the findings of LCA/LPA child maltreatment research to: (a) systemize the current understanding of patterns of maltreatment across populations and (b) elucidate interactive effects of CAN types on psychosocial functioning. A search in PsychInfo, Eric, PubMed, Scopus, and Science Direct, and Google Scholar was performed. Sixteen studies examining the co-occurrence between child physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, and/or exposure to domestic violence were identified. A critical review of the studies revealed inconsistent findings as to the number of CAN classes, but most research uncovered a poly-victimized and a low abuse group. Further, multiple victimization was associated with most adverse internalizing and externalizing outcomes, especially when sexual abuse was present. Exposure to physical and emotional abuse was frequently reported to lead to behavioural problems. Based on the present study results, we provide a set of recommendations for surpassing the current methodological and conceptual limitations in future research.

National Human Research Ethics: A Preliminary Comparative Case Study of Germany, Great Britain, Romania, and Sweden.

Although international research is increasing in volume and importance, there remains a dearth of knowledge on similarities and differences in "national human research ethics" (NHREs), that is, national ethical guidelines (NEGs), Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), and research stakeholder' ethical attitudes and behaviors (EABs). We begin to address this situation by reporting upon our experiences in conducting a multinational study into the mental health of children who had a parent/carer in prison. The study was conducted in 4 countries: Germany, Great Britain, Romania, and Sweden. Data on NHREs were gathered via a questionnaire survey, two ethics-related seminars, and ongoing contact between members of the research consortium. There was correspondence but even more so divergence between countries in the availability of NEGs and IRBs and in researcher' EABs. Differences in NHREs have implications particularly in terms of harmonization but also for ethical philosophy and practice and for research integrity.