Douglas A. Brownridge

Partner Violence Against Women With Disabilities Prevalence, Risk, and Explanations

Using a representative sample of 7,027 Canadian women living in a marital or common-law union, this investigation examined the risk for partner violence against women with disabilities relative to women without disabilities. Women with disabilities had 40% greater odds of violence in the 5 years preceding the interview, and these women appeared to be at particular risk for severe violence. An explanatory framework was tested that organized variables based on relationship factors, victim-related characteristics, and perpetrator-related characteristics. Results showed that perpetrator-related characteristics alone accounted for the elevated risk of partner violence against women with disabilities. Stakeholders must recognize the problem of partner violence against women with disabilities, and efforts to address patriarchal domination and male sexual proprietariness appear crucial to reducing their risk of partner violence.

Prevalence of Dating Partner Violence and Suicidal Ideation Among Male and Female University Students Worldwide

This paper presents findings from the International Dating Violence study regarding the prevalence of physical assault, sexual coercion, and suicidal ideation among university students and explores the relationships between suicidal ideation and dating violence. Nearly 16,000 university students from 22 sites in 21 countries were recruited through convenience sampling. The results showed that although there were large differences between countries, the lowest rates of dating violence were still quite high. Male and female students were remarkably similar in the proportion of those who physically assaulted a partner or reported being a victim of sexual coercion. Correlation analysis revealed that perpetrators and victims of physical assault had an increased rate of suicidal ideation. Depression accounted for the relationship between dating violence and suicidal ideation. This study highlights a need for the development of universal screening and targeted services for violence, depression, and suicide prevention.

The impact of psychological abuse by an intimate partner on the mental health of pregnant women

Objective  The objective of this first population‐based study in Hong Kong was to assess the impact of psychological abuse by an intimate partner on the mental health of pregnant women.

The relationship of gambling to intimate partner violence and child maltreatment in a nationally representative sample

It has been suggested that family violence is associated with gambling problems. However, to date, this relationship has not been thoroughly investigated using representative data. The purpose of the current study was to analyze the relationship between gambling problems and the perpetration and victimization of intimate partner violence (including dating and marital violence) and child maltreatment (including minor child assault and severe child abuse) using nationally representative data. Data were drawn from the US National Comorbidity Survey Replication (n=3334; 18years and older). Multiple logistic and multinomial logistic regression models were used to examine the relationships between gambling and the perpetration and victimization of dating violence, marital violence, and child maltreatment. The results indicated that problem gambling was associated with increased odds of the perpetration of dating violence (Adjusted Odds Ratios (AORs) ranged from 2.2 to 4.2), while pathological gambling was associated with increased odds of the perpetration of dating violence (AORs ranged from 5.7 to 11.9), severe marital violence (AOR=20.4), and severe child abuse (AOR=13.2). Additionally, dating violence, marital violence, and severe child abuse victimization were associated with increased odds of gambling problems. The results were attenuated when adjusted for lifetime mental disorders. These findings can be used as evidence-based research to inform healthy public gambling polices and inform prevention and intervention efforts.

A longitudinal study of the effects of child maltreatment on later outcomes among high-risk adolescents

The current study longitudinally examines the effects of child maltreatment, parenting, and disadvantaged neighborhood on victimization, delinquency, and well-being via running away and school engagement among a sample of 360 high-risk adolescents. Results of a path analysis revealed that parenting was associated with school engagement, running away, and well-being. Childhood neglect was related to victimization while sexual abuse and living in a more disadvantaged neighborhood were associated with poorer well-being. Greater school engagement was associated with higher levels of well-being and a lower likelihood of delinquency. Finally, running away was positively associated with participating in delinquent activities. In terms of the interactions, results showed that the effect of positive parenting on well-being was significantly stronger for females and the manner in which neglect related to school engagement was greater among males. Additionally, gender significantly moderated the relationship between running away and victimization and between running away and delinquency, both of which the effects were significantly stronger for males. Implications for families and adolescents are addressed.

Understanding the Elevated Risk of Partner Violence Against Aboriginal Women: A Comparison of Two Nationally Representative Surveys of Canada

Using two large-scale representative samples of Canada collected in 1999 and 2004, this study examined Aboriginal women’s elevated risk for violent victimization relative to non-Aboriginal women. Aboriginal women had about four times the odds of experiencing violence compared to non-Aboriginal women in both surveys. In general, there were fewer differences in the impact of risk factors between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women in the 2004 than the 1999 survey, resulting in risk factors accounting for less of Aboriginal women’s elevated odds of experiencing violence in the 2004 than the 1999 survey. In both surveys, controlling for all available risk factors did not fully account for Aboriginal women’s elevated odds of experiencing violence. Results were consistent with the theory that much of Aboriginal women’s elevated odds of violent victimization may be linked to colonization. Future research is needed to provide direct evidence of a connection between cultural loss and Aboriginal women’s elevated odds of violent victimization.

Violence Against Women : Vulnerable Populations

Section 1. Violence against women in relationships Section 2. Violence against women in public spaces Section 3. Violence against women in institutions Section 4. Violence against women in the family.

The Elevated Risk for Non-Lethal Post-Separation Violence in Canada A Comparison of Separated, Divorced, and Married Women

The purpose of the study was to shed light on the potentially differing dynamics of violence against separated and divorced women by their ex-husbands and violence against married women by their current husbands. Using a nationally representative sample of 7,369 heterosexual women from Cycle 13 of Statistics Canadas General Social Survey, available risk markers were examined in the context of a nested ecological framework. Separated women reported nine times the prevalence of violence and divorced women reported about four times the prevalence of violence compared with married women. The strongest predictors of violence against married women, namely, patriarchal domination, sexual jealousy, and possessiveness, were not significant predictors of violence against separated and divorced women. This suggested that post-separation violence is a complex phenomenon the dynamics of which can be affected by much more than domination and ownership.

Double jeopardy?: Violence against immigrant women in Canada

Using a theoretical synthesis based in Nested Ecological Theory, the study fills a gap in the extant literature through an investigation of the prevalence and causes of violence against immigrant women in Canada. Based on a representative sample of 7,115 women, the results show that immigrant women from developing countries have the highest prevalence of violence. The analyses demonstrate that several variables operate differently in the production of violence against immigrant women from developed and developing nations. However, the key difference in explaining the higher prevalence of violence among those from developing countries is the sexually proprietary behavior exhibited by their partners. The results further show that sexual jealousy interacts with high female education and low male education levels in the prediction of violence among immigrant women from developing countries. Implications for future research are identified.

Cultural Variation in Male Partner Violence Against Women A Comparison of Québec With the Rest of Canada

This study investigates the question of whether Québec possesses a different culture of male partner violence against women than the rest of Canada. It is hypothesized that Québec will have a lower prevalence of violence than the rest of Canada and that men in Québec who hold patriarchal attitudes will be more likely to be violent than those who do not. Using a large-scale representative sample of Canadian women, tests provide support for both hypotheses. The key to understanding the difference in prevalence between the two cultural groups is patriarchal domination, and the common thread for interpretation of many cultural differences in risk markers is patriarchy.