Immigrant and refugee women are at high risk for intimate partner violence (IPV) and intimate partner homicide (IPH). Given the growing number of immigrants and refugees in the US and the concerns about IPV and IPH among immigrant and refugee groups, this paper aims to identify survivors and practitioners’ perceptions of a) common and culturally specific risk and protective factors for IPV and IPH for immigrant and refugee women and b) areas of safety planning interventions for survivors who are at risk for severe or lethal violence by an intimate partner. Qualitative data for this multi-site study were collected from women and practitioners residing in seven geographically diverse US locations. Eighty-three in-depth interviews were conducted with adult immigrant and refugee survivors of IPV, who identified as Asian (n=30), Latina (n=30), and African (n=23). Additionally, nine focus groups and five key informant interviews were conducted with practitioners (n=62) who serve immigrant and refugee survivors of IPV. Results revealed multilevel risk and protective factors for IPV/IPH found at the societal-level (e.g., patriarchal cultural norms), relationship-level (e.g., partner abusive behaviors), and individual-level (e.g., acculturation in the US). These findings can inform the development of culturally responsive risk assessment and safety planning interventions across legal, social service, and healthcare settings.

Domestic violence shelters have historically gone beyond providing emergency residential space for survivors by assisting in obtaining future housing, employment, health care, child care, or legal services. Domestic violence shelters are expected to operate within an empowerment philosophy, with an understanding that survivors are self-determining, can identify their needs, and know what it takes to meet those needs. Recent research has indicated that, as many shelters have become more rigid in creating rules that survivors must follow to access and retain free temporary housing, the result has been survivors' feelings of disempowerment, the complete opposite of what was originally intended. This study builds on the small amount of research conducted regarding survivors' experiences of shelter rules by specifically examining how rules were perceived to affect empowerment. Seventy-three survivors from two domestic violence shelters were asked about their experiences around specific shelter rules relating to curfew, parenting, chores, time limits, food, alcohol, drugs, and medications. A transcendental phenomenological approach was used to analyze the qualitative data, seeking explanations of how survivors made meaning of the rules and how those rules influenced their empowerment. Among those survivors who found the rules problematic, three major themes emerged: (a) rules acted as barriers to carrying out their normal, day-to-day activities; (b) the shelter staff's flexibility with rules was based on contingencies; and (c) rules negatively affected their psychological well-being, and required them to engage in protective behaviors. Recommendations are made for the reexamination and restructuring of rules within domestic violence shelters.

No abstract

Research illustrates the importance of help-seeking for intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors. However, mandatory reporting (MR) laws can affect help-seeking by requiring some sources of support to report survivors to formal systems. This convergent mixed methods study of 2462 survivors surveyed through the National Domestic Violence Hotline explores how MR laws impact survivors' help-seeking, the outcomes of their help-seeking, and whether their race, gender, and/or sexual orientation influenced their experiences. Findings indicated that MR laws reduce help-seeking for over a third of survivors, provider warnings about MR often reduce survivors' ability to receive the support they seek, and reports when triggered make the situation worse for most survivors. Significant differences emerged by gender identity and race/ethnicity, emphasizing unique contexts for trans and gender non-conforming survivors and survivors of color. We provide policy and practice implications given these unintended harms of MR laws for IPV survivors.

The purpose of community-based domestic violence crisis housing programs (e.g., shelters) is to provide a safe setting that promotes empowerment for survivors of intimate partner violence. For staff to reach this aim, the program must have formal structures and processes in place to support such efforts. This study explored how low-barrier and voluntary service policies influenced staff practices and survivor empowerment. Low-barrier policies require that programs remove barriers that prevent survivors, particularly those who have mental health concerns and/or addictions, from being able to access services. A voluntary service policy states that survivors have the right to choose which services, if any, they would like to engage in during their stay at the program. Survivors' ability to stay at the housing program is not contingent on their participation in program services. This exploratory-sequential (QUAL→ quan) mixed-method study examined how low-barrier and voluntary service policies influenced staff behavior and how these behaviors then related to survivor empowerment. Qualitative results revealed that low-barrier and voluntary service were guided by cultural values of justice and access, encouraged survivor-centered practices among staff, and were believed to promote survivor autonomy. Quantitative results suggested that when survivors perceived they had a choice to engage in program services or meet with an advocate, their empowerment increased. This study has implications for domestic violence organizational practice and provides evidence about the contextual factors that support individual empowerment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).