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Trauma, Violence & Abuse Apr 2024Intimate partner violence (IPV) and food insecurity are global health issues that affect millions of people worldwide. Numerous studies show that IPV and food insecurity...
Intimate partner violence (IPV) and food insecurity are global health issues that affect millions of people worldwide. Numerous studies show that IPV and food insecurity are linked; however, there is a lack of synthesis of this research. Using a systematic search and review, we examined the international quantitative and qualitative research published on the link between IPV and food insecurity. We searched for peer-reviewed, English-language articles with participants above the age of 16 in 4 large online databases. Fifty-six studies were included from around the world that discussed the link between food insecurity and IPV perpetration and/or victimization. We found evidence in both qualitative and quantitative studies for a meaningful connection between these two global health isues. We also reviewed the literature on moderators and mediators (e.g., mental health). Our findings indicate the importance of implementing IPV prevention strategies which also address household food insecurity, and the potential for food insecurity resources to provide IPV resources. Future research should focus more frequently on IPV perpetration as opposed to victimization, and further examine the moderating and mediating mechanisms that inform the link between IPV and food insecurity.
Topics: Humans; Crime Victims; Food Insecurity; Intimate Partner Violence; Mental Health; Qualitative Research
PubMed: 37485673
DOI: 10.1177/15248380231186152 -
The Cochrane Database of Systematic... Jul 2023Contraception provides significant benefits for women's and children's health, yet many women have an unmet need for contraception. Rapid expansion in the use of mobile... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Contraception provides significant benefits for women's and children's health, yet many women have an unmet need for contraception. Rapid expansion in the use of mobile phones in recent years has had a dramatic impact on interpersonal communication. Within the health domain text messages and smartphone applications offer means of communication between clients and healthcare providers. This review focuses on interventions delivered by mobile phone and their effect on use of contraception.
OBJECTIVES
To evaluate the benefits and harms of mobile phone-based interventions for improving contraception use.
SEARCH METHODS
We used standard, extensive Cochrane search methods. The latest search date was August 2022.
SELECTION CRITERIA
We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of mobile phone-based interventions to improve forms of contraception use amongst users or potential users of contraception.
DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
We used standard Cochrane methods. Our primary outcomes were 1. uptake of contraception, 2. uptake of a specific method of contraception, 3. adherence to contraception method, 4. safe method switching, 5. discontinuation of contraception and 6. pregnancy or abortion. Our secondary outcomes were 7. road traffic accidents, 8. any physical or psychological effect reported and 9. violence or domestic abuse.
MAIN RESULTS
Twenty-three RCTs (12,793 participants) from 11 countries met our inclusion criteria. Eleven studies were conducted in high-income resource settings and 12 were in low-income settings. Thirteen studies used unidirectional text messaging-based interventions, six studies used interactive text messaging, four used voice message-based interventions and two used mobile-phone apps to improve contraception use. All studies received funding from non-commercial bodies. Mobile phone-based interventions probably increase contraception use compared to the control (odds ratio (OR) 1.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06 to 1.60; 16 studies, 8972 participants; moderate-certainty evidence). There may be little or no difference in rates of unintended pregnancy with the use of mobile phone-based interventions compared to control (OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.48 to 1.38; 8 trials, 2947 participants; moderate-certainty evidence). Subgroup analysis assessing unidirectional mobile phone interventions versus interactive mobile phone interventions found evidence of a difference between the subgroups favouring interactive interventions (P = 0.003, I = 88.5%). Interactive interventions had an OR of 1.71 (95% CI 1.28 to 2.29; P = 0.0003, I = 63%; 8 trials, 3089 participants) whilst unidirectional interventions had an OR of 1.03 (95% CI 0.87 to 1.22; P = 0.72, I = 17%; 9 trials, 5883 participants). Subgroup analysis assessing high-income versus low-income trial settings found no difference between groups (subgroup difference test: P = 0.70, I = 0%). Only six trials reported on safety and unintended outcomes; one trial reported increased partner violence whilst another four trials reported no difference in physical violence rates between control and intervention groups. One trial reported no road traffic accidents with mobile phone intervention use.
AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
This review demonstrates there is evidence to support the use of mobile phone-based interventions in improving the use of contraception, with moderate-certainty evidence. Interactive mobile phone interventions appear more effective than unidirectional methods. The cost-effectiveness, cost benefits, safety and long-term effects of these interventions remain unknown, as does the evidence of this approach to support contraception use among specific populations. Future research should investigate the effectiveness and safety of mobile phone-based interventions with better quality trials to help establish the effects of interventions delivered by mobile phone on contraception use. This review is limited by the quality of the studies due to flaws in methodology, bias or imprecision of results.
Topics: Child; Female; Humans; Pregnancy; Cell Phone; Communication; Contraception; Telephone; Text Messaging; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
PubMed: 37458240
DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD011159.pub3 -
Psychological Medicine Oct 2023Childhood maltreatment (CM) has been related to social functioning and social cognition impairment in people with psychotic disorders (PD); however, evidence across... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Examining associations, moderators and mediators between childhood maltreatment, social functioning, and social cognition in psychotic disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Childhood maltreatment (CM) has been related to social functioning and social cognition impairment in people with psychotic disorders (PD); however, evidence across different CM subtypes and social domains remains less clear. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to quantify associations between CM, overall and its different subtypes (physical/emotional/sexual abuse, physical/emotional neglect), and domains of social functioning and social cognition in adults with PD. We also examined moderators and mediators of these associations. A PRISMA-compliant systematic search was performed on 24 November 2022 (PROSPERO CRD42020175244). Fifty-three studies ( = 13 635 individuals with PD) were included in qualitative synthesis, of which 51 studies ( = 13 260) with 125 effects sizes were pooled in meta-analyses. We found that CM was negatively associated with global social functioning and interpersonal relations, and positively associated with aggressive behaviour, but unrelated to independent living or occupational functioning. There was no meta-analytic evidence of associations between CM and social cognition. Meta-regression analyses did not identify any consistent moderation pattern. Narrative synthesis identified sex and timing of CM as potential moderators, and depressive symptoms and maladaptive personality traits as possible mediators between CM and social outcomes. Associations were of small magnitude and limited number of studies assessing CM subtypes and social cognition are available. Nevertheless, adults with PD are at risk of social functioning problems after CM exposure, an effect observed across multiple CM subtypes, social domains, diagnoses and illness stages. Maltreated adults with PD may thus benefit from trauma-related and psychosocial interventions targeting social relationships and functioning.
Topics: Adult; Child; Humans; Child Abuse; Social Cognition; Social Interaction; Psychotic Disorders; Emotions
PubMed: 37458216
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291723001678 -
Journal of Family Violence May 2023We aimed to synthesize insights from systems science approaches applied to domestic and gender-based violence.
PURPOSE
We aimed to synthesize insights from systems science approaches applied to domestic and gender-based violence.
METHODS
We conducted a systematic review of systems science studies (systems thinking, group model-building, agent-based modeling [ABM], system dynamics [SD] modeling, social network analysis [SNA], and network analysis [NA]) applied to domestic or gender-based violence, including victimization, perpetration, prevention, and community responses. We used blinded review to identify papers meeting our inclusion criteria (i.e., peer-reviewed journal article or published book chapter that described a systems science approach to domestic or gender-based violence, broadly defined) and assessed the quality and transparency of each study.
RESULTS
Our search yielded 1,841 studies, and 74 studies met our inclusion criteria (45 SNA, 12 NA, 8 ABM, and 3 SD). Although research aims varied across study types, the included studies highlighted social network influences on risks for domestic violence, clustering of risk factors and violence experiences, and potential targets for intervention. We assessed the quality of the included studies as moderate, though only a minority adhered to best practices in model development and dissemination, including stakeholder engagement and sharing of model code.
CONCLUSIONS
Systems science approaches for the study of domestic and gender-based violence have shed light on the complex processes that characterize domestic violence and its broader context. Future research in this area should include greater dialogue between different types of systems science approaches, consideration of peer and family influences in the same models, and expanded use of best practices, including continued engagement of community stakeholders.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10896-023-00578-8.
PubMed: 37358982
DOI: 10.1007/s10896-023-00578-8 -
Journal of Family Violence Mar 2023Computational text mining methods are proposed as a useful methodological innovation in Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) research. Text mining can offer researchers... (Review)
Review
PURPOSE
Computational text mining methods are proposed as a useful methodological innovation in Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) research. Text mining can offer researchers access to existing or new datasets, sourced from social media or from IPV-related organisations, that would be too large to analyse manually. This article aims to give an overview of current work applying text mining methodologies in the study of IPV, as a starting point for researchers wanting to use such methods in their own work.
METHODS
This article reports the results of a systematic review of academic research using computational text mining to research IPV. A review protocol was developed according to PRISMA guidelines, and a literature search of 8 databases was conducted, identifying 22 unique studies that were included in the review.
RESULTS
The included studies cover a wide range of methodologies and outcomes. Supervised and unsupervised approaches are represented, including rule-based classification ( = 3), traditional Machine Learning ( = 8), Deep Learning ( = 6) and topic modelling ( = 4) methods. Datasets are mostly sourced from social media ( = 15), with other data being sourced from police forces ( = 3), health or social care providers ( = 3), or litigation texts ( = 1). Evaluation methods mostly used a held-out, labelled test set, or k-fold Cross Validation, with Accuracy and F1 metrics reported. Only a few studies commented on the ethics of computational IPV research.
CONCLUSIONS
Text mining methodologies offer promising data collection and analysis techniques for IPV research. Future work in this space must consider ethical implications of computational approaches.
PubMed: 37358974
DOI: 10.1007/s10896-023-00517-7 -
Journal of Interpersonal Violence Oct 2023Despite the pervasiveness of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Canada, research examining IPV in the context of Asian Canadians is scarce. Our study examined whether...
Despite the pervasiveness of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Canada, research examining IPV in the context of Asian Canadians is scarce. Our study examined whether and how Canadian judges consider culture when determining a sentence in IPV cases involving an Asian offender and/or an Asian victim. We systematically searched for publicly published cases through CanLII. A total of 50 cases met the inclusion criteria. Cultural themes were identified using a direct content analysis approach to capture a priori themes in the literature, as well as identify any other factors considered. Our findings indicated culture was most often considered in only a superficial way ( = 31, 62.0%), where judges only made statements that simply identified the ethnicity of the offender and not how culture may have impacted the case. When examining cases where culture was meaningfully considered there were no prominent culture themes identified (all themes present in <14% of cases). We suggest this may not only reflect the heterogeneity of Asian Canadians, but could also reflect the lack of cultural consideration by the judges. Cultural factors were also rarely considered explicitly as an aggravating or mitigating factor in a case ( = 2; 4.0% and = 7; 14.0% of the total sample, respectively). The findings reveal the current lack of meaningful consideration of culture in IPV legal cases involving Asian Canadians. We outline how this contrasts the increased attention to the meaningful consideration of culture in the Canadian legal arena and prompt all professionals involved in assessing and managing IPV risk to consider racial, ethnic, and cultural factors in these cases.
Topics: Humans; Canada; Criminal Law; Cultural Competency; Culture; Intimate Partner Violence; Judgment; Judicial Role; Asian
PubMed: 37350459
DOI: 10.1177/08862605231178494 -
Heliyon Jun 2023Domestic violence remains a pressing complex social problem of people of any gender, age, socio-economic status, and ethno-cultural background, an issue that worsened...
Domestic violence remains a pressing complex social problem of people of any gender, age, socio-economic status, and ethno-cultural background, an issue that worsened worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital, online, or artificial intelligence-based smart technological services, applications, and tools provide novel approaches in addressing domestic violence, including intimate partner violence. This systematic literature review analyses the ethical challenges and opportunities these (protective) digital and smart technologies provide to the stakeholders involved. Our results highlight that the public health and societal issue are the leading narratives of domestic violence, which is predominantly interpreted as gender-based violence. The review highlights an emerging trend of the role of machine learning- and artificial intelligence-based approaches in identifying and preventing domestic violence. However, we argue that little recommendation is available to professionals about how to use these approaches in a responsible way, and that the smartness of high-tech technologies is often challenged by basic-level technologies from perpetrators, creating an imbalance that also limits an impactful development of a comprehensive socio-technical regime that serves the safety and resilience of families in their communal setting.
PubMed: 37342580
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e17140 -
Child Abuse & Neglect Sep 2023Socioeconomic status and poverty are strongly associated with Child Maltreatment. Multiple studies have described the effects of working tax credits on Child...
BACKGROUND
Socioeconomic status and poverty are strongly associated with Child Maltreatment. Multiple studies have described the effects of working tax credits on Child Maltreatment with heterogeneous results. There is yet to be a comprehensive review of this research.
OBJECTIVES
This study aims to review all research which explores the effect of working tax credits on child maltreatment.
METHODS
Three databases (Ovid Medline, Scopus and Web of Science) were searched. Title and abstracts were screened according to a set of eligibility criteria. Data were extracted from eligible studies, and risk of bias was assessed using the Risk of Bias in Non-randomized Studies of Interventions tool. Results were synthesised narratively.
RESULTS
Nine studies were included. Of these, five papers investigated overall reports of child maltreatment, with three finding a positive effect of tax credits. Results suggested a protective effect against child neglect, however, no significant effect was found with respect to physical or emotional abuse. Three of four papers found that working tax credits resulted in decreased rates of entry to foster care. Mixed results were found with respect to self-reported child protective services contact. A range of methodological and temporal differences between studies was identified.
CONCLUSIONS
Overall, some evidence found that in work tax credits are protective against child maltreatment and that they are most effective in reducing neglect. Policymakers can take courage in these results, as they represent an example whereby the "risk factors" of child maltreatment can be countered in order to reduce rates of it.
Topics: Child; Humans; Child Abuse; Risk Factors; Taxes; Poverty; Foster Home Care
PubMed: 37331186
DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2023.106279 -
Trauma, Violence & Abuse Apr 2024Public stigmatization of women victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) has begun to be studied because of its negative impact on recovery from violence. This...
Public stigmatization of women victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) has begun to be studied because of its negative impact on recovery from violence. This systematic review aimed to analyze such stigmatization in low- and middle-income countries (LAMIC) by identifying social norms and perceptions linked to public stigmatizing responses, such responses, negative consequences of those responses on victims, and other factors associated with public stigma. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, five databases were searched using "stigma" and multiple synonyms of IPV as keywords. Selected articles were empirical, written in English, published in peer-reviewed journals, and reported findings on public stigma toward women victims of IPV that had occurred in LAMIC. Nineteen articles met the inclusion criteria. Patriarchal gender roles, normalization of IPV and the consideration of violence as a private matter were the most prevalent social norms among the studies. These led to blaming, isolating, and discriminating against the victim, making her feel ashamed, considering her less valuable than before suffering IPV, and dismissing or denying the abuse. Many negative consequences were identified. Anticipated public stigma, associated with not disclosing the abuse and not seeking help, was the most popular. Public stigmatization was stronger when other public stigmas intersected and in the case of disadvantaged social circumstances. Consequences were diminished by protective factors such as informal support and gender-based violence support services. This review provides a global vision for future research in each specific sociocultural context and is a first step in the design of anti-stigma programs in LAMIC.
Topics: Female; Humans; Developing Countries; Intimate Partner Violence; Social Stigma; Stereotyping; Crime Victims
PubMed: 37309621
DOI: 10.1177/15248380231178756 -
Trauma, Violence & Abuse Apr 2024In recent years there has been a growing public and professional interest in situations of risk, abuse, and exploitation of children with disabilities (CWDs). Despite...
In recent years there has been a growing public and professional interest in situations of risk, abuse, and exploitation of children with disabilities (CWDs). Despite the increasing awareness of CWDs experiencing child sexual abuse (CSA) at high rates, research in this area is still in its infancy. The current study seeks to identify, map, and thoroughly analyze the existing knowledge to better inform future research, policy, and practice. A scoping review was conducted using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, identifying 35 articles addressing CSA among CWDs based on self-report surveys, official report data, and qualitative interviews. The findings addressed the phenomenon's epidemiology, disclosure, identification patterns, and consequences. Studies showed that CWDs experience CSA two to four times more often than children without disabilities and that they suffer longer and harsher abuse due to factors that complicate the identification of CSA of CWDs. This review highlights the diverse methodologies, producing a high variance in phenomenon rates, as well as unique methodological strategies for addressing challenges in CSA and disability research. Future research should focus on qualitative-retrospective studies of the perceptions of survivors and significant others in their lives (e.g., parents). Moreover, an intersectionality paradigm must be adopted in future studies to address the diverse contexts that construct the phenomenon (including sociocultural contexts). There is also a need to develop integrative interventions to allow higher accessibility of services, adaptive identification mechanisms, and more effective collaboration between professionals and CWDs.
Topics: Child; Humans; Child Abuse, Sexual; Disabled Children; Disclosure
PubMed: 37306024
DOI: 10.1177/15248380231179122