What tools or programs do police departments need in order to have a more proactive approach than a reactive approach to the public health problem of domestic violence
Location
Guzman 111, Dominican University of California
Start Date
4-17-2019 3:00 PM
Student Type
Undergraduate
Faculty Mentor(s)
Michaela George, PhD, MPH
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
Domestic violence is a very large public health problem. The reason domestic violence, or intimate partner violence, is such a large problem, is because domestic violence has no limitations. Domestic violence does not know the difference between gender or ethnicity. Domestic violence is a problem between every country no matter what the circumstances are. According to the Center for Diseases Control and Prevention, one in four women have experienced some sort of severe, physical intimate partner violence and one in seven men have experience some sort of severe, physical intimate partner violence in America (1). Another stat given by the CDC is that one in six women have experienced sexual violence from their partner and 1 in 14 men have experienced sexual violence from their partner (1).
Domestic violence has a deep impact, not just on the specific victim involved, but the family members that are around the instances as well. Children are almost always affected by domestic violence, even if it is not directly acted upon them. These are what are called adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs (2). According to a study about ACEs, out of 13,494 participants who completed a survey about emotional, physical or sexual abuse, 50% percent of the respondents reported one instance and 25% reported two or more instances that happened in their lifetime (2). The results that followed the study found that people who had four or more instances happen in their childhood were four to 12 times more likely to develop health risks like drug abuse and suicide attempts (2). Stopping domestic violence is not just about preventing a victim from being hurt, but the prevention would also prevent bad health outcomes for other family members that are either directly, or indirectly involved.
When a person deals with a domestic violence instance, 95% of local law enforcement agencies have each of their own different policies of dealing with domestic violence (3). According to women that were given a questionnaire, 60% of women did not want police involvement at all because they wanted privacy. Forty-four percent people think that there will be retaliation from the abuser or the abuser’s friends and family. Another 22% want to protect their children from the harms that could come from the police involvement, such as escalating emotions from the abuser or fights that can occur from an officer presence. Fifty-nine percent of victims thought that the police officers would not believe what the victim had to say. Another 70% of victims thought that the police would only make things worse (4). Without law enforcement being able to help as much as they can, the health outcomes will continue on to affect many different people.
A big limitation to law enforcement is that the victims do not report domestic violence. There are states that have mandatory reporting policies when they see signs of physical abuse or intimate partner abuse. Some states have exceptions to these reporting policies which include Oklahoma, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania (5). When these cases are reported they are easier for law enforcement to have evidence in order to arrest the abuser. With a more proactive approach to actively trying to stop Domestic Violence with the help of the general public, law enforcement can work on stopping domestic violence before it starts.
There are currently programs in place for domestic violence victims in America because of how prevalent the public health issue is. According to the NCADV, 25% of women will undergo a domestic violence incident, but according to certain laws, there are only a few relationships that are recognized as domestic violence, which makes under-reporting a real issue (6). The hard part when dealing with domestic violence victims, is they are constantly around their abusers. This makes it hard when they would like to do anything with their life because the abuser looks to control everything they do, which makes the victims dependent on the abusers (6). When going to a program, like counseling, the victim isn’t sure what they want to tell the counselor because they are often times stuck in a situation of not knowing what to do (6). A few current strategies include: trying to make the victim focus on themselves rather than their abuser, the counselors try and have the victims focus on the present, rather than bring up old wounds that trigger their emotions, and the use of creative counseling strategies will help victims with the support they need without traumatizing the victims once again (6). The study is looking to figure out if these strategies are working and looking to find new strategies to keep the proactive progression moving forward towards the prevention of domestic violence. The community partners would, in turn, help the law enforcement officials by finding new strategies that could help both different type of organizations work as a team to fix this community problem.
References
1. Preventing Intimate Partner Violence [Internet].; 2017 [cited 10/24/18]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/ipv-factsheet.pdf.
2. Felitti VJ, Anda RF, Nordenberg D, Williamson DF, Spitz A, Edwards V, et al. Relationship of Childhood Abuse and Household Dysfunction to Many of the Leading Causes of Death in Adults. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 1998;14(4):245-58.
3. Police Improve Response to Domestic Violence, But Abuse Often Remains the 'Hidden Crime' [Internet].; 2015 [updated January/February; cited 10/24/18]. Available from: https://www.policeforum.org/assets/docs/Subject_to_Debate/Debate2015/debate_2015_janfeb.pdf.
4. Domestic Violence Survivors Speak Out About Law Enforcement Responses [Internet].; 2015 [cited 10/24/18]. Available from: http://www.thehotline.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2015/09/NDVH-2015-Law-Enforcement-Survey-Report.pdf.
5. Mandatory Reporting of Domestic Violence to Law Enforcement by Health Care Providers: A guide for Advocates Working to Respond to or Amend Reporting Laws Related to Domestic Violence [Internet]. [cited 10/24/18]. Available from: https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/userfiles/Mandatory_Reporting_of_DV_to_Law%20Enforcement_by_HCP.pdf.
6. Binkley E. Creative Strategies for Treating Victims of Domestic Violence. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health(8(3)):305-13.
What tools or programs do police departments need in order to have a more proactive approach than a reactive approach to the public health problem of domestic violence
Guzman 111, Dominican University of California
Domestic violence is a very large public health problem. The reason domestic violence, or intimate partner violence, is such a large problem, is because domestic violence has no limitations. Domestic violence does not know the difference between gender or ethnicity. Domestic violence is a problem between every country no matter what the circumstances are. According to the Center for Diseases Control and Prevention, one in four women have experienced some sort of severe, physical intimate partner violence and one in seven men have experience some sort of severe, physical intimate partner violence in America (1). Another stat given by the CDC is that one in six women have experienced sexual violence from their partner and 1 in 14 men have experienced sexual violence from their partner (1).
Domestic violence has a deep impact, not just on the specific victim involved, but the family members that are around the instances as well. Children are almost always affected by domestic violence, even if it is not directly acted upon them. These are what are called adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs (2). According to a study about ACEs, out of 13,494 participants who completed a survey about emotional, physical or sexual abuse, 50% percent of the respondents reported one instance and 25% reported two or more instances that happened in their lifetime (2). The results that followed the study found that people who had four or more instances happen in their childhood were four to 12 times more likely to develop health risks like drug abuse and suicide attempts (2). Stopping domestic violence is not just about preventing a victim from being hurt, but the prevention would also prevent bad health outcomes for other family members that are either directly, or indirectly involved.
When a person deals with a domestic violence instance, 95% of local law enforcement agencies have each of their own different policies of dealing with domestic violence (3). According to women that were given a questionnaire, 60% of women did not want police involvement at all because they wanted privacy. Forty-four percent people think that there will be retaliation from the abuser or the abuser’s friends and family. Another 22% want to protect their children from the harms that could come from the police involvement, such as escalating emotions from the abuser or fights that can occur from an officer presence. Fifty-nine percent of victims thought that the police officers would not believe what the victim had to say. Another 70% of victims thought that the police would only make things worse (4). Without law enforcement being able to help as much as they can, the health outcomes will continue on to affect many different people.
A big limitation to law enforcement is that the victims do not report domestic violence. There are states that have mandatory reporting policies when they see signs of physical abuse or intimate partner abuse. Some states have exceptions to these reporting policies which include Oklahoma, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania (5). When these cases are reported they are easier for law enforcement to have evidence in order to arrest the abuser. With a more proactive approach to actively trying to stop Domestic Violence with the help of the general public, law enforcement can work on stopping domestic violence before it starts.
There are currently programs in place for domestic violence victims in America because of how prevalent the public health issue is. According to the NCADV, 25% of women will undergo a domestic violence incident, but according to certain laws, there are only a few relationships that are recognized as domestic violence, which makes under-reporting a real issue (6). The hard part when dealing with domestic violence victims, is they are constantly around their abusers. This makes it hard when they would like to do anything with their life because the abuser looks to control everything they do, which makes the victims dependent on the abusers (6). When going to a program, like counseling, the victim isn’t sure what they want to tell the counselor because they are often times stuck in a situation of not knowing what to do (6). A few current strategies include: trying to make the victim focus on themselves rather than their abuser, the counselors try and have the victims focus on the present, rather than bring up old wounds that trigger their emotions, and the use of creative counseling strategies will help victims with the support they need without traumatizing the victims once again (6). The study is looking to figure out if these strategies are working and looking to find new strategies to keep the proactive progression moving forward towards the prevention of domestic violence. The community partners would, in turn, help the law enforcement officials by finding new strategies that could help both different type of organizations work as a team to fix this community problem.
References
1. Preventing Intimate Partner Violence [Internet].; 2017 [cited 10/24/18]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/ipv-factsheet.pdf.
2. Felitti VJ, Anda RF, Nordenberg D, Williamson DF, Spitz A, Edwards V, et al. Relationship of Childhood Abuse and Household Dysfunction to Many of the Leading Causes of Death in Adults. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 1998;14(4):245-58.
3. Police Improve Response to Domestic Violence, But Abuse Often Remains the 'Hidden Crime' [Internet].; 2015 [updated January/February; cited 10/24/18]. Available from: https://www.policeforum.org/assets/docs/Subject_to_Debate/Debate2015/debate_2015_janfeb.pdf.
4. Domestic Violence Survivors Speak Out About Law Enforcement Responses [Internet].; 2015 [cited 10/24/18]. Available from: http://www.thehotline.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2015/09/NDVH-2015-Law-Enforcement-Survey-Report.pdf.
5. Mandatory Reporting of Domestic Violence to Law Enforcement by Health Care Providers: A guide for Advocates Working to Respond to or Amend Reporting Laws Related to Domestic Violence [Internet]. [cited 10/24/18]. Available from: https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/userfiles/Mandatory_Reporting_of_DV_to_Law%20Enforcement_by_HCP.pdf.
6. Binkley E. Creative Strategies for Treating Victims of Domestic Violence. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health(8(3)):305-13.