Attachment Characteristics Among Women Victimized in No, One, and Multiple IPV Relationships: A Case-Control Study.

This cross-sectional study compared attachment characteristics among women victimized by intimate partner violence (IPV) in no, one, and multiple relationships (N = 154). Results indicated that compared with the nonvictimized, victimized women had increased likelihood of higher attachment avoidance. Compared with women victimized in one relationship, women victimized in multiple relationships had higher likelihood of higher attachment anxiety scores. Adjusting for childhood adversities, childhood sexual abuse was an independent risk factor for IPV. Childhood emotional abuse mediated the association between attachment anxiety and IPV victimization in multiple relationships in particular. Attachment theory appeared useful for better understanding women's vulnerability for multiple violent relationships.

Physical domestic violence exposure is highly associated with suicidal attempts in both women and men. Results from the national public health survey in Sweden.

BACKGROUND: Studies on a national level concerning domestic violence (DV) among both men and women are few. DV and its relation to other social and health outcomes within the framework of the Swedish Public Health Survey have remained unexplored. AIM: To compare women and men regarding their social situation and health status in relation to self-reported exposure to physical DV as measured in the Swedish National Public Health Survey. METHODS: This study used cross-sectional data from the Swedish Public Health Survey, years 2004-09 with a total sample of 50 350 respondents, of which 205 women and 93 men reported DV exposure. Logistic regression analyses stratified by sex with physical DV exposure as the outcome measure were conducted, and the multivariate models were fitted using the likelihood ratio test. RESULTS: Being foreign-born [women odds ratio (OR) = 1.52, men OR = 1.92] and lack of social support (women OR = 2.81, men OR = 1.92) were associated with DV exposure among both sexes. Higher psychological distress (women OR = 2.81, men OR = 1.92) and hazardous drinking (women OR = 1.61, men OR = 2.33) were also associated with DV exposure. Among women, financial problems were associated with DV exposure (OR = 1.83), whereas among men, sum of medicines used and higher odds of DV were associated (OR = 1.17). Further, suicidal attempts were associated with DV exposure among both women (OR = 5.59) and men (OR = 8.34). CONCLUSIONS: In this national survey, prevalence rates of violence exposure were lower than in other studies, but despite this, both women and men exposed to physical DV reported increased odds of having attempted suicide.

Intimate partner violence and help-seeking--a cross-sectional study of women in Sweden.

BACKGROUND: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a global public health concern with possible detrimental consequences for its victims. Studies have found prevalence rates of 15 to 71% for IPV. There is evidence that IPV exposed women perceive barriers to help-seeking and many remain undetected by care givers and authorities. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine IPV exposed women in relation to help-seeking versus non help-seeking from the social services or women's shelters with regard to social and psychological characteristics as well as relationship with the perpetrator and type of violence exposure. METHODS: Two groups of Swedish IPV exposed women were included: non help-seekers (n = 128) were recruited through ads in newspapers, while help-seekers (n = 347) were recruited from four social service sites and twenty women's shelters around Sweden. Participants were assessed with questionnaires regarding age, education, occupation and relation to the perpetrator as well as validated instruments measuring psychological distress, psychosocial functioning alcohol use and violence. Analyses were made using Chi2 and multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS: Help-seekers had significantly more often children together with the perpetrator than non help-seekers (64% and 29% respectively) and a high association was found in the fully adjusted model (Adj. OR = 5.46 95% CI 2.99-9.97). Many women in both groups reported a poor social situation and high levels of psychological distress, although more psychological distress was associated with elevated odds for help-seeking (Adj. OR = 2.83 95% CI 1.84-4.34). No differences were found between the groups regarding violence exposure and most women in both groups had experienced severe violence from an intimate partner (95% to 98%). CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate a high problem load among women who had not contacted the social services or women's shelters due to IPV, and that non help-seekers had similar experiences of severe IPV as help-seekers. This stresses a need to identify IPV exposed women outside specialized settings within the social services and women's shelters. Asking about partner violence in various health and social care settings could be a feasible strategy to identify battered women and provide them with alternatives for help that ultimately could lead to a life without violence.