[Participation Restriction and its Prediction in Victims of Acts of Violence During the Proceedings Under the Victims Compensation Act: A File-Based Exploratory Cohort Study]. / Teilhabebeeinträchtigung und deren Prädiktion bei Opfern von Gewalttaten im Verfahren nach dem Opferentschädigungsgesetz: Eine aktenbasierte explorative Kohortenstudie.

After an act of violence, affected individuals not only suffer psychological and physical damage, but also impairment in their professional, social and societal participation. So far, however, no studies have been conducted examining the severity of participation restrictions and prognostically relevant characteristics. Using a category system, sociodemographic information as well as trauma-, crime- and health-specific characteristics of adult victims of acts of violence, whose entitlement to benefits were recognized under the German Victims Compensation Act (OEG), were recorded from files. Based on psychiatric assessments of damage, participation restrictions were also assessed post-hoc based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). The data are extracted from 99 files; 72 of those affected were female. The average age of the victims at the time of the offence was 25 years. 53 were victims of sexual violence, 24 were victims of forms of bodily injury and 45 were victims of other acts of violence. 29 victims experienced more than one type of violence. All had at least one mental disorder with pathological significance. An average of four years passed between the first and second psychiatric assessment. While 85 of those affected stated that they had been employed before the offence, the number of employees dropped to 53 after the offence. The most pronounced participation restriction was found in professional participation. A multiple regression analysis revealed that a higher degree of participation restriction was associated with lack of employment and a stronger negative impact after the crime as well as the victim's familiarity with the perpetrator; but not associated with a mental disorder or a lack of a victim's trustworthy relationships. In future, participation restrictions should regularly be assessed based on the ICF during the psychiatric assessment. The results suggest that particularly benefits for professional participation are to be granted within the framework of the OEG.

[Victims of Acts of Violence during the Procedure of the Victim Reparation Law - Characteristics of the Affected, Acts, Perpetrators and Predictors for the Period Until Claim of Help Provided by Law]. / Opfer von Gewalttaten im Verfahren nach dem Opferentschädigungsgesetz.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Coping with psychological trauma plays a central role in victims of acts of violence. The Victim Reparation Law (in German: Opferentschädigungsgesetz, OEG) provides services for the reparation of participation. To further improve the care of the affected persons, the characteristics of the victims were determined in relation to the acts and the perpetrators. METHOD: 312 OEG-files of adult victims were sighted. On the basis of a system of categories, demographic data, trauma specific and health-related characteristics of the victims, relevant characteristics of the perpetrators and the violence, as well as predictors for the time difference between the violent act and the application were determined. RESULTS: Mostly women (71%) were affected by acts of violence. 49% of the affected persons suffered from physical and 87% from psychological impairment (64% of these from a posttraumatic stress disorder). 55% of the acts of violence were sex crimes, 47% were bodily injuries and in 44% additional psychological abuse existed. The perpetrators were often connected to the victims. 42% of the offenses concerned domestic violence. Time difference between the act of violence and the request for help which is provided by law variated between 0 and 52 years. 50% made use of help within one year, further 15.2% within five years. In 34.3% of cases, time difference was longer than 5 years. In case of serial and severe traumatizations, depression and close connections between victim and perpetrator help provided by law was called for only late. CONCLUSION: Many victims of acts of violence acts are psychologically traumatized. In order to prevent a traumatization from becoming a permanent health disorder, the offering of early evidence-based specialist or psychological acute therapy (e. g., in trauma outpatient clinics) ought to be optimized.

[Minor Victims of Violent Acts in the Context of the Victim Reparation Law]. / Minderjährige Opfer von Gewalttaten im Verfahren des Opferentschädigungsgesetzes.

Objective: A descriptive analysis of victim compensation applications for children and adolescents as well as sociodemographic and trauma-specific information concerning victims and perpetrators. Method: We did analysis of 100 victim-compensation application files based on a self-developed category system. Results: The files included solely interpersonal trauma, 59 % of which are type II trauma. The most frequent form is sexual violence. The perpetrators stem mostly from children's homes or peripherals. 79 % of the victims received a diagnosis of a mental disorder, most often posttraumatic stress disorder. Conclusions: Sexually abused children and adolescents make up the majority of the target population in OEG-related trauma outpatient units. Such outpatient units should therefore offer a specific expertise in treating sexually abused children and adolescents.