Suchergebnisse

Abstract
Background
Despite high rates of violence against women and girls (VAWG) in conflict and humanitarian contexts, many survivors do not tell anyone about their experience or seek help from support r services (e.g. health, legal, psychosocial support, police).

Methods
This paper examines disclosure and help seeking behaviours of survivors of non-partner sexual violence (NPSV) and intimate partner violence (IPV) among women and girls aged 15–64 from three sites in South Sudan. It seeks to understand how exposure to armed conflict is associated with disclosure and help seeking practices.

Results
For NPSV, respondents for whom an incident of sexual violence occurred during conflict had twice the odds of telling someone about their experience (aOR: 2.2; 95%CI: 1.3–3.7; p < 0.01) and three times the odds of seeking help (aOR: 3.1; 95%CI: 1.7–5.9, p < .001), compared to respondents for whom the incident of violence did not occur during conflict. Age, the identity of the perpetrator, working status of the woman, poverty and location also affected disclosure and help seeking behaviours for survivors of NPSV. For IPV, exposure to conflict increased the odds a respondent would tell someone about her experience (aOR 1.7; 95%CI 1.2–2.5; p < .01), but was not associated with seeking support services. The severity of IPV affected both disclosure and help seeking behaviours, with the odds of disclosing IPV increasing if the respondent experienced both physical and sexual IPV (compared to only sexual violence), had been injured, thought their well-being was affected, was afraid of their partner, or was controlled by their partner. However, not all these factors were subsequently associated with help seeking behaviours for survivors of IPV and respondents who reported they were sometimes afraid of their partner had reduced odds of seeking help, compared to those who were never afraid of their partners.

Conclusions
These findings are important as, prior to this analysis, it was unclear how experiencing conflict-related VAWG would influence disclosure and help seeking. Given the findings of this paper, it is important that the international community consider how to reduce barriers to reporting and help seeking for non-conflict-related forms of violence in these settings.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is the most common form of violence against women and girls (VAWG). Research has shown that gender inequitable attitudes, economic stressors, and armed conflict are among the many risk factors for IPV. Armed conflict can leave women and girls even more vulnerable to gender-based violence and create a context in which hegemonic masculinity may escalate different forms of VAWG. In South Sudan, a country that has been affected by continued armed conflicts, more than half of ever-partnered women and girls have reported experiencing physical or sexual IPV. This study reports on two population-based surveys targeting women and men in South Sudan. Logistic regression analyses were conducted using a sub-sample of ever-partnered men in South Sudan to examine the effect of several predictors on lifetime perpetration of IPV. Findings show a number of factors that were associated with increased odds of ever perpetrating IPV including perpetrating non-partner sexual violence, exposure to non-partner physical violence, and the number of controlling behaviors perpetrated against women partners. These findings suggest that perpetration of IPV is linked to gender inequality and exposure to and normalization of violence. Overall, this research contributes to our in-depth understanding of how experiences of armed conflict may contribute to perpetration of VAWG.

AbstractBackgroundGlobally, it is estimated that at least one out of every three women experiences violence by an intimate partner and/or non-partner throughout their lifetime. Women and girls are at even higher risk of violence in conflict and humanitarian crises. Although effort has expanded to build rigorous evidence and research on violence against women and girls (VAWG) among conflict-affected populations, methodological and ethical challenges remain. Basic ethical research practices are more challenging in conflict-affected populations and therefore require supplementary protections. While it is important to follow international ethical guidelines, in practice it is sometimes difficult depending on the setting. The aim of this paper is to present the main ethical challenges that occur when conducting research on VAWG in conflict and humanitarian settings, as well as potential strategies to address these challenges, based on a recent study carried out in South Sudan in 2016.Case presentationThis paper provides an analysis utilizing the World Health Organization guidelines on doing research on VAWG and in conflict and humanitarian settings. The paper analyses four main components: the first component is a risk-benefit assessment, which includes identifying the research gap and evaluating feasibility with local stakeholders. The second component is a methodological and conceptual approach, which involves both local stakeholders and external experts in order to develop flexible methods that can be used in a volatile conflict setting. The third component is safety considerations, which emphasizes the importance of collaborating with a partner with strong local networks. The last component is analysis and research uptake. This component describes the importance of developing different research products, and disseminating them in a way to ensure they would be relevant and minimize any risks to the participants.ConclusionsThe study in South Sudan provided an excellent opportunity to put into practice the international ethical guidelines to carry out research on VAWG in conflict and humanitarian settings. The study enabled the research team to reflect on the guidelines and develop strategies to cope with new methodological and ethical challenges that arose in this complex setting, adapting the guidelines, as necessary. It demonstrated the necessity of developing a strong yet adaptable methodology with multiple alternative plans to solve any safety or ethical issues that occur throughout the entirety of the study. It also revealed the importance of collaborating with an implementing partner and gathering input from both local and international stakeholders on research design, analysis and uptake. Most importantly, the study in South Sudan emphasized that this type of complex research requires significant planning, in addition to substantial financial and human resources. Donor buy-in and flexibility is therefore essential.

Conflict-related violence against women and girls (VAWG) has drawn increasing attention, yet scholars, policymakers, and practitioners focussed on conflict-related VAWG and those focussed on post-conflict statebuilding and peacebuilding have largely worked separately. Less attention has been given to VAWG during post-conflict transitions than during conflict itself. This article makes three major contributions to guide researchers and policymakers in addressing VAWG in post-conflict contexts. First, it identifies critical gaps in understanding the intersection between VAWG and post-conflict statebuilding and peacebuilding processes. Second, it presents an ecological model to explore the drivers of VAWG during and after armed conflict. Third, it proposes a conceptual framework for analysing and addressing the intersections of VAWG with both post-conflict statebuilding and peacebuilding. The article concludes that application of this framework can help policymakers shape statebuilding and peacebuilding processes to more effectively institutionalise approaches to VAWG so that post-conflict transitions advance sustainable, positive peace.

Lebanon's intersecting economic and political crises exacerbate complex public health issues among both host and refugee populations. This mixed-methods study by a Lebanese service provider, in partnership with an international research institute, seeks to better understand how experiences of gender-based violence (GBV) and mental health intersect in the lives of Syrian and Lebanese women, and how to better meet these needs. It employs a randomized cross-sectional survey of 969 Abaad service users and focus groups with community members and service providers. There were significant associations between GBV and ill mental health; notably, respondents reporting transactional sex had 4 times the likelihood of severe distress (aOR 4.2; 95% CI 1.2–14.8; p ≤ 0.05). Focus groups emphasized less-visible forms of violence, such as emotional violence, and the importance of environmental factors in one's ability to cope, noting "it always came back to the economy". Recommendations include providing a more holistic and coordinated approach between GBV, mental health, livelihood, and basic assistance sectors; and sensitive, accessible, and higher-quality mental health services informed by GBV response actors' experience putting in place survivor-centered programming and made available to both host and refugee community members.

Efforts to promote gender equality have recognized the importance of involving men and boys. Yet, in general, we have done little in terms of large-scale research in the Global South to understand how men are responding to the global gender equality agenda. This article presents findings from the International Men and Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES), one of the most comprehensive efforts of its kind to gather data on men's attitudes and practices related to gender equality in eight low- and middle-income countries: Brazil, Chile, Mexico, India, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda. It provides a current picture of men's attitudes about gender and gender equality, explores the determinants of equitable attitudes, and investigates the associations between equitable attitudes and relationship behaviors. We find that men report positive but ambivalent attitudes toward gender equality, and that education, income, and more equitable practices in men's childhood homes are associated with men's more equitable attitudes and practices. Finally, we show that in most countries, men's equitable attitudes are also associated with more equitable practices, including more participation in the home and reduced use of violence, as well as higher sexual satisfaction. The findings suggest both the need for program approaches that change attitudes, as well as policy and structural approaches that create lived experiences of gender equality for men. Given how much early childhood experiences influenced men's adult attitudes and practices, the findings also emphasize the need for programs and policies to promote equitable caregiving.