This case study investigated what constitutes survival skills and a supportive living environment from the perspective of the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) Transitional Living Program participants and YWCA support staff. Research questions that guided this investigation are the following: (1) What survival skills do you need to live independent (self-sufficient, free) from an abusive relationship? And (2) what does a supportive (encouraging, caring, helpful, accommodating) living environment mean to you in a transitional living environment? Such questions help gather insight for improving intervention programs for abused women; although great improvements have been made in terms of legislation, policy, and federal funding, such advances have not been enough to improve the situations of abused women. Excerpts from interviews and other data were separated into common themes that emerged and were then grouped by categories - Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs pyramid (safety and security, belongingness and love, self-esteem, and self-actualization) and social support network (emotional support, informational support, and material support, and collaboration). The perceptions of the Transitional Living Program participants and YWCA support staff were used as recommendations for intervention programs. Programs recommended are the following: Assertiveness training, self-defense workshops, stress management classes, self-esteem building classes, family bonding programs, and facilitated support groups for mothers, children, and teenagers.

Housing matters for everyone, as it provides shelter, security, privacy, and stability. For survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV), housing takes on an additional meaning; it is the key to establishing a new life, free from abuse. IPV survivors often face such inadequate housing options, however, that they must make excruciating choices between cycling through temporary shelters, becoming homeless, or returning to their abusers. Home Safe Home offers a multifaceted analysis that accounts for both IPV survivors’ needs and the practical challenges involved in providing them with adequate permanent housing. Incorporating the varied perspectives of the numerous housing providers, activists, policymakers, and researchers who have a stake in these issues, the book also lets IPV survivors have their say, expressing their views on what housing and services can best meet their short and long-term goals. Researchers Hilary Botein and Andrea Hetling not only examine the federal and state policies and funding programs determining housing for IPV survivors, but also provide detailed case studies that put a human face on these policy issues. As it traces how housing options and support mechanisms for IPV survivors have evolved over time, Home Safe Home also offers innovative suggestions for how policymakers and advocates might work together to better meet the needs of this vulnerable population.

There is life, joy, and love after abuse As a young wife and mother, Kelly White experienced violence and terror at the hands of her husband. She knows firsthand the love–hate relationships women often have with their abusers and the devastating effects these feelings can have on independence and self-confidence. She has sought refuge in a women’s shelter, worked to obtain help from law enforcement and struggled financially and emotionally as a single mother and sole breadwinner. Twenty-five years later, as the leader of nationally recognized programs for battered women, she has helped thousands of women and children rebuild their lives. White’s own story, and those of other women who have survived and thrived, are related here. She also provides practical tools for abused women and the friends, family and professionals who seek to help them. You learn to: recognize dangerous red flags and break through denial use the legal, law-enforcement and organizational resources available in your community overcome fear and stress to build a new life discover the ways in which you are more powerful, competent and capable than you thought White includes important information on the impact of domestic violence on children, the role of drugs and alcohol in abuse, violence against people with disabilities and battering in the lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgendered communities. While violence against women is not a thing of the past, using this resource can help battered women make it a part of their pasts — and create a safe and fulfilling future for themselves and their children.

Break the pattern of abuse--safely!Battered women often become so frightened, isolated, and self-doubting that they don't recognize they are being victimized. They may minimize the seriousness of the abuse and make excuses for the abuser. The checklists, questionnaires, and personal stories in Growing Free can provide the shock of recognition they need to be able to say, “This is wrong. It has to end.” Combining psychological insight with practical safety information, Growing Free helps the reader to understand--and end--the vicious cycle of wooing, tension, violence, and remorse that characterizes all levels of domestic violence. It outlines a series of steps abused women can take to ensure their emotional and physical safety. Growing Free offers both practical and psychological resources, including: lists of abusive behaviors from ridiculing family members to physical violence common rationalizations for abuse used by both victims and perpetrator detailed discussions of protection orders and other legal matters detailed preparations and safety precautions that may make leaving less dangerous advice on what to take with you when you leave guidelines for establishing safe relationships in the future Growing Free provides readers with a straightforward, action-oriented approach to the problem of domestic violence. A companion volume available separately, A Therapist's Guide to Growing Free, offers therapists a comprehensive outline of the issues, tasks, and goals involved in treatment with victims and survivors.

Interparental Conflict and Child Development provides an in-depth analysis of the rapidly expanding body of research on the impact of interparental conflict on children. Emphasizing developmental and family systems perspectives, it investigates a range of important issues, including the processes by which exposure to conflict may lead to child maladjustment, the role of gender and ethnicity in understanding the effects of conflict, the influence of conflict on parent-child, sibling, and peer relations, family violence, and interparental conflict in divorced and step-families.

Excerpt from Overview: This [publication] represents a select group of strategies based on the best available evidence to help communities and states sharpen their focus on prevention activities with the greatest potential to prevent intimate partner violence (IPV) and its consequences across the lifespan. These strategies include teaching safe and healthy relationship skills; engaging influential adults and peers; disrupting the developmental pathways toward IPV; creating protective environments; strengthening economic supports for families; and supporting survivors to increase safety and lessen harms. The strategies represented in this [publication] include those with a focus on preventing IPV, including teen dating violence (TDV), from happening in the first place or to prevent it from continuing, as well as approaches to lessen the immediate and long-term harms of partner violence. This technical package consisting of a compilation of a core set of strategies to achieve and sustain substantial reduction in a specific risk factor or outcome is based on the best available evidence to help communities and states sharpen their focus on prevention activities with the greatest potential to prevent intimate partner violence (ipv), These strategies include teaching safe and healthy relationship skills; engaging influential adults and peers; disrupting the developmental pathways toward IPV; creating protective environments; strengthening economic supports for families; and supporting survivors to increase safety and lessen harms. This official work from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S. Health & Human Services) focuses on preventing intimate partner violence to include teen dating violence (tdv) from happening and continuing, as well as approaches to lessen the immediate and long-term harms of partner violence. Anyone in an intimate relationship who fears, or is experiencing and/or engaging in, intimate partner violence (IPV--also known as "domestic violence") will find this an invaluable resource. People who have loved ones experiencing intimate partner violence may also be interested in this publication. This package is intended as a resource to guide and inform prevention decision-making in communities and states to include numerous sectors, such as public health, education, justice, health care, social services, faith-based organizations, business and labor, and government.

Explore methods and techniques that health care providers can use to treat battered women?more humanely and effectively! This vital book examines the role of health care in the struggle to combat domestic violence. It shows how physicians can?and should?respond to victims of domestic violence, shares the success of the Family Violence Prevention Project, discusses what healthcare providers need to know about elder abuse, examines primary care physicians? screening practices for female partner abuse, and looks at the way Emergency Department personnel perceive the results of intimate partner violence (IPV). It also shows how family planning clinics can become ?empowerment zones? of battered women living in a rural setting and assesses the success of the WomanKind Program?an integrated model of 24-hour health care response to domestic violence against women. Domestic Violence and Health Care: Policies and Prevention also: investigates the relationship between perceived barriers and screening practices explores attitudes toward mandatory domestic violence reporting inquires into what pregnant women who have been abused think about their partners and their relationships examines the difference between Mexican and American women?s perception of the severity of various acts of abuse discusses the efficacy of an IPV assessment form using icons rather than descriptions to better communicate with migrant/seasonal workers whose command of English is poor From the editors: ?We have learned that screening for domestic violence by itself is a powerful intervention and can make a significant difference in a woman?s life. It helps validate that there is no excuse for domestic violence and demystifies the belief that providers are a part of the problem and not part of the solution. We have also learned that the consequences of intimate partner violence are manifested in a range of health conditions as well as in increased overall costly health care utilization. Screening tools and proposed mechanisms for treatment and follow-up are available. The next step in this effort requires validation of the screening tools and evaluation of the interventions currently underway. The purpose of this book is to provide some insight into our current understanding of the role health care plays in recognizing and treating victims of domestic violence. We hope to contribute to the understanding of the complexities of the causes and consequences of domestic violence on the life of a woman, and to provide insight into ways to positively alter the health care system and provider behavior.?