A survey analysis of barriers to help-seeking at the Ghana Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU)

Tenkorang, Eric Y.

doi:10.1007/s10896-021-00324-y

Cited by 6 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…This debate stems from the potential risk of blaming mothers and mothers losing child custody in the context of failure to protect-related legislation and policies, even when fathers are more likely to be the perpetrators [ 19 , 20 ]. While acknowledging that such victim blaming and stigmatization is harmful and can reduce reporting and help-seeking among women [ 111 ], this study includes witnessing domestic violence as a type of indirect form of victimization in its examination of polyvictimization. However, as suggested by other scholars, categorizing witnessing domestic violence as a form of victimization may be confounding cause with effect [ 21 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polyvictimization and Adolescent Health and Well-Being in Ethiopia: The Mediating Role of Resilience

Miller,

Butera,

Ellsberg

et al. 2023

IJERPH

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Interpersonal violence is a pervasive experience affecting one billion children and adolescents annually, resulting in adverse health and well-being outcomes. Evidence suggests that polyvictimization, the experience of multiple forms of violence, is associated with more harmful consequences for adolescents than experiencing individual types of violence, although data from low-and middle-income countries are limited. This study analyzed data on over 4100 adolescents from the Gender and Adolescence, Global Evidence Study in Ethiopia to examine the association between polyvictimization and adolescent mental and physical health and the mediating role of resilience using linear regression and path analysis. We hypothesized that adolescents experiencing polyvictimization would experience worse mental and physical health than those experiencing no types or individual types of victimization, and that resilience would mediate these relationships. Half of sampled girls and over half of boys experienced polyvictimization. Among both sexes, polyvictimization was associated with worse mental but not worse physical health. Resilience mediated the association between polyvictimization and mental health among girls only. Strengthening resilience among girls may be an effective avenue for mitigating polyvictimization’s negative mental health effects, but additional research and programming for preventing and identifying polyvictimized adolescents and linking them to care is needed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polyvictimization and Adolescent Health and Well-Being in Ethiopia: The Mediating Role of Resilience

Miller,

Butera,

Ellsberg

et al. 2023

IJERPH

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“…DOVVSU's assistance to victims of violence includes receiving complaints from the victims, investigating domestic violence cases and referring victims to the appropriate legal, medical, and counseling services (Action AID, 2019). A study by Tenkorang (2021) showed only 26% out of 565 female victims of violence sought help from DOVVSU pointing to significant barriers to accessing their services. Studies from different countries reveal that women mostly turn to family and friends before looking for formal help (Edwards & Dardis, 2020; Sylaska & Edwards, 2014).…”

Section: Understanding Female Victims’ Help-seeking Behaviorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although the severity of IPV has been well documented, knowledge of victims’ help-seeking behavior in sub-Saharan Africa, including Ghana, remains scant. Second, there is little qualitative research on help-seeking and disclosure (Trotter & Allen, 2009). A qualitative approach can extend our understanding beyond traditional conceptualizations to reflect the diverse experiences of IPV victims in their decision to seek help and the types of sources and services they choose more accurately (Liang et al, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Motivations and Barriers to Help-Seeking Among Female Victims of Intimate Partner Violence in Ghana

Rohn

Tenkorang

2022

Violence Against Women

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This study used qualitative data from 30 women in three of Ghana's 16 administrative regions to explore motivations and barriers to help-seeking among victims of intimate partner violence. Results of the thematic analysis showed low reporting to formal support networks, such as the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit or the police, with higher preference for informal sources, such as family members and friends. Motivations to seek help included fatigue, severity of abuse, abusive partner's negligence in honoring marital obligations, and trust in family members. Barriers to help-seeking included: fear of divorce, stigmatization, lack of trust in formal support channels, sociocultural norms emphasizing gender role expectations, and family privacy.

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“…However, filicide cases may not be brought to the attention of the court, when community members are unaware of the law, or when they have developed social norms to legitimize their act. Othman et al (2014) found that filicide cases may not be reported in Ghana due to the cultural beliefs that characterize domestic violence as private matters (Apatinga and Tenkorang, 2021;Tenkorang, 2021). Recent findings from Malaysia, Finland, Austria, Chile and Australia showed that punishment for filicide varies based on gender, with women receiving less severe punishment (Putkonen et al, 2011;Razali et al, 2017Razali et al, , 2019Amon et al, 2019).…”

Section: Legal Sanctions On Filicide In Ghanamentioning

confidence: 99%

Addressing Filicide in Ghana: Linking Cultural Understanding With the Law Against Filicide. Does the Law Work?

et al. 2022

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IntroductionConsistent with international promulgation on the criminalization of filicide, Ghana’s Children’s Act 1998 (560) and the Criminal Justice Act criminalizes any form of torture against children. Yet, perpetrators of filicide in Ghana may go unpunished due to the beliefs in cultural norms that justify filicide acts. The cultural narratives of filicide can impede on the application and effectiveness of the laws of filicide.MethodThe study employed a vignette approach to explore the views of 19 adults, who were parents between 69 years of age and 30 years of age, in rural and urban Ghana on the laws of filicide in Ghana and filicide intervention measures. The interviewees were provided with narratives on two different vignettes (developed based on real life cases), followed by semi-structured questions to probe the narratives. The interviews were analyzed following Fraser’s narrative thematic analysis procedure.ResultsThe study identifies the association between cultural beliefs and the communities’ understanding of the concept of filicide. Though community members are aware of the criminalization of filicide acts, the majority of them were not informed about the laws against filicide in Ghana. Addressing filicide cases within the community was the most preferred option for the participants, as they believe that some children, termed “spirit children” (SC), deserve to be killed. Resorting to spiritual intervention from concoction men emerged as the normative pathway to obtain community approval for filicide. Police interventions were considered necessary in non-spiritual related filicides. Community members were only prepared to cooperate with the law in filicide cases if the filicide act has no connection with spirituality.ConclusionThe study adds to understanding of the concept of filicide outside western societies. The importance of intensive community campaigns against filicide acts, and norms that support filicide acts, has relevance for all counties.

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A survey analysis of barriers to help-seeking at the Ghana Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU)

Cited by 6 publications

References 25 publications

Polyvictimization and Adolescent Health and Well-Being in Ethiopia: The Mediating Role of Resilience

Polyvictimization and Adolescent Health and Well-Being in Ethiopia: The Mediating Role of Resilience

Motivations and Barriers to Help-Seeking Among Female Victims of Intimate Partner Violence in Ghana

Addressing Filicide in Ghana: Linking Cultural Understanding With the Law Against Filicide. Does the Law Work?

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