Intimate Partner Violence Reports During the COVID-19 Pandemic First Year in Portuguese Urban Areas: A Brief Report

The COVID-19 pandemic raised concerns about the exponential growth of intimate partner violence (IPV), both in numbers and severity. This brief report aims to describe the variation of IPV reports to the police during the pandemic in Portugal. Data were retrieved from a governmental national database. A five-year period was analyzed. Characteristics from the occurrence, as well as sociodemographic characteristics of victims and perpetrators, were described for each year. Data showed a 10.99% decrease of IPV reports to the police in 2020 compared with the average of the previous four years. Periods when more restrictive measures (e.g., lockdown) were decreed by the government corresponded to a higher decrease in IPV reports to the police. Significant differences in the distribution of crime location, crime reporting, type of violence, age of victims and perpetrators, and professional situation and financial dependence of perpetrators, were found between 2020 and previous years. COVID-19 pandemic does not seem to be associated with a raise in IPV reports to the police, nor higher severity of the reported cases. This brief report adds to previous research by providing detailed and systematically collected data about IPV occurrences during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bidirectional Intimate Partner Violence Among Chinese Women: Patterns and Risk Factors

Bidirectional intimate partner violence (BIPV) refers to the co-occurrence of violence perpetration by both partners. BIPV has been analyzed using samples from different sociodemographic contexts but has yet to be fully explored in China. The present study employed a latent class approach to identify BIPV patterns, rates of prevalence, and associated risk factors among a sample of 1,301 heterosexual adult women in mainland China. Five distinct patterns of BIPV were identified, including (a) bidirectional psychological aggression, (b) bidirectional violence of all types, (c) multi-type victimization with psychological aggression, (d) minimal violence, and (e) bidirectional multi-types without physical violence. Marital status, education, employment status, acceptance of male dominance, and justification of intimate partner violence (IPV) were found to be predictive of different types of BIPV. Our findings suggest a need for a conceptual recognition of the heterogeneity and bidirectionality of IPV among Chinese women. Future research should extend to other diverse populations and sociocultural or clinical contexts in China. IPV assessments, research, and social programs ought to recognize the complexity of IPV and consider various IPV patterns specific to heterosexual women.

Intimate Partner Violence in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue at the global level, with cultural differences in its nature and prevalence. Most of the current evidence related to IPV comes from Western countries; however, there is a lack of evidence of IPV in developing countries such as Saudi Arabia. The issue of IPV has been investigated in Saudi Arabia only recently, and data have been inconsistent and inconclusive. Hence, we conducted a systematic review of the extant literature devoted to IPV prevalence, risk factors, and outcomes as well as Saudi women's help-seeking behaviors. Various databases, such as PubMed, CINAHL, Medline, PsycINFO, and reference lists of the reviewed studies, were searched to identify relevant studies by using different keywords. The review included 16 studies that met the inclusion criteria, which revealed several findings. There is no national representative prevalence study of IPV in the Saudi context. Various IPV definitions were used with limited evidence for the reliability and validity of the used IPV measures. IPV is a prevalent issue among Saudi women, but rates are comparable to those of other countries. There are various individual, relational, and sociocultural factors that increase women's vulnerability to IPV victimization. However, limited information is available regarding IPV protective factors. More importantly, IPV experiences negatively affect Saudi women's physical and mental health status. Saudi women rarely seek formal support for IPV. This review also highlights the lack of IPV data and inconsistencies in defining and measuring IPV. More rigorous research regarding IPV is needed to help develop relevant preventive and intervention programs.

Update on Mental Health Aspects of Intimate Partner Violence

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is common worldwide and occurs in more than one-third of American women and psychiatric patients. As well as physical injuries, it may cause mental health sequelae, such as depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, psychosis, inability to trust others, self-harm, and a host of psychosomatic conditions, that may be referred to psychiatrists. It is imperative that psychiatrists know the risk factors, how to assist disclosure of IPV, and how to safely respond. Psychiatrists must know the best evidence-based management of IPV and its mental health sequelae to best assist patients who have been exposed to IPV.

Mental Health Aspects of Intimate Partner Violence

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is common worldwide and occurs in more than one-third of American women and psychiatric patients. As well as physical injuries, it may cause mental health sequelae, such as depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, psychosis, inability to trust others, self-harm, and a host of psychosomatic conditions, that may be referred to psychiatrists. It is imperative that psychiatrists know the risk factors, how to assist disclosure of IPV, and how to safely respond. Psychiatrists must know the best evidence-based management of IPV and its mental health sequelae to best assist patients who have been exposed to IPV.