Background: It is estimated that one in three women will experience intimate partner violence (IPV) in their life time. It is recommended that healthcare professional screen patients for IPV, but screening rates and positive disclosure rates remain low. Best practices for screening for IPV in the healthcare setting include screening alone, showing…

In the U.S., two out of five children are born to unmarried parents. These children do not have a legal father until paternity is established, a process completed by most families in the hospital at the time of the birth. Over the last 30 years, the percentage of unmarried parents voluntarily establishing paternity in the hospital has climbed…

Initially, survey research was conducted to examine the economic impact on domestic violence within a two-county area in South Texas. Surveys were distributed to the police departments in these areas to obtain this information. Once the data were collected, there was evidence that the downturn in the economy was having an effect on family…

The Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency (BIAS) project is the first major opportunity to use a behavioral economics lens to look at programs that serve poor and vulnerable people in the United States. Sponsored by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within the U.S.…

This study examines Merton's Classical Strain Theory (1938) as a causative factor in intimate partner violence among college students. We theorize that college students experience general life strain and cumulative strain as they pursue the goal of a college degree. We test this strain on the likelihood of using intimate partner violence. Strain…

School personnel, particularly educators and school psychologists, are a first line of defense in protecting children from abuse. Teachers play an important role in the detection and reporting of child abuse. The relationship established between teachers and their students can facilitate the identification of child abuse. By virtue of their work,…

While there are increasing efforts to address the problem of domestic violence and trauma in the justice, health care, and social service systems, the adult education system still lags behind. The inattention to this issue in adult education is particularly troubling because these programs often play a significant role in the lives of women who…

This study identified selected child factors (e.g., age, gender, race/ethnicity, disabilities, prior victimization, and relationship to perpetrator of abuse), family risk factors (e.g., substance abuse, domestic violence, inadequate housing, and financial problems), and services provided by child protective services that likely increased reports…

Little is known about trauma-related symptoms among runaway adolescents. Precocious departure from familial homes often exposes youth to traumatic victimization. This study examined the extent to which runaway adolescents present trauma symptomotology and assessed factors that predict trauma symptoms. Participants (N = 350) were 12-18 years of age…

The pervasive, personal crisis of intimate partner violence (IPV) demands community information resources in workforce, health care, mental health, public housing, criminal justice, and social service arenas. Although generally underutilized, public libraries have a pivotal role to play as the only public institution specifically structured to…

Findings of a 1990 study that identified the educational needs of Texas children who were homeless as a result of domestic violence are presented in this paper. Data were derived from: (1) interviews with three staff members of the Texas Council on Family Violence; (2) visits to four domestic violence shelters--three urban and one rural--and…

This document reports the findings of a study conducted for the Texas legislature to use in evaluating alternatives for dealing with elder abuse. The described study analyzed experiences with elder abuse of 1,653 Texas professionals in the fields of health and medicine, the judiciary, financial services, law enforcement, and social services. The…

A study investigated the nature of reading difficulties from the perspective of sixth graders in a low-income school district on the border of New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico. R. C. Bogdan and S. K. Biklin (1992) describe this style of research as an attempt to gain entry into the conceptual world of subjects to understand what meaning they…

Women arrested for intimate partner violence raise challenges for those working in domestic violence programs. Theoretically, there is no agreement about whether women are aggressive for the same reasons as men or merely victims fighting back in an abusive relationship. Practically, there is very little research to guide treatment of this…

Many elderly persons suffer abuse and neglect from which they cannot escape. Questions concerning the extent of elder abuse, the kinds of abuse, and underlying factors associated with elder abuse in Texas were explored in a survey of professionals most likely to encounter elder abuse in their work. Questionnaires (1,508) were mailed to agencies…