1

Research Problems (Women in Distress)

Brenda Rouse

The University of Arizona Global Campus

HUM 5100 Integrative Project for Human Services

Instructor: Claudia McCann

July 12, 2022

2

Research Problems (Women in Distress)

There are a lot of people in Broward County that face domestic violence. These people

range to children, women, and sometimes men, not ignoring the youths. Women in Distress is a

human service organization located in Broward County whose overall mission is to stop

domestic violence abuse for everyone through intervention, education, and advocacy. Women in

Distress of Broward is an organization founded by Edee Green and a group concerned with the

well-being of the citizens in 1974. Initially, the organization could offer assistance to homeless

refugee women. Still, quality sponsorship has expanded over the years, embracing people

affected by domestic violence (Women In Distress, n.d.).

In modern society, domestic violence is one of the most common types of crime in home

settings. The major challenge is that many people do not take domestic violence as something

serious as long as death is not involved. For this reason, many domestic violence victims seek

medical attention while trying to protect the perpetrator, and many other cases go unreported.

Women in Distress has been on the front line, ensuring that domestic violence cases are known

and that victims are offered necessary help that protects them from emotional and psychological

traumas while recovering from physical injuries. In reality, the organization has saved many

victims from succumbing to injuries.

The organization's website is alarming the number of people affected by domestic

violence daily in a single county (Women In Distress, n.d.). The website shows that in 2022

alone, the facility managed to serve 3,051 clients, falling into the categories of women, children,

and men. It is the number recorded as having received services like crisis intervention, group

sessions, safe shelter, individual counseling, and therapy. There are also a total of 23,679 people

3

who have gone through mental support after going through tormenting domestic violence abuse.

The support has been offered through advocacy, therapy, and counseling.

Surprisingly, at least 27,743 people have been offered emergency safety services for

shelter nights, including food, clothes, and a place to spend the night. Lastly, approximately

15,301 people have been recorded as having called the organization's hotline number, where they

have been offered critical lifeline help after surviving a domestic violence attack. Such people

have been assisted in accessing emergency medical attention, getting psychological counseling,

and being guided on how to handle the issue legally. These numbers show that domestic violence

cases have been rampant, and their effects have been detrimental to the victims.

With the high number of people assisted within six months in the year 2022, it is evident

Women in Distress is an essential human service organization serving Broward County. The

relatively high number of emergency calls means that people within the county have, over the

years, built trust in the services offered at the organization. Nonetheless, the solution is not

entirely on the organization's services. The answer lies in community members learning how to

avoid domestic violence cases. However, this is by first understanding the various ways domestic

violence is carried out and learning how to prevent it. By so doing, there would be no victims, or

at least the number of cases would reduce by huge margins as well as the effects involved

From this understanding, the most effective solution is for the Women in Distress

organization to establish a center and program through which members of Broward County can

be assisted in overcoming domestic violence. All the same, this is not still possible without first

understanding the entire domestic violence concept. By so doing, the problem would be resolved

4

from the causes and effects perspectives leading to quality eradication or at least some levels of

problem reduction within the society.

Understanding why women stay in abusive relationships is key to breaking the cycle of

domestic violence.

According to The Cycle of Domestic Violence (2019), As a domestic violence victim,

breaking a cycle of abuse can be challenging, even if you are aware of it. The cycle is divided

into three parts: 1. When the victim feels like they have to walk on eggshells to keep the abuser

from bursting, tension rises. They may not know what will set things off, but the victim may

sense the simmering rage beneath the surface. Victims of domestic violence appear to be on their

best behavior during this period, which friends can observe. 2. Unfortunately, an abusive episode

is the most likely trigger for the building tension to explode. It is not uncommon for the abuser to

use physical force against their victim, but this can also occur in cases where the abuser uses

psychological pressure. There are various ways in which the abuser might humiliate and deny the

victim access to money or other requirements. 3. After the stress has dissipated, the abuser may

try to "make up" for the abuse by working extra hard. An attempt to keep the victim in the

relationship may entail making several apologies or vows to change, giving lavish presents, or

showing excessive attention. As soon as the victim agrees to have another go, the cycle of abuse

can begin again.

5

How do women rebuild their trust after overcoming domestic violence and lead a healthy

lifestyle thereafter?

Women's needs as they move toward a life free of domestic violence and the impact that

domestic violence has on their lives. Five women in a battered women's shelter and five women

who had been in the shelter but were now living independently, free of abuse, were studied using

a phenomenological design. According to Javaherian et al. (2007), rebuilding one's life was

characterized by five distinct themes: "You should live your life. In the end, it's all about making

connections. I don't have a second to myself," she said. (four) "It's hard," he said. The road I used

to travel is no longer the road I'm on" (Javaherian et al., 2007). Due to these women's stories,

occupational therapists are forced to pause and reflect on their role in working with survivors of

domestic violence.

6

References

Heather Javaherian, Victoria Krabacher, Krista Andriacco & Dana German (2007) Surviving

Domestic Violence: Rebuilding One's Life, Occupational Therapy In Health Care, 21:3,

35-59,

Leedy, P. D. & Ormrod, J. E. (2019). Practical research: Planning and design (12th ed.).

Pearson.

Netting, F. E., O'Conner, M. K., & Fauri, D. P. (2008). Comparative approaches to program

planning. Wiley.

The Cycle of Domestic Violence: Understanding Why Women Return to Abusive Partners. (2019,

April 12). Women against Crime | Albuquerque, New Mexico.

https://womenagainstcrime.com/the-cycle-of-domestic-violence-understanding-why-

women-return-to-abusive-partners/

Women In Distress | Broward County, Inc. (n.d.). https://www.womenindistress.org/

1

Final Project Bibliography Checklist

Brenda Rouse

The University of Arizona Global Campus

HUM 5100 Integrative Project for Human Services

Instructor: Claudia McCann

July 22, 2022

2

What can be done to help women rebuild trust after overcoming domestic violence?

Domestic violence is one of the most common types of crime in the home in modern

society. The main issue is that many people do not consider domestic violence severe as long as

no one dies. As a result, many victims of domestic violence seek medical attention while

attempting to protect the perpetrator, and many other cases go unreported. Women in Distress

has been on the front lines, ensuring that domestic violence cases are reported, and victims are

provided with the necessary assistance to protect them from emotional and psychological

traumas while recovering from physical injuries. In reality, the organization has saved the lives

of many victims.

Anderson, K. M., Renner, L. M., & Danis, F. S. (2012). Recovery: Resilience and Growth in the

Aftermath of Domestic Violence. Violence Against Women, 18(11), 1279–

1299. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801212470543

In this article, the authors focus on addressing the journey of domestic violence victims

after the traumatic experience. In the study where thirty-seven women who have been

victims of domestic violence were used to show the recovery experience, it is evident

different people recover at different rates based on situations surrounding them.

Participants' current levels of psychosocial functioning were found to be high on standard

measures, indicating that they were resilient and showed little signs of post-traumatic

stress disorder. The participants' healing, growth, and resilience were greatly aided by

social and spiritual support, as evidenced by the qualitative data. The research found that

the rate of recovery is determined by the psychological effect the victim was subjected to

and the quality of emotional and psychological help offered to the victim.

3

Devakumar, D., Palfreyman, A., Uthayakumar-Cumarasamy, A., Ullah, N., Ranasinghe, C.,

Minckas, N., Nadkarni, A., Oram, S., Osrin, D., & Mannell, J. (2021). Mental health of

women and children experiencing family violence in conflict settings: a mixed methods

systematic review. Conflict & Health, 15(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-021-

00410-4

The authors focus on women's and children's mental health after going through domestic

violence episodes. The research article noted that women and children are the most

vulnerable when it comes to domestic violence and tend to suffer psychologically,

physically, and emotionally. In most cases, trust is wholly interfered with as victims feel

they can no longer relate in the same way as before with the person who abused them.

However, practical psychological assistance tries to rekindle the trust, but the challenge is

that trust is never regained 100%. In conclusion, Although family violence was more

prevalent and was linked to mental health outcomes in conflict zones, the research was

too inconsistent to say if this was the case more so than in non-conflict zones. This

analysis emphasizes the pressing need for more comprehensive data on perpetrators,

types of family violence, and mental health effects in conflict-affected contexts, which

would aid in quantifying the scope of the problem and pointing to viable approaches to

resolving it.

Flasch, P., Murray, C. E., & Crowe, A. (2017). Overcoming Abuse: A Phenomenological

Investigation of the Journey to Recovery from Past Intimate Partner Violence. Journal of

Interpersonal Violence, 32(22), 3373–3401. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260515599161

4

The article addresses the issue of intimate partner violence (IPV), with the main focus

being on overcoming abuse. According to the report, domestic violence is committed

mainly by people that victims trust, and this comes as a great shock due to disbelief. The

authors investigate the road to recovery, where the various steps victims undergo before

recovering to the extent of having trust back. In conclusion, The current research aimed

to employ a phenomenological qualitative approach to understand the personal processes

better and lived experiences of survivors of childhood abuse. By "overcoming previous

abuse," we mean the procedures survivors of intimate partner abuse go through as they

work to rebuild their lives and relationships after the trauma of the abuse and reach their

full potential in all aspects of life.

Nicky Stanley, Pam Miller, Helen Richardson Foster, Gill Thomson, A Stop-Start Response:

Social Services' Interventions with Children and Families Notified following Domestic

Violence Incidents, The British Journal of Social Work, Volume 41, Issue 2, March 2011,

Pages 296–313, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcq071

The author addresses the domestic violence issue from a social service response

perspective in this article. The article found that in most cases, social services that should

offer professional and instant services to people tend to fail in their duty. They either

make a follow-up late and whenever they are on time, they fail to ask reluctant questions

that would determine victims in need of an intervention and those that do not need it.

This failure makes it hard for domestic violence victims to recover as they should, and

some live their life with a lot of distrust and other mental-related challenges like fear and

anxiety. In conclusion, this research shows that it's not enough to label domestic abuse as

significant damage to guarantee that victims' kids and families get help.

5

Rachel Robbins, Kate Cook, 'Don't Even Get Us Started on Social Workers': Domestic Violence,

Social Work and Trust—An Anecdote from Research, The British Journal of Social

Work, Volume 48, Issue 6, September 2018, Pages 1664–

1681, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcx125

In this article, the main challenge is domestic violence victims' lack of trust in social

workers. Three different focus groups share similar insights that the actions and

behaviors of social workers make it hard for people to trust the services they offer.

However, this makes social work hard to provide because social workers must first work

towards developing and maintaining trust to achieve effectiveness and success in their

careers. In conclusion, this was a chance to learn about the perspectives of survivors of

domestic violence and to have a meaningful conversation about the challenges and

possibilities of establishing trust with social workers. In their discussion, some of the

cracks in the women's ability to form trusted connections were revealed.

6

References

Anderson, K. M., Renner, L. M., & Danis, F. S. (2012). Recovery: Resilience and Growth in the

Aftermath of Domestic Violence. Violence Against Women, 18(11), 1279–

1299. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801212470543

Devakumar, D., Palfreyman, A., Uthayakumar-Cumarasamy, A., Ullah, N., Ranasinghe, C.,

Minckas, N., Nadkarni, A., Oram, S., Osrin, D., & Mannell, J. (2021). Mental health of

women and children experiencing family violence in conflict settings: a mixed methods

systematic review. Conflict & Health, 15(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-021-

00410-4

Flasch, P., Murray, C. E., & Crowe, A. (2017). Overcoming Abuse: A Phenomenological

Investigation of the Journey to Recovery From Past Intimate Partner Violence. Journal of

Interpersonal Violence, 32(22), 3373–3401. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260515599161

Nicky Stanley, Pam Miller, Helen Richardson Foster, Gill Thomson, A Stop-Start Response:

Social Services' Interventions with Children and Families Notified following Domestic

Violence Incidents, The British Journal of Social Work, Volume 41, Issue 2, March 2011,

Pages 296–313, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcq071

Rachel Robbins, Kate Cook, 'Don't Even Get Us Started on Social Workers': Domestic Violence,

Social Work and Trust—An Anecdote from Research, The British Journal of Social

Work, Volume 48, Issue 6, September 2018, Pages 1664–

1681, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcx125

Women In Distress | Broward County, Inc. (n.d.). https://www.womenindistress.org/

7

Checklist Questions Artice1

1. In what journal or other source did you find the article? Was it reviewed by experts in the field before it was published? That is, was the article in a Peer-reviewed publication?

The article is peer-reviewed

2. Does the article have a stated research problem or question? That is, can you determine the focus of the author's work?

Yes, it does 3. Does the article contain a section that describes and integrates previous studies on this topic? In what ways is this previous work relevant to the author's research problem or question?

Yes, there is a lot of in-text citation and a list of references used

4. If new data were collected, can you describe how they were collected and how they were analyzed? Do you agree with what was done? If you had been the researcher, what additional things might you have done?

Yes, new data has been collected from the present study participants, and it shows that the psychological and moral support offered to victims determines the resilience rate developed and maintained. I agree with this finding since it is information from the primary source.

5. Did the author explain procedures clearly enough that you could repeat the work and get similar results? What additional information might be helpful or essential for you to replicate the study?

Yes, they have been since the article clearly shows steps to follow when conducting res