Violence Against Women

In 2002, ICRW researchers analyzed the budgetary implications of domestic violence (DV) policies in Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico and Peru. ICRW also developed a preliminary framework to facilitate the process of systematically analyzing the budgetary implications of domestic violence. This paper is a synthesis of the initial research and the framework.

Violence contributes to HIV and AIDS vulnerability but little has been done to address this relationship at the policy level in India. ICRW and Oxfam GB sponsored a national level "Call to Action" consultation in 2007 to convene experts and explore the extent and scope of the problem, as well as identify concrete directions to address violence based on community-driven approaches that work.

The GTZ BACKUP Initiative commissioned ICRW to undertake a study in Cambodia to map existing strategies to combat HIV/AIDS and gender based violence and identify potential opportunities to address the links between HIV/AIDS and gender based violence. Researchers traveled to Cambodia to collect available literature and interview key government officials, researchers, policy makers, implementing organizations (both national and international NGOs), and donors.

This paper is the product of a review of literature on issues of gender in the context of conflict and post-conflict reconstruction. It was prepared as background material for an international workshop on gender equity and peace building jointly convened by ICRW and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Key findings and research questions are presented in relation to the effective integration of gender concerns into policies and programs that shape post-conflict societies.

This report examines the occurrence of female genital cutting (FGC), common rationales for its practice, and its prevalence. Efforts to eliminate the practice are also explored within the context of an emerging human rights framework. The final section of the document reports on the Promoting Women in Development (PROWID) International Consultation on FGC and makes recommendations on how practitioners, donors and policymakers can best enable communities to abandon the practice of female genital cutting.

Working toward the reduction and elimination of gender-based violence, ICRW partnered with CARE Balkans and CARE International to implement a groundbreaking program working directly with young men between the ages of 13 and 19 to deconstruct masculinity in their cultures and determine how gender norms and male socialization lead to inequitable attitudes and behaviors toward women and girls.

In the past decade, research in developing countries has established a rigorous, quantitative evidence base on the risk factors, prevalence and, to a lesser extent, the health impacts of intimate partner violence. However, progress has been slower in exploring its economic costs and broader welfare impacts, partly due to the lack of a comprehensive methodology adequate for such costing studies in developing country settings. To address this gap, ICRW and its partners conducted a study to refine and field test a methodology to estimate the costs as well as the impacts of intimate partner violence to households, communities and, ultimately, the national economy.

In 1997, ICRW began a three-year research program on domestic violence in India in partnership with researchers from a range of Indian academic and nongovernmental organizations. This report summarizes four studies exploring the links between masculinity and domestic violence as well as an aggregate analysis undertaken by ICRW on these linkages.

The full series provides an understanding of the degree of domestic violence being experienced by Indian women in a rural setting, the possible protective factors and the existing options available to women outside of family and friends. These reports also point to new directions for strategies to reduce domestic violence in India.

Other publications in the series:
Part 1: A Summary Report of Three Studies
Part 2: A Summary Report of Four Records Studies
Part 3: A Summary Report of a Multi-Site Household Survey
Part 5: Women-Initiated Community-Level Responses to Domestic Violence

In 1997, ICRW began a three-year research program on domestic violence in India in partnership with researchers from a range of Indian academic and nongovernmental organizations. This report summarizes three studies documenting and assessing the impact of three innovative women-initiated community-level responses to domestic violence.

The full series provides an understanding of the degree of domestic violence being experienced by Indian women in a rural setting, the possible protective factors and the existing options available to women outside of family and friends. These reports also point to new directions for strategies to reduce domestic violence in India.

Other publications in the series:
Part 1: A Summary Report of Three Studies
Part 2: A Summary Report of Four Records Studies
Part 3: A Summary Report of a Multi-Site Household Survey
Part 4: Men, Masculinity and Domestic Violence in India

In 1997, ICRW began a three-year research program on domestic violence in India in partnership with researchers from a range of Indian academic and nongovernmental organizations. This report summarizes four studies that examined hospitals, nongovernmental organizations, law enforcement and judicial systems, which are all key entry points for women experiencing domestic violence. The studies examine institutional discourse and also provide data about patterns and trends of domestic violence in India.

The full series provides an understanding of the degree of domestic violence being experienced by Indian women in a rural setting, the possible protective factors and the existing options available to women outside of family and friends. These reports also point to new directions for strategies to reduce domestic violence in India.

Other publications in the series:
Part 1: A Summary Report of Three Studies
Part 3: A Summary Report of a Multi-Site Household Survey
Part 4: Men, Masculinity and Domestic Violence in India
Part 5: Women-Initiated Community-Level Responses to Domestic Violence