TITLE:
Violence against Women: Methodological and Ethical Issues
AUTHORS:
Kaltrina Kelmendi
KEYWORDS:
Intimate Partner Violence; Methodological Issues; Ethical Issues
JOURNAL NAME:
Psychology,
Vol.4 No.7,
July
8,
2013
ABSTRACT: Research on violence against women has
improved and provides important information on patterns, prevalence, risk and
consequences of this major threat to female well-being. Since the
identification of violence against women as a problem worthy of study in 1970,
evident progress has been made in understanding physical, psychological and
sexual violence against women. However, while methodological improvements
appear in later studies, the literature review shows many limitations and
restrictions when conducting research on violence against women. The objective
of this paper is to review the methodological issues that arise when studying
violence against women. The paper focuses first on the history of research on
violence against women, by elaborating on each perspective. Second, the paper
identifies and describes methodological difficulties when researching violence
against women such as methodology, operational definitions of violence,
sampling frame and risk factors related to violence. The paper also elaborates
on major ethical principles that should be considered and respected when
researching violence against women. Finally, the paper recommends certain
changes that should be made in order to improve future research on the subject.