NCJ Number
250805
Date Published
January 2017
Length
56 pages
Annotation
Using a community survey and subsequent focus groups, this study examined resident attitudes toward intimate partner violence (IPV) in an 18-block area surrounding the Marcy and Tompkins public housing projects in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.
Abstract
From April to July 2016, researchers conducted 309 surveys with residents in the target area. Respondents did not generally consider IPV to be as pervasive as other forms of violence in Bedford-Stuyvesant. Still, most believed that IPV is a problem that affects the community. Witnessing violence of all kinds was relatively common in Bedford-Stuyvesant. Gun violence was rated the most pressing community problem, with 70 percent of respondents rating it a "big problem." Thirty-eight percent of survey respondents identified IPV as a "big problem," and 52 percent viewed teen dating violence as a "big problem." Female respondents were more likely than male respondents to report being personally affected by dating violence and/or IPV. Sixty-three percent of respondents believed that fights between intimate partners have an impact on the greater community at least some of the time. Focus group participants further identified factors that contribute to IPV in their community, including drugs and alcohol, as well as the exacerbating involvement of other people, including friends, family members, and even strangers on the street encouraging a fight. Other factors mentioned pertained to power dynamics in intimate relationships and pressure felt by under-employed or unemployed men. Several focus group participants also spoke of a cycle of violence, noting that they had experienced violence at various stages of their lives. Other issues discussed by focus groups were victim-offender overlap, willingness to involve police in IPV offenses and potential legal ramifications, police-community relations, and consciousness-raising among residents regarding IPV. 1 table, 4 figures, 11-item bibliography, and appended questionnaire and focus group protocol