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Module 5 – Working with Women Victims & their Children

Welcome! By the end of this Module you will increase your knowledge and skills on: 

  1. Understanding Barriers to Reporting: the challenges women face when reporting gender-based violence & how to make the process easier for them.
  2. Trauma-Sensitive Approaches: recognize the emotional effects of violence & use supportive methods to avoid causing further harm while gathering information.
  3. Supporting Different Victim Needs: how to adapt your approach to help various groups, like young people, older adults, migrant women, or those with disabilities.

Key Considerations to be Taken into Account at Each Step of the Investigation Process

Receipt of the complaint

Obstacles to reporting domestic violence

Post-traumatic stress disorder

Avoiding “re-victimisation”

Whistleblower protection and implementation of protective measures

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Needs According to the Different Profiles of Victims

Needs of different age groups

Victims with intellectual disabilities

Migrant victims 

Victims with minor children

Victims residing in small and/or rural localities

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Reintroducing Gender-Based Violence (GBV)

Gender-Based Violence refers to violence directed at someone because of their gender or that disproportionately affects individuals of a particular gender. While Domestic Violence (DV) occurs within familial or intimate relationships, GBV encompasses all forms of violence rooted in unequal power dynamics, including violence outside domestic settings.

Why Focus on GBV in This Module?

Wider Perspective

This module highlights how GBV affects women beyond domestic spheres, emphasizing the unique needs of victims based on age, disabilities, migration status, or other vulnerabilities.

Intersectionality in Violence

Using "GBV" allows us to address overlapping factors - such as societal norms, economic dependency, or systemic barriers - that influence victims' experiences & responses.

Enhancing Police Responses

Understanding GBV equips police to better recognize & respond to diverse forms of abuse, ensuring all victims are treated with empathy & professionalism.

Reception of GBV complaints

A high percentage of women stated that they regretted having reported & would not dare to do so in the future.

They also explained that if a woman in their environment were to ask for advice, they would advise her not to file a complaint.

  • The trauma, shock & emotional distress associated with such violence can hinder their ability to respond accurately.
  • In the case of these victims, these feelings are often magnified, because they do not respond to a sudden event, but to continuous mistreatment over weeks, months or years.
  • They often face a complex set of physical & emotional problems that can reduce the accuracy of their testimony, complicating the work of the police.
  • Moreover, if officers fail to take these factors into account at every stage of an investigation, they may re-traumatise victims.
As mentioned above, this training brings together the experiences of women from different European countries. In some contexts, certain practices such as this may be outside national protocols, but we believe that sharing them can be enriching for understanding how gender-based violence is addressed globally.

Obstacles to reporting GBV

A common characteristic of GBV is that the abuse is sustained over long periods of time.

~ 0 years

It takes for a woman in Spain to report abuse

Main reasons for this are:

Socio-economic factors: Such as economic dependence or the presence of children.

Psychological-emotional: such as fear of consequences, manipulation by the abuser (“she deserves it”), a feeling of hopelessness or depression.

Psychological-emotional: such as fear of consequences, manipulation by the abuser (“she deserves it”), a feeling of hopelessness or depression.

It is vital that the police minimise as far as possible any barriers that may limit a victim from making a report.

Victims often indicate that there are multiple barriers that prevent them from doing so:

  • Having very little time to file a complaint before running the risk of being discovered by the abuser.
  • Limited resources in smaller police stations may lead officers to ask women to return later due to lack of time or staff.
  • Due to psychological or other factors, the process of reporting may be lengthy, which may lead officers to discourage her from doing so.
  • Officers’ prejudices or misunderstandings of the victim’s behaviour may lead them to judge the victim (e.g. blame the victim for “not leaving” or “why didn’t she report it earlier“).

“The policeman who attended me told me that this was going nowhere, that I was going to be there for four hours, that I had to report it or leave“. 

-VG survivor

  • Data from: ”Estudio sobre el tiempo que tardan las mujeres víctimas de violencia de género en verbalizar su situación” (Study on the time taken by women victims of gender violence to verbalise their situation). Government Delegation for Gender Violence”.
  • Women usually report when they are already in a state of extreme desperation, when they can’t take it anymore.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) & GBV

PTSD is a psychological disorder that affects mental & physical health.

It is common in women who have suffered violence, whether physical, psychological or sexual. PTSD is often under-diagnosed & is sometimes confused with disorders such as depression.

The main symptoms are usually:

  • Intrusive memories, reliving the trauma.
  • Avoidance of all reminders of the traumatic event.
  • Negative changes in mood, memory problems (distorted perceptions, feelings of guilt, shame, distancing from friends or family…).
  • Changes in physical & emotional reactions (alertness, difficulty sleeping or concentrating, irritability, startling, self-destructive behaviour…).

These symptoms reflect the deep emotional & psychological toll they take, exacerbate their vulnerability & hinder their recovery. They can also complicate police investigations.

  • More information: Guerrero-Vaca, Darío; García-Ramos, Carolina; De los Ángeles, Peñafiel; Flores-Fernández, Verónica (2021) ”Trastorno de estrés postraumático en mujeres víctimas de violencia. A review. Revista Científica Dominio de las Ciencias.

  • Psychotherapy is the most commonly used treatment and usually focuses on cognitive restructuring to overcome the traumatic event. Pharmacological treatments are also used, especially selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).

  • The after-effects of PTSD can be long-lasting, and a significant proportion of victims continue to experience vivid memories or flashbacks about their traumatic event(s) long after the experience.

Treatment of physical injuries

If injuries are identified (by the officer or potential GBV victim):

  • You should go to the health services as soon as possible, to avoid the origin of the injuries giving rise to the complaint being questioned.
  • This should be done before the police report is filed, so that the injury report from the health centre can be included in the police report.
  • If the woman’s injuries and/or emotional state are severe, the victim should be accompanied by an officer.
  • While police referral is common, it is important to remember that collaboration with health services is also essential.
  • A photographic report of the injuries should be taken & attached to the complaint.

Receipt of the complaint

Victims should ideally be put in contact with two types of services:

A professional with specific training in trauma (social worker, psychologist, etc.) who can meet with the victim beforehand to prepare them emotionally/psychologically for the process.

A lawyer specialised in GBV to provide information on how the complaint works, the possibility of applying for a restraining order, as well as what the victim can expect, at the police & judicial level, after the complaint.

In addition, it is important that the agent:

  • Give the complainant detailed instructions on how to structure the complaint to be effective.
  • Ensure that the complainant is able to tell the story of violence accurately, so that the duration, severity & frequency of the abuse is described from her perspective. It is important that she describes the whole history of violence, not just one-off events.
  • Be patient & understanding, giving them time to process their shock, trauma & stress.
  • Explain to the victim the escalation of violence & change in the level of risk that may occur from one moment to the next, while giving her personalised safety guidelines.

  • In Spain for example, currently, if a woman requests it, she can be assisted by a court-appointed lawyer, but this takes a long time to arrive, so in many cases they renounce it, as they run risks if they wait to file a complaint. Free legal aid must be fast and specialised.

  • For this to be possible, referral mechanisms must be put in place, either systematically or on an individual level (e.g. a police officer refers to a social worker or a lawyer working for a local shelter).

“Whenever I have gone to the police I always come out crying, with the feeling that they don’t believe me“. 

-VG survivor

Some of the women interviewed said they were surprised to read the information in the complaint outside the police station.

This can cause great distress.

  • Officers should always remember that the woman’s circumstances & the impact of what she has experienced can lead to confusion or even gaps in her memory. They may also minimise what happened or omit facts out of fear, threats or because she is in shock.
  • The police should collect & attach to the report all evidence that the victim can provide, whether physical or digital, testimonial & image evidence.
  • All persons who may have any information, evidence or knowledge about the violence that occurred should be identified in the report so that the story does not rely solely on the victim.
  • The motive for the complaint should never be downplayed, nor should women’s decision-making be judged.
  • The victim & the offender should never see or hear each other.
  • The victim can be accompanied by a trusted companion during the preparation of the complaint.
  1. It should be avoided not only to put pressure on the complainant to complete the process before she feels ready, but also to ask herto summarise an abusive relationship, which may have lasted for years, in only recent and/or concrete facts. It is important thatthe woman also pays attention to the context, to the everyday violence, to those violent attitudes in everyday life that may nothave been the trigger for the complaint, but which mean and should be understood as meaning that the complainant is not a victim of one or several isolated violent events, but is asking for help because her everyday life is taking place in an unsafeenvironment.
  2. Women repeatedly report feeling helpless when they realise that, at the time of reporting, they are unable to rememberimportant information, such as who they were with, when it happened, what they did next, and so on.

 

DOCUMENTATION OF THE COMPLAINT:

  • Complaint forms should be available at police stations upon request.
  • Online options for submitting complaints should also be provided.
  • The officer’s badge number should be visible or at least shared if requested.
  • Before signing the report, the woman should be given sufficient time and, if necessary, legal assistance to review in detail the information collected by the officer.
  • The victim should also be informed of the officers’ obligation to report ex officio, if they consider that there may be gender-basedviolence, in situations where the woman decides not to report after talking to the officers.
  • Each complainant must receive a copy of the signed complaint.

Avoiding "re-victimisation" when investigating GBV

Re-victimisation in police investigations occurs when a victim of a sensitive or traumatic crime experiences further distress or trauma due to the investigative process. This can occur when an officer:

  • Blames the victim for the abuse suffered or for not having reported earlier.
  • Downplays the importance of
    ill-treatment.
  • Asks or demands unnecessary lurid details from the victim.
  • Aggressively interrogates the victim.
  • Ignores the possibility that she may be in post-traumatic shock.

”From what some women tell us, many times when they decide to report their partner or ex-partner, they feel questioned by the professionals who attend them, & some women have even been advised not to report”.

NGO professional specialised in working with victims.

One way to minimise this is to use questions that are as standardised as possible, avoiding subjective or biased questions.

Counselling victims after reporting

“When you report your aggressor, it is not the end, but the beginning of another ordeal. Psychologically, you are in a very bad state & you need support that you often don’t find. Why did I report if I didn’t get anything in the end?”

Survivor of GBV.

It should never be assumed that the complainant knows what the process will be after reporting, or that she knows what to do if she has left her abusive partner. The police should provide written guidelines in simple, easy-to-understand language that:

  • Explain step-by-step the reporting process & what the woman can expect afterwards, in relation to the police & the courts in a simple way.
  • Provide information on state, regional & municipal resources, such as counselling, legal or social services, as well as victim support NGOs. Provide information on resources for children.
  • Describe personalised self-protection measures for your safety.

Officials should also pay attention to any special needs, such as those related to age, language, disability, family circumstances, etc.

Whistleblower protection

Following a complaint, the danger for the complainant is heightened, as the offender’s reaction may be violent.

Whenever the accused remains at liberty following the complaint, it is recommended that the woman be accompanied by her protection officer to her usual or alternative home when she leaves the police station.

All information provided at the time of reporting should be discussed at the first appointment/call with the protection officer.

In case of a speedy hearing (trial) following the complaint, it is recommended that the woman is accompanied by her protection officer at all times: on the way to & from the police station, & in the moments in between, when, despite the regulations, victim & offender often meet in waiting rooms, corridors, etc.

A self-protection plan should be provided: a personalised strategy to help people who are abused to keep themselves safe.

For example, in Spain, women receive a Personalised Security Plan.

Together with the woman, the officer reviews her possible self-protection needs and the system automatically generates a document appropriate to her needs: does she work, have children, etc.?

This self-protection plan, if it is not reviewed in detail by the officer with the woman, becomes part of the set of papers given to her, without major repercussions or significance for her.

Implementation of protective measures

  • The first follow-up contact initiated by the protection officer should be in person, if possible. The protected woman should be reminded of the information provided to her at the time of the complaint: available resources, self-protection measures, as well as the police and judicial phases in which she will have to participate.
  • If there is a risk, police protection measures must be ensured, even if there is no court order for protection or it has expired.
“I am afraid of what will happen when the restraining order ends”
Survivor of GBV
“I think the police should have protected me for longer. Even today I still have the impression that I am in danger. I think, from my experience, that there are few police officers assigned to the surveillance & care of women.”
Survivor of GBV
  • It is strongly recommended that the woman be informed of the telephone number(s) of her protection officer(s).
  • When a complaint is filed, the police should call the perpetrator to remind him that the victim is being protected &, where appropriate, the conditions of the restraining order.
  • Seeing patrol cars, even if only occasionally, in the vicinity of one’s home, workplace or children’s school is often seen as a safety factor.
  • Protection officers should never downplay a reported episode & should be sympathetic to the victim’s sense of insecurity.

Needs of female victims aged 16-18

It is important to take into account the incidence of digital violence in the form of control of devices & access to passwords, as well as the use of social networks to threaten & blackmail the victim. Officers should inform about the need to privatise networks, block the aggressor & avoid digital control.

Explaining to the woman that what she is experiencing is a case of GBV is especially relevant for this age group. The fact that the issues commonly understood as GBV do not usually appear, especially at the beginning, in abusive relationships between very young people can be misleading.

It should be borne in mind that, due to their age, these couples do not usually live together, so the isolation to which the victim is subjected is not so evident. However, there are other factors that do manifest themselves to a greater extent, such as bullying or harassment.

In the 2019 Macro-survey on Gender Violence, a specific section is dedicated to women between 16 and 24 years of age, as theyare considered to be at special risk.

According to the survey, “the prevalence of repeated stalking or harassment among women aged 16-24 is higher than amongwomen aged 25 and over: 26.2% have experienced it at some time and 13.0% before the age of 15, compared to 13.9% and 2.6%, respectively, among women aged 25 and over”.

All areas of care must work to raise awareness that gender-based violence is violence against women simply because they are women, as a first step towards its identification and subsequent eradication.

Victims over 65 years of age

Officers need to be aware that they may well be dealing with a person who, after a lifetime of abuse, has finally made the decision to report it. This reality underscores the even greater need to prevent the woman from regretting having made the report, thus making it more difficult for the process to move forward.  

It is highly recommended that officers take into account the specific needs of this age group, usually related to the need for economic support, accompanied by psychological support, in order to avoid the victim being tied to the aggressor as a matter of resources.

The process can be particularly difficult & lonely in these cases, due to the tendency of this age group not to share the violence suffered.

Finally, it is also important to take into account the possible lack of digital skills, which can make it difficult to search for information independently & to complete online procedures.

The Gender-Based Violence Macro-Survey 2019 also identifies older women as a particularly vulnerable group.

When dealing with older women, officers should be aware that they may well be dealing with someone who, after a lifetime ofabuse, has finally made the decision to report it. In fact, according to the survey ”women aged 65 and over have broken off a relationship with a previous partner as a result of violence to a much lesser extent (49.9%) than women aged 16-64 (81.4%)”.

The process can be particularly difficult and lonely in these cases, due to the tendency of this age group not to share the violencesuffered. According to the 2019 macro-survey, ”older women have told the people around them about the violence they havesuffered to a lesser extent than other women: 54.5% of women aged 65 and over have told the people around them about theviolence suffered by one of their partners compared to 81.3% of women aged 16 to 64 who have suffered gender violence”.

Victims with intellectual disabilities

The prevalence of GBV is

~ 0 %

higher among women with an accredited disability than among women without disabilities

Intersectionality: Women with intellectual disabilities face double discrimination, because of their gender & because of their disability, which can lead to multiple discrimination if other factors such as unemployment, poverty or ethnicity are added.

Ease of reading & explanations in plain language. Cognitive accessibility, understanding of the information, is key for women with intellectual disabilities to be able to make decisions for themselves. 

It is advisable to seek support for the reporting process & the subsequent stages of the process from organisations specialised in GBV & disability.

Women, disability and gender violence. Government Delegation against Gender Violence.

(DGVG, 2020). According to the Macro-survey on Violence against Women 2019 (DGVG, 2020), 20.7% of women with an accredited disability have suffered physical or sexual violence by their partner compared to 13.8% of women without an accredited disability.

Migrant victims

It should be borne in mind that immigrant women, depending on where they come from, may have normalised certain forms of violence in their homes that are socially accepted in their communities, which may make it difficult for them to identify their experiences as GBV.

Immigrant women, especially those who have regrouped and/or are not integrated, often have a strong economic dependence on their husbands & little autonomy (especially when they have arrived years after them), as well as a lack of social/family network in the country.

It is recommended that the risk assessment be carried out by a woman & without a uniform. In many cases, police forces from other countries are feared by the population, so it is necessary to establish a relationship of trust & reassurance.

Immigrant women from more conservative cultures are often afraid of divorce because of the social consequences. They should not be pressured in this regard, nor should they give up at the first refusal. After the complaint, it is advisable to refer them to specialised services for women victims of GBV.

For immigrant women who do not speak the same language, an interpreter (preferably a woman) who is specialised & sensitised to GBV should be provided.

Victims with minor children

Officers must take into account the safety of both the victim’s children & the woman herself. As for protective measures, they should be extended to the children of the complainant, whether or not there is a restraining order. Issues such as accompaniment to school are repeatedly demanded by victims.

It is of utmost importance that women victims receive information at the time of reporting about the services to which they can accompany their children to receive psychological support.

“We consider children to be direct victims of gender-based violence. As such, we give them priority in care alongside their mothers“.

 

– Professional from an NGO working with victims of GBV.

Providing children with psychological support is a key measure, not only to ensure their well-being & mental health, but also to reduce the impact that, especially in cases where they are still in contact with the father to a greater or lesser extent, the manipulation that the father may be exercising on them is a further weapon against the victim. This possible manipulation, especially if the children do not have psychological help, is a way of encouraging violence from the children towards the mother, as well as the aggressor’s control over her through the children.

  • We consider children to be direct victims of gender-based violence. As such, we prioritise their care alongside their mothers.
  • When a woman survivor of gender-based violence has minor children, officers must consider the safety of the children as much as the woman herself.
  • In order to guarantee the adequate exercise of the rights provided for in the law, child and adolescent victims of violence have the assistance and support of the Victims’ Assistance Offices, which will act as a coordination mechanism for the rest of the resources and services for the protection of minors.
  • Psychological assistance for children exposed in one way or another to gender-based violence is repeatedly called for. It is of theutmost importance that women victims who are going to report can be clearly informed at the time of reporting about the servicesto which they can accompany their children to receive the necessary support.
  • As far as protection measures are concerned, they should be extended to the children of the complainant, whether or not there is a restraining order. Issues such as accompaniment to school are repeatedly demanded by victims.

What is vicarious violence?

It is a form of GBV. Children of women who are victims of GBV, as well as minors of guardianship & custody age, are direct victims of this type of violence, as they are used by the abuser to harm the mother.
What is vicarious violence?

In this regard, actors need to be aware of indirect violence & how it is deeply related to mothers’ fear of, for example, joint custody. Thus, it is important to underline that the fact that the father does not exercise violence directly on his children is not a reason not to put in place relevant protection & care systems.

More info on vicarious violence can be found here.

Victims residing in small and/or rural localities

The likelihood that the officer taking the complaint and/or following up the case & the woman complainant and/or the perpetrator know each other is very high. It is advisable to facilitate the filing of the complaint at another police station or police station far from the victim’s home if the victim believes that there may be malpractice because the police officers know the aggressor.

Also, in case the victim decides to file the report at the nearest police centre, it is recommended to facilitate the possibility to ask another officer to take the report, if the victim considers it necessary.

On the other hand, in order to ensure that the attention that complainants can expect to receive is homogenous wherever they are, it is necessary that information & training reach all officers to the same extent, regardless of the force & location.
When providing the personalised safety plan to the victim, it is necessary to take into account their isolated situation in the case of rural areas, which make the victim more exposed to danger. The officer should provide safety guidelines according to the context in which they are.

Key Takeaways

Understanding Victims' Experiences

GBV often involves prolonged trauma. Recognizing its emotional & physical impacts is essential for effective support & investigation.

Minimizing Barriers & Re-traumatization

Address obstacles that prevent victims from reporting & avoid actions or attitudes that may re-traumatize them during investigations.

Tailoring Responses to Victim Needs

Different victim groups (minors, elderly, migrants, individuals with disabilities) require specific support. Adapt your approach to provide equitable care.

Importance of Collaboration

Multi-agency cooperation ensures victims receive comprehensive support, including legal, social, & health services.

Your Role in Building Trust

A victim-friendly approach fosters trust, empowers survivors, & improves outcomes in GBV cases.

Self Assessment

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Co-funded by the CERV Daphne EC Program. Grant Agreement no. 101096908