To Örebro University

This study aimed to explore social workers’ shared experiences and perceptions of identifying intimate partner violence (IPV) and assessing the risk for re-victimization of such violence in a Swedish rural and remote context. Thirteen focus group interviews were conducted with social workers (N = 38) from 17 rural and remote municipalities and analyzed using thematic analysis. Three themes were identified: Challenges with identifying IPV, Varying risk assessment expertise, and Lack of practical utility of available risk assessment tools. Identifying IPV was challenging for many reasons, primarily due to a lack of routines and knowledge of IPV. These challenges were also perceived to extend to the assessment of risk for re-victimization. For example, the required knowledge of risk assessment practices was scarce, unevenly distributed, and difficult to maintain as IPV cases were rarely identified. The results are generally in line with previous studies. However, given that this study was conducted with professionals working in rural and remote areas, we also identified challenges unique to a sparsely populated context that are discussed.

Purpose: This study aimed to explore the perceptions and experiences of social workers and police officers in terms of risk management and inter- and intra-agency collaboration in cases of intimate partner violence (IPV) in rural and remote areas in Sweden.

Method: Adopting an exploratory qualitative research design, 13 semi-structured focus group interviews with 38 social workers and six police officers from six rural and remote regions were conducted. Data were analyzed using thematic analyses.

Results: In relation to our informants’ work with risk management responses, two themes were identified related to barriers and possibilities. In terms of collaboration, two themes were identified in the data: barriers to inter- and intra-agency collaboration, and facilitators of inter- and intra-agency collaboration. Overall, the results of this study correspond to previous research. However, novel findings related to possibilities with risk management responses and collaboration specific to a rural and remote context.

Conclusions: The results of this study are discussed in terms of policy and practical implications for social workers and police officers in general and in relation to the unique context of rural and remote areas. As such, there is an incongruence between current urban-centric policies of IPV prevention and the specific structural and cultural characteristics of sparsely populated areas.

Objective: Previous research has reported inconclusive results pertaining to the predictors for victim retraction and participation in police investigations of intimate partner violence (IPV). The aim of this study was therefore to examine characteristics and consequences associated with victim retraction and participation in police investigations of IPV. Additionally, we also examined characteristics and consequences in relation to victim retraction and participation in police risk management strategies.

Method: We analyzed a sample of 668 cases of male-to-female IPV reported to Swedish police, where characteristics were retrieved mainly from risk assessments of IPV re-victimization conducted by the police for all cases. Additionally, follow-up information of prosecutions, convictions, and rates of IPV re-victimization were examined for each case.

Results: The main results show a higher proportion of vulnerability factors present in cases where women retracted than in cases where they participated. In contrast, there were more risk factors present in cases where victims participated, and such participation was more likely to result in a perpetrator's prosecution and conviction. There was no significant association between IPV re-victimization and victim retraction or participation.

Conclusion: Victim participation in the police investigation and the risk management increased the likelihood of conviction, illustrating the importance of criminal justice professionals supporting, encouraging, and motivating women who have experienced IPV to participate in the criminal justice process.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine how victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) differ in terms of vulnerability factors and risk of being re-victimized, by comparing victims of the two most consistently identified IPV male perpetrator subtypes: the Partner Only (PO) violent and the Generally Violent (GV).

Methods: The current study analyzed IPV reported to the Swedish police and consisted of a sample of 1479 cases of male-to-female perpetrated IPV. The material mainly consisted of IPV risk assessments conducted by the police.

Results: The results showed that vulnerability factors were significantly more common among victims of GV perpetrators, including inconsistent attitudes or behaviors, extreme fear of the perpetrator, inadequate support or resources, an unsafe living situation, and health problems. Moreover, victims of GV perpetrators were generally assessed by the police with a significantly higher risk of being re-victimized by IPV. Finally, in relation to the victim vulnerability factors most strongly associated with an elevated assessed risk for IPV re-victimization, the presence of extreme fear of the perpetrator and having an unsafe living situation were significantly related to such outcomes for both groups of victims.

Conclusion: In sum, the results of this study contribute to the scant body of knowledge on IPV victim subtypes and their vulnerability profiles. In addition to facilitating the risk assessment of repeated IPV, such knowledge could also indicate what type of support different victim subtypes require in order to prevent IPV.

Syftet med projektet har varit att förmedla forskningsresultat om riskhantering och samverkan avseende våld i nära relation, stalkning och hedersrelaterat våld och förtryck till yrkesverksamma inom polis och socialtjänst, samt att undersöka utmaningar och behov rörande frågor om riskbedömning, riskhantering och samverkan kring våld i nära relationer i gles- och landsbygdskommuner.

Projektet knyter an till forskningsprogrammet RISKSAM som syftar till att implementera och utvärdera en hållbar och evidensbaserad arbetsmodell, RISKSAM, för arbetet med riskhantering och samverkan vad gäller våld i nära relation. RISKSAM är en förkortning för RISKhantering och SAMverkan. En huvudsaklig ambition med nyttiggörandeprojektet har varit att medverka till att sprida information om RISKSAM och i dialog med de yrkesverksamma utveckla modellen ännu mer specifikt till de utmaningar som gles- och landsbygd står inför.

Under våren 2023 har vi således besökt praktiker inom socialtjänst och polis i gles- och landsbygd. Forskare och doktorander inom RISKSAM-programmet besökte regionerna Dalarna, Värmland, Västra Götaland, Västerbotten, Örebro och Östergötland, där ett eller flera kommunbesök genomfördes i varje region. Varje besök har bestått av presentationer om RISKSAM och preliminära resultat ur detta projekt, samt fokusgruppsintervjuer om gles- och landsbygdens specifika utmaningar och de yrkesverksammas behov och stöd.

Våra resultat visade att det finns både utmaningar och möjligheter med arbetet med riskbedömning, riskhantering och samverkan kring ärenden med våld i nära relationer i gles- och landsbygdskommuner. I riskbedömningsarbetet fann vi att det fanns utmaningar i att identifiera våld men också att det kan finnas bristande organisatorisk kompetens att riskbedöma. Enskilda medarbetare har kompetens men omsättningen av personal och svårigheter att rekrytera, försvårar upprätthållandet av kompetens inom organisationen. Arbetet med riskbedömning kan även försvåras på grund av olika faktorer och brist på erfarenhet då dessa ärenden är sällan-ärenden.

I rapportens andra del redovisas utmaningar och möjligheter med riskhantering. Vi belyser verksamheternas bristande förutsättningar och de få insatser som finns att erbjuda på hemmaplan, att verktygslådan att arbeta med är liten, och att det finns en svårighet att hantera möjligheten till anonymitet på mindre orter. Vi lyfter både utmaningar och möjligheter med glesbefolkade samhällen, som fördelen med närhet till varandra och en känsla av att ta hand om varandra, men också nackdelarna med att det är svårt att vara anonym, ta emot insatser och att återvända till hemorten efter våldet och en vistelse i ett skyddat boende.

I del tre i rapporten beskriver vi de utmaningar och möjligheter som yrkesverksamma upplever i relation till samverkan – både intern och extern – i ärenden med våld i nära relation. Detta innefattade, bland annat, hur den geografiska närheten (till exempel att sitta i samma byggnad) mellan yrkesverksamma underlättar samverkan. Samtidigt är samverkansformerna sårbara utifrån att de baseras på person snarare än funktion och den externa samverkan som sker är nästan uteslutande ostrukturerad. Det finns dock en vilja till ökad samverkan och existerande plattformar för detta, dock upplever flera yrkesverksamma att det saknas rätt verktyg för att åstadkomma detta.

Rapporten avslutas med en sammanfattande diskussion om utmaningar och möjligheter i arbetet med våld i nära relation i gles- och landsbygd. Här lämnas även konkreta förslag på hur praktiker i gles- och landsbygd kan stärkas i sitt arbete i relation till riskbedömning, riskhantering och samverkan.

The aim of this study was to examine the association between the victim vulnerability factors included in the intimate partner violence (IPV) risk assessment tool used by the Swedish police (Brief Spousal Assault Form for the Evaluation of Risk [B-SAFER]) and rates of IPV revictimization among female victims living in rural towns, countryside, or remote areas. This study also aimed to examine the interaction between rurality and IPV revictimization in relation to victim vulnerability. The sample consisted of 695 cases of male-to-female perpetrated IPV, which had been reported to the Swedish police and subjected to a B-SAFER assessment. Rates of revictimization were examined in police registers. The results demonstrated that several vulnerability factors could discriminate between IPV revictimization across rurality. There was also an interaction effect between rurality and IPV revictimization in relation to the number of victim vulnerability factors present, where revictimization was more common for victims with many vulnerability factors living in more sparsely populated areas.

This study aimed to examine the importance of differentiating between partner violent men in terms of immigrant or native Swedish background, when assessing risk for intimate partner violence (IPV) recidivism. A quantitative design was used with a sample of 1263 alleged male perpetrators reported for IPV-related crimes to the Swedish police. Data consisted of police officers’ risk assessments using the Swedish version of the Brief Spousal Assault Form for the Evaluation of Risk (B-SAFER). Results showed that risk factors such as 'Violent threats or thoughts', and 'Violent attitudes', were more common for perpetrators with an immigrant background. In contrast, risk factors such as 'General criminality' and 'Substance use problems' were more common among native perpetrators. Furthermore, in relation to the importance of specific risk factors for an elevated risk of IPV recidivism, such risk was elevated for perpetrators with a native background when ‘Violent threats or thoughts’, ‘General criminality’ and ‘Relationship problems’ were present. Corresponding factors for immigrant perpetrators consisted of ‘Escalation’ and ‘General criminality’. These results are essential for the police to recognize and understand since only victims in IPV cases with an elevated assessed risk will be eligible for risk management and protective actions.

This study aimed to a) examine the presence of children in relation to victim vulnerability factors and assessed risk for intimate partner violence (IPV) re-victimization, and b) examine the police response, in terms of risk management, in IPV cases with and without children, respectively. Data from a sample of 1407 women who had reported IPV victimization to the Swedish police was analyzed. The material consisted of risk assessments conducted by the police using the Swedish version of the Brief Spousal Assault Form for the Evaluation of Risk (B-SAFER) checklist, as well as the recommended risk management strategies. A series of chi-square tests of independence revealed that women with and without children, respectively, displayed different vulnerability factors to different extents. Women with children expressed more extreme fear of the perpetrator and were more likely to have an unsafe living situation, whereas women without children displayed more inconsistent attitudes or behaviors and health problems. However, binary logistic regression analyses showed that the victim vulnerability factors that were most strongly associated with an elevated risk rating for IPV re-victimization were generally the same for both groups of victims. Finally, the presence of children was related to a higher risk rating for imminent IPV re-victimization and to recommendations of more than standard levels of risk management strategies. The results indicate that the Swedish police consider the presence of children in relation to a victim’s risk for re-victimization as well as in terms of recommended risk management strategies.