Adrienne E. Adams’s research while affiliated with Michigan State University and other places
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Economic abuse is a common component of intimate partner violence (IPV). This study explored whether IPV victim and perpetrator financial health at relationship outset are associated with two types of economic abuse-restriction and exploitation-during the relationship. With a sample of 315 women seeking services for male-perpetrated IPV, the study showed increased use of economic restriction when perpetrators were advantaged in terms of assets or disadvantaged in terms of debt. There was increased use of economic exploitation when victims were advantaged in terms of assets or credit and when perpetrators were disadvantaged in terms of assets, debt, or credit. Implications for research and intervention are discussed.
While there is a growing literature on intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors and service providers, it is limited by its largely atheoretical and descriptive nature, and its emphasis on individual-level survivors' help-seeking. We seek to broaden our understanding by shifting the focus onto organizations and service systems and introducing the concept of these providers' trustworthiness toward survivors. Provider trustworthiness in delivering services includes benevolence (locally available and caring), fairness (accessible to all and non-discriminatory), and competence (acceptable and effective in meeting survivors' needs). Guided by this conceptualization, we conducted an integrative review drawing on four databases: PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Science, and Westlaw. We identified studies for inclusion that were published between January 2005 and March 2022, and we examined the trustworthiness of community-based providers serving adult IPV survivors in the United States, including domestic violence services, health and mental health care, the legal system, and economic support services (N = 114). Major findings include (1) many survivors live in communities with no shelter beds, mental health care, or affordable housing; (2) many services are inaccessible because they lack, for example, bilingual staff, sliding fees, or telehealth options; (3) too many providers are harmful or discriminatory toward survivors, especially those who are, for example, sexual or gender minorities, immigrants or non-English-speaking, poor, or Native, Black, or Latinx; (4) many providers appear to be incompetent, lack evidence-based training, and are ineffective in meeting survivors' needs. We call on researchers, advocates, and providers to examine provider trustworthiness, and we offer an introduction to measuring it.
This study explored situational-, community-, and state policy-level factors associated with arrest in incidents involving violence among heterosexual couples. We employed 3-level regression models with Bayesian estimation to determine factors that influence female-only arrest, male-only arrest, and dual arrest, compared to incidents resulting in no arrest. At the situational level, differences by offense type were seen. The odds of a male’s arrest were significantly higher across all offense types, except for sexual assault, larceny, and fraud. The odds of a female partner's arrest were significantly higher across all offenses except larceny, robbery, and fraud. The odds of dual arrest were significantly higher in incidents involving simple assault, aggravated assault, intimidation, but not sexual assault, kidnapping, property crime, larceny, and robbery. The odds of arrest were higher across the board among incidents involving a victim injury, a weapon, mutual violence, and perpetrator substance use. At the community level, few factors were related to arrest. At the state policy level, mandatory arrest statutes increased the odds of a single arrest in comparison to jurisdictions with officer discretion, regardless of perpetrator sex, but had no impact on dual arrest. Primary aggressor policies were unrelated to arrest outcomes. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
The goal of the study was to examine disclosure of physical and sexual intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization across abusive relationships within a sociodemographically diverse sample of young women. We recruited 283 participants, ages 18 to 24, from a university, a 2-year college, and community sites serving low-income young women, and assessed physical and sexual IPV victimization, and related disclosure, across each of their abusive relationships (415 total). We used multilevel modeling to examine the effects of social location and situational factors on the odds of any disclosure of abuse during first relationships and across relationships. The rate of physical IPV disclosure was 50%, vs. 29% for sexual IPV. Multilevel model results indicated setting, IPV type, high frequency sexual IPV, and fear were significantly related to any disclosure.
Objective: The purpose of this study was to advance the measurement of economic abuse by developing an updated version of the Scale of Economic Abuse that addresses key limitations of existing instruments. Building on the original Scale of Economic Abuse, we constructed a 2-dimensional Revised Scale of Economic Abuse (SEA2) to measure abusers’ use of economic restriction and economic exploitation to exert control over the economic domain of their partners’ lives. Method: Using data collected through a survey of 248 women seeking services for intimate partner violence (IPV), we examined the factor structure of the 14-item SEA2 to test the psychometric soundness of the 2-dimensional conceptualization. We also performed an initial test of the instrument’s construct validity by examining its relationship with closely associated constructs, material dependence on the abuser and outstanding debt. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis provided support for the 2-factor structure of the SEA2. Regression analysis results suggested that the SEA2 measures an economic dimension of IPV as intended and provided initial evidence that the 2 subscales measure distinct forms of economic abuse. Conclusion: The SEA2 appears to be a psychometrically sound instrument for measuring the economic abuse construct. Researchers can use this instrument to further our understanding of the correlates and consequences of this distinct form of IPV. Practitioners could use the SEA2 to assess the types and extent of economic abuse their clients experienced. The substantive findings of the study also have implications for practice and policy.
This study examines the frequency, nature, and effects of coerced debt, defined as non-consensual, credit-related transactions that occur in intimate relationships where one partner uses coercive control to dominate the other. The sample includes 1,823 women who called the National Domestic Violence Hotline. Results suggest that coerced debt, from both coercive and fraudulent transactions, is a common problem and is significantly related to control over financial information, credit damage, and financial dependence on the abuser. This study supports the need for policy reform and victim services aimed at addressing coerced debt, thereby mitigating a potentially significant economic barrier to safety.
Objective: To expand our understanding of the effects of intimate partner violence (IPV) on women’s general psychological well-being by empirically investigating the longitudinal effects of economic abuse on subjective quality of life. Method: In total, 94 women who had recently experienced physical violence and were receiving IPV services participated in 3 in-person interviews over a 4-month period. Results: Time 1 (T1) economic abuse was not related to perceived quality of life at T1 or to change in quality of life over time. However, within-woman change in economic abuse was significantly related to change in quality of life over time. In other words, relative to T1, at times when economic abuse was higher, quality of life was lower, and vice versa. Conclusion: These findings suggest that economic abuse plays a role in the psychological well-being of IPV survivors, and the effect appears to be immediate. Research examining the psychological consequences of IPV would benefit from the inclusion of economic abuse in the measurement of IPV. Further, research examining the effects of economic abuse on survivors’ psychological well-being should consider including indicators of quality of life and explore how this relationship unfolds over time using a lagged design and a longer follow-up period. Finally, practitioners can support the overall psychological well-being of survivors of IPV by implementing strategies to help prevent, minimize, or recover from economic abuse.
Innovative life course research methods are gaining favor among qualitative and quantitative researchers alike, for their ability to improve participant engagement while also facilitating data accuracy through improved recall and event sequencing. Life history calendar and time diary methods are among two of many novel approaches for collecting reliable retrospective and prospective data. An interactive roundtable discussion will focus on sharing attendees' experiences utilizing these innovative tools for research and practice, identifying the benefits and challenges of using these approaches, and discussing the circumstances in which these tools may complement more traditional methods of inquiry. The presenters have a range of experience implementing life course methods with a variety of populations. Drawing upon their experiences, presenters will discuss the utility of life history calendars and other methods to examine patterns of cumulative victimization over time among young women, track service engagement and substance use among incarcerated women, investigate the effects of intimate partner abuse on women’s financial well-being over time, and gather abuse histories in a clinical practice setting as an adjunct to talk therapy. Discussion will center on presenters and participants' experiences employing these methods across a variety of contexts and populations.
From a utilization-focused evaluation perspective, the success of an evaluation is rooted in the extent to which the evaluation was used by stakeholders. This paper details the “Expectations to Change” (E2C) process, an interactive, workshop-based method designed to engage primary users with their evaluation findings as a means of promoting evaluation use and building evaluation capacity. The process is uniquely suited for contexts in which the aim is to assess performance on a set of indicators by comparing actual performance to planned performance standards for the purpose of program improvement. The E2C process was originally developed for use in a participatory evaluation with a non-profit human service organization. Evidence from a one-year follow-up survey suggested that the method increased participants’ conceptual, instrumental, and process use. The general utility of the E2C process is discussed.
... The article provides two main contributions. First, empirically, it reveals the de-facto social policy regarding EA in Israel, contributing to the growing literature on EA (Adams et al., 2023). It discerns how state agencies perceive and treat EA, showing how they simultaneously acknowledge EA and significantly release themselves of responsibility to ameliorate it through naming, trivializing, and privatizing processes. ...
... Specific to gender-based violence agencies and emergency shelters, Black women experience discrimination and violence in a myriad of ways, including white service providers routinely overlooking and downplaying their needs, microaggressions, and treating Black survivors as if they are less deserving of the services being provided compared to their white peers (Waller et al., 2022). In a review of the literature on service providers, survivors indicated that there is often discriminatory treatment by service providers especially against survivors who are sexual or gender minorities and survivors of color which deterred survivors from seeking services (Kennedy et al., 2023). ...
... For example, depending on the research question, researchers may use a time unit of days, months, or years (Harris & Parisi, 2007). Many studies using the LHC to examine cisgender women's trajectories of victimization have used age in years as the time unit (Kennedy et al., 2017(Kennedy et al., , 2018Yoshihama et al., 2002Yoshihama et al., , 2005, or a combination of age in years and each partner relationship as dual time units (Kennedy et al., 2022). The LHC can also be adapted to be administered in an online or virtual format; prior research indicates that participants' responses were consistent across online and in-person formats (Morselli et al., 2016). ...
... Economic abuse includes economic control, employment sabotage, and financial exploitation (Adams et al., 2020). In China, legal guidelines define "economic control as strict control over jointly owned property and family finances, aimed at undermining the victim's self-esteem and self-worth, in order to achieve control over the victim." ...
... In the United Kingdom, one in six women has experienced financial abuse, while in the United States, 95% of DV situations involve financial mistreatment, often leaving victim-survivors burdened with significant personal debt. An Australian survey shows that 16% of women experience economic abuse (Adams et al., 2020;Glenn and Kutin, 2021;SEA, 2023). Research consistently shows that between 94% and 99% of women seeking help due to partner violence have also encountered financial abuse (Adams et al., 2020;Adams et al., 2008;Postmus et al., 2011). ...
... According to the World Health Organization (WHO), globally, one in three women has experienced physical or sexual IPV by an intimate partner at some point in their lifetime. According to World Health Organization (2021), this is a significant public health issue that has devastating consequences for women's physical and mental health, as well as their social and economic well-being (Adams & Beeble, 2019). Men can also experience IPV, and it is important to recognize and address this issue. ...
... Studies in different socio-cultural contexts have documented the negative consequences of IPVon women, such as increased risks for mental health symptoms (e.g., PTSD and depression; Gibbs et al. 2018;Liu et al. 2018), substantial health problems (Eaton et al. 2016), employment instability, and other life challenges (e.g., housing instability; Adams et al. 2013). Seeking and receiving timely and proper professional help and social support can greatly mitigate the negative consequences of IPV on survivors (Rizo et al. 2017;Wong et al. 2016). ...
... If financial abuse is not part of the main discourse in the description of IPV, then it presents a challenge in capturing how rampant it is in serving as a precursor to physical, emotional and sexual abuse in sub-Saharan, and can undermine efforts to intervene in protecting women, especially pregnant and nursing mothers. While there is still dearth of research on how financial abuse can be defined and/or measured (51), it is well documented in research that it is one of the tactics used by an abuser to maintain control (53). ...
... Most importantly, evaluation practice focuses on conducting rigorous program evaluation studies, while the latter focuses on strategies that support the development of organizational capacity to conduct and use evaluation (Castleman, 2021;Bourgeois & Cousins, 2013). Some evaluation approaches blend the two, proposing participatory or collaborative processes meant to inform and educate stakeholders as they contribute to evaluation activities (Adams, Nnawulezi, & Vandenberg, 2015); however, other evaluation approaches are quite distinct from ECB and do not seek to support capacity building explicitly. For example, realist or theory-based evaluation approaches do not focus on building organizational evaluation capacity. ...
... The current body of research can also create a platform for advocacy as violence is one of the societal issues that confronts South African youth. Kennedy and Adams (2016) point out that young women are often the victims of sexual violence in their communities before they turn 13, which places them at risk of being HIV positive and even having an unwanted pregnancy. Begie et al. (2011) show that males as victims of gun violence in their communities in comparison with females are more likely to resort to negative strategies, such as using alcohol to deal with the pain. ...
