Research Projects
VAWC is committed to producing innovative, multi-disciplinary research on a national and international level in relation to violence against women and children evidenced based practices, policy and advocacy issues.
Below is a summary of VAWC’s research endeavors and their current status. Opportunities are possible for research collaborations with VAWC and a protocol for research proposals will be made available soon via this web site.
For more information about any of these research projects and results, please contact the VAWC staff at vawc@ssw.rutgers.edu.
Attitudes and Beliefs of Child Welfare Workers about Domestic Violence The purpose of this exploratory study was to identify the attitudes and beliefs about domestic violence and the overlap with child abuse among child welfare workers. Anonymous surveys were collected and included their attitudes and beliefs as well as their professional and personal experiences with domestic violence, basic demographic information, and several case vignettes.
Student-athletes willingness to intervene with sexual assault A three-stage study was completed with student-athletes that included distribution of a survey to 205 participants, focus groups held with nine men's and women's teams, and individual interviews with 22 men and women athletes. Information was collected on their willingness to intervene in cases of sexual assault, including both before and after the assault occurs. Student-athletes were also asked to share their ideas for how their community can address the issue of sexual violence. This project is being done in conjunction with Rutgers University's Department of Sexual Assault Services and Crime Victim Assistance.
Violence & Victimization: Exploring Women’s Histories of Survival (Study funded by the National Institute of Justice, 2003-IJ-CX-1037) The purpose of this research was to explore the differential risk and protective factors related to histories of physical and sexual victimization reported by women and to understand the coping and resilience patterns women activate at various points in their lifespan. The goal of this research is to examine the consequences (i.e. health, mental health, substance use, and suicidality) of intimate partner violence, sexual violence, and child maltreatment to identify modifiable risk and protective factors, and optimal times and settings for intervention for women.
Domestic Violence Study The goal of the study is to assess the extent to which abuse is experienced by Rutgers-New Brunswick undergraduates in their college dating relationships by using self-administered questionnaires that were created by the research team. The convenience sample includes undergraduate students that have been in an exclusive dating relationship for at least 2 months since starting college. This project is being done in conjunction with Rutgers University's Department of Psychology.
Improving Data Collection Funded by the Criminal Justice Division of the State of New Jersey, this study will seek how to improve the data collection process on the incidence of domestic violence and sexual assault on college campuses. Twenty-six colleges and universities that are four-year institutions of higher education have been identified in New Jersey and representatives will be invited to convene for a focus group to discuss how sexual assault and domestic violence are handled on their campuses. Based on an extensive literature review and the focus groups, recommendations for an improved data collection process will be provided to the state. This project is being done in conjunction with Rutgers University's Department of Sexual Assault Services and Crime Victim Assistance.
MSW Violence Against Women Student Survey This study intends to examine the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs held by MSW students in regards to violence against women through the distribution of an anonymous survey administered via Zoomerang (an online survey tool). Data will also be collected regarding MSW students’ personal, professional and academic exposure to violence against women issues to determine if there is any relationship to their knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs. The data will be used to inform recommendations for improving MSW coursework in regards to better educating future social workers about violence against women issues and practice.
This is a collaborative project with the Rutgers Center on Violence Against Women and Children at the Rutgers School of Social Work and the Department of Social Work at Ben-Gurion University in Israel. The convenience sample in this study will include social work students enrolled in the graduate programs at both universities.
