Sexual harassment remains a widespread issue in higher education, with serious consequences, especially for women within the university setting. In this research, we explored the mediating role of psychological distress in the link between sexual harassment and coping strategies among women in higher education. In total, 637 women from the university community participated in this study, of whom 100 were victims of sexual harassment at their university. In Study 1, sexual harassment was found to predict higher levels of anxiety and depression, which were in turn associated with greater use of coping strategies focused on self-criticism, wishful thinking, and social withdrawal. In Study 2, sexual harassment predicted increased negative affect, which was subsequently associated with a stronger reliance on rumination. Taken together, the findings could suggest that the psychological distress women experience due to sexual harassment may determine their coping strategies. These results underscore the importance of adopting institutional measures that not only address the psychological impact of sexual harassment but also promote more adaptive coping strategies to reduce its long-term impact on women in higher education.

Sexual violence constitutes a pervasive global issue, disproportionately affecting women and girls and resulting in serious health consequences, making it essential to give a voice to survivors. This study employed the transitivity model to analyse the discourse of women survivors, focusing on how they recount and interpret their experiences, alongside quantitative data on their perceptions of severity and risk. Results from the discourse analysis showed that mental processes were most frequent (32%), reflecting a discussion of thoughts, feelings, desires and perceptions, followed by relational processes (26.8%), material processes (25%) and verbal processes (14.2%); meanwhile, behavioural and existential processes were rare (1% each). Quantitative findings indicated that participants reported a higher perceived severity of violence and greater risk to their lives retrospectively than at the time of the incidents. Trauma-informed approaches that validate survivors' perceptions, emotions and meaning-making processes are, therefore, essential. La violencia sexual supone un problema global generalizado que afecta de manera desproporcionada a mujeres y ni & ntilde;as y que conlleva graves consecuencias para la salud, siendo esencial dar voz a las supervivientes. Este estudio emple & oacute; el modelo de transitividad para analizar el discurso de mujeres supervivientes, centr & aacute;ndose en c & oacute;mo relatan e interpretan sus experiencias, adem & aacute;s de recoger informaci & oacute;n cuantitativa sobre sus percepciones de gravedad y riesgo de dichas experiencias. Los resultados del an & aacute;lisis del discurso mostraron que los procesos mentales fueron los m & aacute;s frecuentes (32 %), reflejando discusiones sobre pensamientos, sentimientos, deseos y percepciones, seguidos de los procesos relacionales (26,8 %), los procesos materiales (25 %) y los procesos verbales (14,2 %), mientras que los procesos conductuales y existenciales fueron poco frecuentes (1 % cada uno). Los hallazgos cuantitativos indicaron que las participantes informaron de mayor percepci & oacute;n de la gravedad de la violencia sexual experimentada y un mayor riesgo para sus vidas valor & aacute;ndolo actualmente en comparaci & oacute;n con el momento en que sucedi & oacute;. Por tanto, ser & aacute; conveniente tener en cuenta enfoques basados en el trauma informado que validen las percepciones, emociones y procesos de construcci & oacute;n de significado de las mujeres supervivientes.

Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is a global health and social issue, often occurring in front of bystanders-highlighting the need to encourage their active intervention. This study examined the likelihood of taking action in psychological IPVAW, considering whether bystanders were alone or with others, and how perceived severity and social responsibility influence their response. It also explored factors that encourage or hinder response through qualitative analysis. A total of 201 participants completed an online survey measuring perceived severity, sense of responsibility, likelihood of taking action, and reasons for (not) intervening in a psychological IPVAW scenario. Of these, 101 were randomly assigned to the "multiple bystanders" condition and 99 to the "sole bystander" condition. Perceived severity predicted active intervention only when participants were sole bystanders. The presence of others did not moderate the relationship between self-responsibility and intervention, although a direct link between responsibility and intervention was found. Key motivations for intervening included recognizing violence, perceiving escalation, and feeling social responsibility, while concerns about personal safety discouraged action. These findings underscore the importance of fostering personal responsibility and ensuring bystander safety to effectively promote intervention in psychological IPVAW.

Objective: Exposing women to intimate partner violence (IPV) poses a risk to their physical and mental health, necessitating that they leave the relationship. However, women face various obstacles in doing so, such as cognitive distortions that affect their interpretation of the reality of violence, trapping them and significantly influencing their decision to leave. This scoping review explores, synthesizes, and analyzes the available evidence on the relationship between cognitive distortions and decision-making among women involved in IPV. Method: A systematic search was performed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews guidelines, utilizing the Web of Science, Scopus, and ProQuest databases. A total of 12 studies (five qualitative, four quantitative, and three mixed methodology) were included according to the inclusion criteria. Results: Self-blame, low attribution of responsibility to the aggressor, minimization of violence or damage, normalization of IPV, denial/loss of self, denial injury, control perceived, hope of change, savior beliefs, “should” belief in the relationship, focus on positive aspects of the relationship or aggressor, and denial other emotional options besides the partner were the main cognitive distortions found in women victims of IPV and related to maintaining IPV. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of recognizing and addressing cognitive distortions in women, which is crucial in preventing them from becoming trapped in violent relationships. Future research should continue to investigate the role of cognitive distortions in women’s decision-making regarding IPV, as well as the consequences of leaving the aggressor for them.

Deciding to leave a relationship is a complex process, especially when women are involved in intimate partner violence (IPV), requiring consideration of multiple variables. We aimed to examine some predictors-perceived severity, risk assessed, responsibility attributed to the aggressor, and dependency-that may be associated with leaving a violent relationship, considering different types of IPV (physical, psychological, and sexual violence as well as controlling behaviors). Additionally, we explored women's reasons for leaving violent relationships to better understand the decision-making processes involved in the face of diverse forms of violence. A nonexperimental associative study was conducted with a sample of 324 women (M = 31.44, SD = 11.14) who completed an online survey. The results indicated that higher risk assessment predicted leaving relationships characterized by psychological violence, sexual violence, or controlling behaviors. Dependency was associated with a lower likelihood of leaving relationships involving sexual violence whereas greater perceived severity predicted a higher likelihood of leaving relationships involving controlling behaviors. Notably, no predictor was identified for leaving relationships involving physical violence. Furthermore, physical violence was perceived as more severe and life-threatening, and it led to greater attribution of responsibility to the aggressor than sexual or psychological violence or controlling behaviors. This study highlights that perceptions and evaluations of IPV vary depending on the manifestation of violence. These findings are crucial for recognizing the full impact of IPVAW and fostering intolerance of it in all circumstances.

Women face a variety of sociocultural and individual obstacles that can trap them in violent relationships. In this study, we aimed to explore the role of cognitive distortions in women's decision-making (loyalty and exit) within their current relationships, distinguishing between those who experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) and those who did not. Additionally, we examined the moderating effects of the traditional female role and the dependency between the group condition (IPV victims versus nonvictims) and cognitive distortions. Results showed that the IPV victims present higher levels of the traditional female role, dependency, cognitive distortions, and use of loyalty and exit strategies to a greater extent compared with the nonvictims. Similarly, two explanatory models were tested, revealing that women who were victims of IPV by their current partner (compared to the nonvictims group) exhibited greater cognitive distortions and, consequently, were more likely to use loyalty and exit strategies. The moderating effects of the traditional female role among the group of IPV victims and cognitive distortions were obtained. These findings contribute to a better understanding of how cognitive distortions and adherence to the traditional female role can influence women's decision-making (loyalty and exit), reinforcing the notion that they are responsible for maintaining the relationship.

This study explores how ideological, relational, and sociodemographic factors predict women’s perceptions of severity and self-responsibility across different types of intimate partner violence (IPV). Using an intra-subject design, 257 women completed the measures of interest, 191 experiencing IPV and 66 non-victims, according to their responses to WHO instruments. Participants were recruited via dissemination of the study through WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and institutional email. The results indicated that the primary predictors of perceived severity were ambivalent sexism in physical violence; favorable attitudes toward IPV (all forms of violence); feminist identity (physical violence and controlling behaviors); dependency (psychological violence); commitment (physical sexual, and controlling behaviors); education level (physical violence); and age (sexual violence). For attributed self-responsibility, ambivalent sexism and favorable attitudes toward IPV were predictors for controlling behaviors. Commitment and dependency, being a victim and age-influenced psychological violence, whereas being a victim predicted sexual violence. In addition, physical violence is perceived as the most severe and controlling behavior, eliciting greater levels of attributed self-responsibility than other forms of IPV. These results highlight the main predictors of cognitive distortions (perceived severity of violence and attributed self-responsibility), offering insight into the processes that victims in IPV situations undergo.

Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is a global public health problem where multiple factors, such as the perceptions and attitudes toward IPVAW, should be considered to properly address this issue. This systematic review and meta-analysis synthesized the information available about perceived severity of IPVAW by different actors (e.g., victims, perpetrators, students, and professionals), analyzed the relationship between attitudes toward IPVAW and perceived severity of IPVAW, and examined gender differences in perceived severity of IPVAW. A systematic search was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines using Web of Science, Scopus, and ProQuest databases. Studies were included if they (a) provide information about perceived severity of IPVAW (physical, psychological, or sexual violence); (b) the relationship between perception of severity of IPVAW and attitudes toward IPVAW was analyzed empirically; (c) the languages of publication were English or Spanish; and (d) they were not theoretical studies or reviews. To this end, two independent researchers selected studies, resolving discrepancies with a third researcher. A total of 27 studies were included in systematic review and 12 in the meta-analysis. The results showed that men perceived IPVAW as less severe than women. Likewise, a negative relationship was found between perceived IPVAW severity and favorable attitudes toward IPVAW, such as sexist views, victim blaming, excusing the perpetrator, rape myth acceptance, and traditional gender roles adherence. The Classic Fail-Safe n was calculated to ensure the finding was robust against potential publication bias. These findings highlight some of the potential factors to focus on IPVAW prevention programs. However, the number of studies included were limited, requiring more research to generalize the results.

BACKGROUND:The World Health Organization (WHO) developed an instrument to detect violence against women that has been widely used in several countries. Despite this instrument's importance in identifying intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW), it has not been adapted for the Spanish population. The aim of this study was to adapt and validate the WHO violence against women instrument in a sample in Spain, facilitating the detection of IPVAW in this context and comparisons between countries.METHOD:After the instrument was translated and adapted into Spanish, 532 women from the general population in Spain completed it. The initial instrument consisted of 28 items. We deleted three items due to low internal consistency, resulting in 25 items in the final version.RESULTS:Suitable internal consistency was obtained through Confirmatory Factorial Analysis for physical (α = .92), psychological (α = .91), sexual (α = .86), and control behaviors subscales (α = .91) as well as for the total scale (α = .95). The instrument revealed highly prevalent IPVAW in our sample (79.7%).CONCLUSIONS:The use of the Spanish version of the WHO violence against women instrument in Spain seems justified.

Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is a public health and social responsibility issue affecting women worldwide. The role of society is essential to help victims to get out of the violent relationship and reduce their risk of revictimization. In this regard, the social response to IPVAW depends to some extent on public beliefs and attitudes toward IPVAW. Hence, this research explores the direct relationship between sexism and the willingness to intervene in cases of IPVAW, indirectly through acceptance of myths of IPVAW, perceived severity of IPVAW, risk assessed of victims’ health and life as well as to the establishment of equal relations, attribution of the responsibility to the aggressor, and victim blaming. A Spanish sample of 487 participants was collected through incidental sampling. Participants responded to an online survey that was disseminated via email and social media. A parallel path analysis model showed that greater sexism was associated with lower willingness to intervene in cases IPVAW, via greater acceptance of the myths of IPVAW and less attribution of responsibility to the aggressor. IPVAW perceived severity, risk assessed, and victim blaming did not explain the effect of sexism on willingness to intervene. This research emphasizes the need to focus on egalitarian education that mitigates sociocultural risk factors such as patriarchal beliefs and attitudes that explain IPVAW and favors a climate of acceptance and tolerance of this problem, making it difficult for victims to break with the violent relationship.

BACKGROUND:In the realm of emotion detection, comfort and portability play crucial roles in enhancing user experiences. However, few works study the reduction in the number of electrodes used to detect emotions, and none of them compare the location of these electrodes with a commercial low-cost headband. METHODS:This work explores the potential of wearable EEG devices, specifically the Muse S headband, for emotion classification in terms of valence and arousal. We conducted a direct comparison between the Muse S, with its only four electrodes, and the DEAP dataset, which employs 32-electrode in a more intrusive headset. DEAP is a benchmark dataset constructed by emotions elicited by music. Our methodology focused on utilizing raw data and extracting four common frequency ranges. In particular, we select from DEAP the 4 electrodes that are similar to those in the Muse S. Additionally, we created a dataset using the Muse S, where we segmented the complete video into fixed-size temporal windows. Our 4-electrodes dataset uses film clips to elicit emotions, classified according to the Self-Assessment Manikin. RESULTS:Our findings indicate that the Muse S, despite its limited electrode count, can effectively discriminate between high and low valence/arousal emotions with accuracy comparable to the accuracy obtained with all the DEAP electrodes. The Gamma band emerged as particularly effective for valence detection. Using a Muse device and raw data, the best performance achieved a G-Mean only 1-2% lower than that of the DEAP dataset, demonstrating that comparable results can be obtained with a simplified setup. CONCLUSIONS:While the Muse-S did not reach DEAP in terms of outcomes, it proved to be a viable, lower-cost, less intrusive alternative, and adaptable for everyday use. The dataset created for this study is publicly available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8431451.

OBJECTIVE:This study tests a conceptual model exploring the mediating effects of perceived severity and assessed risk in the relationship between dependency and help-seeking behaviors in psychological, physical, and sexual violence. METHOD:The sample consisted of 266 survivors of intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) (Mage = 27.88 years; SD = 9.49), of which 23.7% reported having suffered physical violence from their partner or former partner, 83.8% psychological violence, and 54.1% sexual violence. RESULTS:Higher dependency scores were associated with lower perceived severity of violence, lower assessed levels of risk, and thus elevated difficulty in engaging in help seeking in all types of violence. CONCLUSIONS:Educating on equality and raising awareness of the seriousness and risk of IPVAW will be critical in facilitating help-seeking responses.

Through two studies ( N = 544 women), the role of types of relational problems (absence vs. presence of intimate partner violence [IPV]) in the use of conflict resolution strategies (exit and loyalty) was analyzed, considering the serial mediating effect of dependency and commitment and the moderating effect of benevolent sexism. The main results showed that higher scores in dependency and commitment predicted less use of exit strategies among women who reported IPV. No significant results were found regarding loyalty strategy and benevolent sexism. Ultimately, implications for women's perceived risk of future violence were discussed.

Background/objective: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health problem for which many victims attend to healthcare centers to alleviate the results of violence. The present study aimed to explore the relation between IPV attitudes and willingness to intervene in cases of IPV by future health professionals, considering the influence of perceived severity of IPV in this relation. Method: The sample was composed of 432 students (M = 22.89, SD = 6.36) of psychology (52.60%), nursing (26.20%), and medicine (21.20%). Sexism, IPV acceptance, perceived severity, and willingness to intervene in IPV cases were assessed. Results: The results displayed low sexism (M = 0.61, SD = 0.59) and acceptance of IPV (M = 1.05, SD = 0.06), high perceived severity (M = 9.62, SD = 0.60), and moderate willingness to intervene in cases of IPV (M = 5.20, SD = 1.16). Moreover, a conceptual model showed that more sexist attitudes were related to more acceptance of IPV, decreased perceived severity of IPV, and consequently, the willingness to intervene in cases of IPV. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of addressing the attitudinal and perceptive barriers of future healthcare professionals to detect and attend early to IPV from healthcare centers.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is the most frequent type of violence experienced by women, with devastating consequences for their physical and mental health. Due to exposure of women to the violence, their perceptions and interpretations of the situation may be distorted, making it difficult to leave the violent relationship. Exploring the obstacles that women must confront to verbalize their situation or ask for help is critical in preventing IPV against women (IPVAW). For this purpose, two studies were implemented: Study 1 included a focus group of seven victims of IPVAW and Study 2 included 550 women ( n = 258 suffering IPVAW and n = 292 not suffering IPVAW). In Study 1, women reported that perceptions (e.g., minimization of the situation), interpretations (e.g., justifying the aggressor), and feelings (e.g., guilt) were the main obstacles in leaving a violent relationship. Study 2 revealed that participants who suffered IPVAW obtained lower scores in perceived severity, and attribution of responsibility to the aggressor, as well as higher scores in feelings of embarrassment and guilt than those who had not suffered IPVAW. No significant differences were found in risk assessed and feelings of fear. These findings highlight the serious consequences of exposure to IPVAW, requiring the implementation of preventive programs to address the distortion of reality due to the aggressor’s manipulation, as well as the influence of sociocultural factors on the construction of women’s roles in relationships.

Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is a public health problem that affects women worldwide. Consequently, victims frequently go to healthcare centers, usually with a cover reason. To address this problem, national and autonomic protocols to respond to IPVAW in health systems have been developed in Spain. In this regard, the role of primary care physicians (PCPs) will be essential for addressing IPVAW, but they could encounter obstacles in doing so. The purpose of this study was to explore how IPVAW is addressed in healthcare centers in Spain. This study synthesized the information available in the protocols to address IPVAW among health care workers in Spain and analyzed it according to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. Additionally, PCPs’ perspectives on these protocols and the nature of IPVAW attention from healthcare centers were explored through a focus group. The findings displayed that, although the protocols mostly conform to WHO guidelines, they are insufficient to address IPVAW. Generally, PCPs were unaware of the existence of the protocols and referred to the lack of training in IPVAW and protocol use as one of the main obstacles to intervening, along with a lack of time and feelings as well as cultural, educational, and political factors. The adoption of measures to ensure that PCPs apply these protocols correctly and to approach PCPs’ obstacles for addressing IPVAW in consultations will be crucial for the care of victims.