Barriers to safety^*

* The term ‘barriers to safety’ is not commonly used in the literature. When we started our research we thought of using the more commonly found term ‘victim vulnerability’ or dimensions of vulnerability but we worried that it would be seen as blaming the victim for their own death. In most homicides we reviewed, victims had difficulty accessing support. The authors hoped that the term ‘barrier’ makes it clear that the challenges were often external. We recognize that even this term has problems within our definitions outlined in the text. For example, some victims had young children who added a complexity or barrier to separation and yet for other victims, children may have been a motivator to leave the abusive relationship and secure safe housing.

for victims of domestic homicide

ABSTRACT

Research on domestic homicide has focused on risk factors presented by perpetrators such as prior violence, threats to kill, stalking, access to weapons, mental health concerns, controlling behaviour and separation. However, there has been less focus on the barriers that victims face regarding finding support, increasing personal safety and decreasing violence and risk of homicide. The present study explored 20 potential barriers that female domestic homicide victims faced using 183 cases occurring between 2002 and 2012 from the Ontario (Canada) Domestic Violence Death Review Committee to examine the presence and frequency of these barriers within the sample. Using two-step cluster analysis, different profiles of barriers were identified that centred on victims’ fear, social isolation and mental health. The study is limited in being a post hoc analysis of homicides and no causal links can be made. The implications of this finding are discussed in the context of risk assessment, risk management and safety planning.

KEYWORDS:

• Homicide risk factors
• domestic homicide
• domestic violence
• intimate partner violence
• death review

Acknowledgement

We would like to thank the staff at the Office of the Chief Coroner of Ontario and the Domestic Violence Death Review Committee for making this research possible.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCID

Natalia Lapshina http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3221-7162

Notes

* The term ‘barriers to safety’ is not commonly used in the literature. When we started our research we thought of using the more commonly found term ‘victim vulnerability’ or dimensions of vulnerability but we worried that it would be seen as blaming the victim for their own death. In most homicides we reviewed, victims had difficulty accessing support. The authors hoped that the term ‘barrier’ makes it clear that the challenges were often external. We recognize that even this term has problems within our definitions outlined in the text. For example, some victims had young children who added a complexity or barrier to separation and yet for other victims, children may have been a motivator to leave the abusive relationship and secure safe housing.