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Advances in Nursing 2014
An Integrative Review of the Methods Used to Research the Prevalence of Violence against Women in PakistanDOI: 10.1155/2014/801740 Abstract: This paper is a report of an integrative review conducted to assess the methodological and ethical strategies used to protect participants and researchers in conducting violence against women (VAW) studies in Pakistan. The measurement of the prevalence of violence against women in Pakistan is challenging for researchers given the cultural norms and the traditional role of women. Lack of methodological rigor in addressing the concerns can result in underreporting of violence, create physical and emotional risk for the participants, interviewers, and researchers, and impose threats to internal and external validity of VAW studies. Using Whittemore and Knafl’s process for conducting an integrative review, 11 studies published between 1999 and 2012, reporting on prevalence, experiences, and factors associated with violence in a marital relationship were analyzed. Overall, studies reveal an underreporting of exposure to violence and threats to women and interviewers’ safety in the conduct of such studies, both of which present threats to study rigor. The utilization of WHO ethical and safety recommendations to guide VAW studies in this context should be considered. 1. Introduction Over the past three decades, there has been increasing international attention to measuring rates of violence against women (VAW) in different countries [1]. Some of these studies also focus on the development and evaluation of identification and intervention strategies. Researchers who examine gender-based violence to better identify the extent of violence, its causes, consequences, and subsequent interventions are faced with several challenges [2, 3]. For example, the estimated prevalence of VAW among, between and within countries, regions and cultures is hampered due to variations in how VAW is conceptualized and defined and how the studies are implemented [4, 5]. Moreover, researchers have identified that VAW research entails a particular set of risks and concerns related to how participants are recruited and how violence is measured, compared, and reported [3]. Lack of methodological consistency in addressing these concerns can result in underreporting of violence and may entail risks to the mental wellbeing of the participants, as well as the researcher [4] and impose threats to internal and external validity of VAW studies [2, 6]. In response to these issues, the World Health Organization (WHO) developed ethical and safety recommendations to guide in conducting future studies concerning VAW [7]. VAW is an important issue in Pakistan although there are no reliable statistics
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