Evaluation of Violence Against Women With Physical Disabilities in Michigan, 2000-2001

In the past few years it has become alarmingly clear that
women with disabilities are at an extremely high risk for emotional,
sexual, and physical assault. The Developmental Disabilities Institute
at Wayne State University, in collaboration with the United Cerebral
Palsy Association in Michigan, conducted a one-year study to
investigate the prevalence and correlates of, and service system
capacity related to, domestic abuse among women with physical
disabilities in Michigan. The study aimed to address the following
research questions: (1) What is the prevalence of domestic violence
among a sample of women with physical disabilities? (2) What potential
factors for domestic violence exist among women with physical
disabilities? and (3) What is the capacity of existing support
programs (e.g., safe houses, shelters, and service agencies) to assist
women with physical disabilities? The population for this study was
women over the age of 18 who had physical disabilities. Consistent
with the work of other researchers, physical disabilities in this
study were defined as those disabilities that result in functional
impairment, such as cerebral palsy, post-polio syndrome, spina bifida,
amputation, rheumatic conditions, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord
injury, traumatic brain injury, visual impairment, hearing impairment,
and stroke. A sample of 177 women was recruited through several
mechanisms. To address the question of domestic abuse prevalence, the
women participating in the study were first asked to complete a brief
questionnaire addressing demographic characteristics and their
experience with domestic violence (Part 1, Screening Interview
Data). Fifty-six percent (100) of the 177 women interviewed indicated
a positive history of abuse at their initial screening. In order to
address the second research question about the correlates of abuse,
this subsample of 100 women was invited and encouraged to participate
in the second phase of the research, which involved a more extensive
interview (Part 2, Abuse Interview Data). The interview used was based
on a protocol developed by Nosek (1995) that addressed demographic
characteristics, social networks, and abuse history. Variables in
Parts 1 and 2 include type of disability, type of personal assistance
needed, and whether the respondent was ever physically, emotionally,
or sexually abused. Part 2 also contains variables on sources of monthly
income, who perpetrated the abuse, the abuser's gender, how long the
victim knew the abuser, whether the victim sought assistance from a
domestic violence program or shelter, and a description of the worst
incident of physical abuse. Demographic variables in Parts 1 and 2
include ethnicity, age, employment status, and marital status.