Minoritised Ethnic Women's Experiences of Domestic Abuse and Barriers to Help-Seeking: A Summary of the Evidence

Questions for Consideration and Further Research

Questions for Consideration

The purpose of this review was to synthesise and describe the evidence. The evidence does, however, raise a number of questions which may warrant further investigation and/or research. These are set out in Table 1 below:

Table 1. Questions for Consideration

Overarching Questions

Extended family abuse

So-called 'honour-based' abuse

Immigration status and language barriers

Cultural Insensitivity and Institutional Racism

'By and For' Organisations

Further Research

This section sets out suggested research topics which may help inform future policy considerations.

Data and research on the experiences and needs of minoritised ethnic women in Scotland -The review found that there is a lack of research on minoritised ethnic women in Scotland and their experiences of domestic abuse and help-seeking^[71]. Much of the UK evidence presented describes the experiences of Muslim women or South Asian women and migrant women. There appears to be an evidence gap in relation to Chinese and Sikh women in particular, although further literature searches may uncover relevant research e.g. grey literature^[72]. While there has been some UK research on British Afro-Caribbean and African women's experiences of domestic abuse, they are small in number^[73]. Further research and engagement activities with women from different minoritised ethnic communities in Scotland could help develop a more intersectional approach to policy making and the justice system more generally. The lack of robust data on the prevalence and risk factors for HBA and minoritised ethnic women's experiences of GBV in Scotland also warrants keen attention.

Understanding the relationship between HBA and domestic abuse -The search terms used to find journal articles for this review did not include HBA. Despite this, HBA was a recurrent theme and the evidence suggests that some minoritised ethnic women can experience a range of GBV in domestic settings. Further exploration of the complexity, range and interconnections between the various forms of GBV and how it manifests within household arrangements and/or communities may help inform more holistic and inclusive policy making and service delivery.

Causes and enablers of violence against minoritised ethnic women - While the scope of this review was limited to victim-survivors' experiences, it may be useful to explore the multiple and intersecting causes and mechanisms which enable the specific types of abuse and contexts which minoritised ethnic women can experience. A socio-ecological model of domestic abuse/GBV, for example, could provide a helpful tool to explore the interaction between the multiple factors operating at individual, interpersonal, community, system and societal levels which give rise to the perpetration of abuse against minoritised ethnic women. Understanding the causes and enabling mechanisms of GBV may help inform more effective interventions (e.g. for perpetrators) and prevention strategies.

Preventing domestic abuse – what works - A review of best practice and 'what works' in preventing domestic abuse and other forms of GBV against minoritised ethnic women may be helpful. The Scottish Government's publication "What Works to Prevent Violence Against Women" (Scottish Government, 2020) classified the evidence on HBA interventions as inconclusive due to insufficient evidence. Building on this review, future work could review research and evaluations that have been published since then with a broader focus on different forms of HBA, GBV and domestic abuse experienced by minoritised ethnic women.