Research Assistant Abdulkadir KESKIN from Faculty of Political Sciences, Department of Business Administration of our university and Professor Filiz KARAMAN from Yıldız Technical University published an article titled “Barriers to Formal Help-Seeking Behavior by Battered Turkish Women According to Sociodemographic Factors” in the “Sustainability” Journal’s special issue on “Interpersonal Violence and Sustainable Development Goals”.
In their study, KESKIN and KARAMAN firstly emphasized that violence against women is one of the most important women’s rights violations and a significant sociological problem that is prevalent in all societies. The authors pointed out that despite violence against women is common, the help-seeking behavior of women exposed to violence is not at a sufficient level. In the study, they examined the sociodemographic factors affecting the official help-seeking behaviors of women exposed to violence in Turkey.
The authors obtained data from domestic violence against women surveys conducted by the Turkish Statistical Institute in 2008 and 2014. The dependent variable was whether women exposed to violence received help from official institutions. Education, age group, region and sociodemographic variables were used to explain the dependent variable.
According to the results, as the education level of women exposed to violence increases, help-seeking behavior through official means also increases. In addition, women with a personal income are more likely to seek formal help than those without, and the development of the sociocultural region inhabited affects the formal help-seeking behavior of women exposed to violence. Authors also revealed that legal remedies and regulations regarding women’s rights in Turkey between 2008 and 2014 positively affected the formal help-seeking behavior. The authors made an important contribution to the literature as this is the first study to reveal the sociodemographic factors that hinder the help-seeking behaviors of women who have been exposed to violence in Turkey.
KESKIN and KARAMAN stated that the official help-seeking behavior of women who were exposed to violence in 2014 increased significantly compared to 2008, but this development is not sufficient. Finally, it was emphasized that reducing domestic or intimate partner violence is vital for gender equality, especially in developing countries. It was underlined that women who are not under pressure would be more likely to add value to productive areas in developing countries, and this will also increase women’s overall happiness, which is associated with overall economic productivity. It was stated that all kinds of inequality between genders should be resolved in the long term in order to remove obstacles in the way of development and ensure sustainable development.
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Keskin, A. ve Karaman, F. (2021). Barriers to Formal Help-Seeking Behavior by Battered Turkish Women According to Sociodemographic Factors. Sustainability, 13(1), 165.