Responding to domestic violence against women in Turkey: The national research on domestic violence against women in Turkey

In response to the lack of official national statistics in Turkey on the magnitude and nature of domestic violence against women and to guide targeted policies and interventions to combat Violence against Women more effectively, the Turkish Republic Prime Ministry General Directorate on the Status of Women (KSGM) initiated a nation wide study on this subject, which was implemented by a consortium consisting of the following partners: ICON Public Sector GmbH (Germany), Hacettepe University Institute of Population Studies (HUIPS) and BNB consulting, and funded by the European Union. This study has a qualitative component providing a situation analysis on attitudes and acceptance of violence as well as the adequacy of current institutional responses to victims of violence  and a quantitative component that aims to measure the prevalence and frequency of different types of violence against women, with a focus on partner violence; to document associations of partner violence with health and other outcomes; to identify risk and protective factors for domestic violence against women and to explore the coping strategies used by women experiencing domestic violence . The study builds upon the methods and ethical and safety recommendations that where developed for the WHO multi-country study on Women’s health and domestic violence and was adapted for the Turkish context. The study that took place in 2008 demonstrates how carefully developed and applied research can act as an intervention at many levels. For the respondents and other participants it appeared to be an important opportunity to share, often for the first time, the abuses that they have experienced. For interviewers and researchers, participation in an intensive study on violence against women has been a transforming process.  Details on methodology and the contributions of the study to strengthening local and national activities to address violence against women will be presented.