Browsing by Author "Aspinall, Mary"

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    Gendered practices in specialized domestic violence courts: A study of facilitators' perspectives on intimate partner violence treatment programs in Canada
    (University of New Brunswick, 2021-12) Aspinall, Mary; Gill, Carmen
    The severity and societal issue of intimate partner violence (IPV) has been recognized through the increased use of pro-arrest and mandatory charge policies, development of specialized domestic violence courts (DVCs), and utilization of community-based IPV treatment programs to provide interventions to offenders. However, as a result, women continue to be arrested due to incident-specific approaches from law enforcement personnel that fail to account for the context of the situation or consider gender-specific issues that contribute to the use of violence. This symmetrical approach to responding to IPV persists at the judicial level with women also referred to IPV treatment programs that were originally designed for use with male perpetrators. Research has been conducted on the appropriate content required for female IPV offenders; however, there are not yet any national comparisons of male and female IPV treatment programs associated with specialized DVCs to assess if they consider the results of gender-specific research or uphold the neutral approach of the criminal justice system. Based in intersectionality and feminist perspectives of IPV that suggest women’s violence is uniquely different to that of men, this study assesses the utility and content of IPV treatment programs across Canada. A mixed methodological approach consisting of 22 online surveys and 10 telephone interviews was undertaken with IPV treatment program facilitators to compile information on the format and content of their programs as well as their personal opinions on overall effectiveness. Results identify that IPV treatment programs in Canada maintain an objective, gender-neutral approach synonymous with the criminal justice system. However, facilitators also recognize the pervasiveness of gendered differences in the perpetration of IPV, resulting in a necessity to reconsider current practices in the response to IPV.
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    Self-perceived mental health and its gendered and immigration associations
    (2018) Aspinall, Mary; Gupta, Neeru
    Background: Many research designs have analyzed various socioeconomic factors that influence a person’s physical health, such as diabetes. Whether or not these same factors are associated with a person’s mental health have received less attention. Some studies indicate that gender disparities and the migration process may be associated with differential mental health outcomes. Objective: This research examines the relationship between gender, immigrant status, and self-perceived mental health (SPMH) in the Canadian population aged 18 and over. Method: The analysis draws on the latest available Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) public use microdata file, which captured information from a nationally representative sample of 58,574 adults. Multivariate logistic regression was used to explore interactions of gender and immigrant status on SPMH, controlling for a range of socioeconomic variables including education and income. Survey weights were applied to allow for generalization of the results to the Canadian population. Results: The relationships between gender, immigrant status, and SPMH were significant, with females more likely to report good SPMH than men (odds ratio=1.16, p<0.05), and immigrants more likely to report good SPMH than non-immigrants (odds ratio=1.05). Discussion: Results indicate that the “healthy immigrant effect” often reported for diabetes and other physical health measures may also be protective for mental health. Women are more likely to rate their mental health as good. However, our examination did not account for clinical diagnosis of mental illness. More research is needed to inform evidence-based policy and practice guidelines in addressing potential gendered and immigration differences in both measured and perceived mental health.