Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Giuseppina Cersosimo Author-Workplace-Name: University of Salerno, Salerno, Italy Title: "Gender Based Violence. Responsibility, Prevention, Response, Actions" Abstract: In this paper, we argue that a more specific definition of gender-based violence is required. Drawing on key insights from the social sciences, we propose a framework that provides a more precise basis for understanding the relationship between gender and violence. This framework examines the issue at four levels: responsibility, prevention, contrast, and actions within interaction and structure. The paper offers a more comprehensive view of gender-based violence that includes women and girls, while taking into account the disproportionate impact of such violence on women. Classification-JEL: K42, K14; K15; K38, I18 Keywords: women; girls; cyberviolence; health; power. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 7-16 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Gender-Based-Violence.-Responsibility-Prevention-Response-Actions-1.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:7-16 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Assunta Penna Author-Workplace-Name: University of Messina, Messina, Italy Title: "The Power of Violent Language in Everyday Life" Abstract: This contribution examines the performative power of violent language in everyday life, linking classical pragmatics (Austin; Goffman) to contemporary hate speech and (cyber)stalking. It integrates official statistics and national/international monitoring with illustrative excerpts from criminal-court judgments to demonstrate the illocutionary and perlocutionary effects on control, subordination and withdrawal from the public sphere. The analysis shows how threats and blackmail operate as discursive instruments of power and discusses implications for screening, safety planning, platform governance and media literacy. Classification-JEL: K14, K15 Keywords: Gender-based violence; Violent language; Hate speech; Cyberstalking; online communication. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 17-29 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/The-Power-of-Violent-Language-in-Everyday-Life.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:17-29 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Beatrice Benocci Author-Workplace-Name: University of Salerno, Salerno, Italy Title: "Women's conditional freedom EU actions to overcome the gender gap and combat violence against women" Abstract: In recent years, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the situation for women has worsened. This deterioration has affected women in all European countries to varying degrees, with direct consequences for national social and economic systems. Today, women are increasingly insecure and poorer, and they are also frequently subjected to offline and online violence. No category is exempt: politicians, journalists, business executives, married or single women, Italian or foreign. Given the seriousness of the situation at European level, in April 2024, the European Parliament adopted the first EU rules to combat violence against women, with the aim of preventing gender-based violence and protecting victims, particularly victims of domestic violence. With this directive, the EU has renewed and strengthened its support for women, which began in 2000 with the declaration of equality between men and women. Starting from three specific questions about the status of women (whether it is determined by social and economic factors or by cultural behaviours that are difficult to eradicate, or whether it also depends on a lack of confidence in women's emancipation), the document aims to reflect on the causes of what can be defined as the “conditional freedom of women”. Consisting of three parts, the work analyses the elements that condition the status of women over time, namely the body, education and salary, before moving on to the socio-economic elements that characterise the current status of women in European society (gender gap, gender pay gap and gender digital gap), as well as the EU's driving and monitoring role, with particular attention to combating violence against women. The work concludes with a reflection on women's body in light of European and global political changes. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42 Keywords: European Union; Violence against women; Gender Gap; Women’s conditional freedom; Women’s body. Pages: 30-44 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Womens-conditional-freedom-EU-actions-to-overcome-the-gender-gap-and-combat-violence-against-women-.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:30-44 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Enrico Damiani di Vergada Franzetti Author-Workplace-Name: “Kore” University of Enna, Italy Title: "Law-in-Action and Denied Justice in Gender-Based Violence for a Participatory Professional Culture in the Social Work". Abstract: The instrumental and transversal use of the legal system, of law, to achieve purposes contrary to those for which the system was created or to provide justice, can produce real forms of denied justice in terms of gender-based violence. In this sense, it is necessary to analyze the current interaction between social and professional roles connected to regulatory and/or legal action, law and social norms, the social and legal context where the interaction takes place, in order to highlight its impact on the phenomenon of gender-based violence in relation to the Social Work sector. These are aspects that fully place the Social Service Institution and its professionals within the legal sphere, considered here not only as a social control agency, considered collectively and individually, aimed at intervening efficiently and effectively in relation to the management of specific cases of gender-based violence and crimes directly and/or indirectly related to it, but also and above all as a primary and secondary socialization agency that operates not only towards the perpetrators and victims of crimes, but also and above all towards the members of the Social Service Institution. These elements underscore the need to identify the most suitable tools not only to build and strengthen a shared and participatory professional culture between institutions and social workers, but also and above all to prevent the instrumental and transversal use of the law to achieve specific interests and goals, unrelated to the Social Services sector. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42 Keywords: Gender-based violence; Social Work; Law; Social Legal professional roles; Legal system; Training; Culture. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 45-61 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Law-in-Action-and-Denied-Justice-in-Gender-Based-Violence-for-a-Participatory-Professional-Culture-in-the-Social-Work.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:45-61 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Lucia Landolfi Author-Workplace-Name: Lucia Landolfi Title: "Underestimating gender-based violence in care: the silent burden of informal female caregiving" Abstract: Informal female caregiving remains a deeply gendered phenomenon, embedded in cultural norms that perpetuate systemic violence against women. In Italy, caregiving continues to fall predominantly on women and is often framed as a moral duty rather than recognised as labour (Hochschild 1983). Drawing on Amartya Sen’s (1993) capability approach, this study explores how informal caregiving, frequently imposed rather than chosen, affects women's well-being and sustains patriarchal structures. Specifically, it addresses the following research question: How do culturally embedded expectations regarding the caregiving role shape informal female caregivers’ self-perceptions and contribute to forms of systemic micro-violence? Using qualitative semi-structured interviews with informal female caregivers of people with Parkinson’s disease (n=25), the research identifies three caregiving configurations emerging from the intersection of attitudes, behaviours, and role expressions: “I am, therefore I care”, “I love, therefore I care”, and “I must, therefore I care”. These types reveal the continuum between agency and coercion that shapes women’s caregiving experiences. The findings highlight two intertwined forms of violence: symbolic violence, which normalises caregiving as an inherent female duty, and structural violence, rooted in institutional neglect and inadequate welfare support. By linking empirical insights to theoretical frameworks, the study demonstrates that informal caregiving operates as a subtle yet pervasive form of gender-based violence, sustained by cultural expectations and policy silence. It calls for a gender-sensitive welfare model capable of dismantling patriarchal norms, enhancing caregivers’ capabilities, and promoting caregiving as a shared social responsibility rather than a naturalised female obligation. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42 Keywords: women; care; capacity; symbolic violence; structural violence. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 62-74 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Underestimating-gender-based-violence-in-care-the-silent-burden-of-informal-female-caregiving.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:62-74 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Daniela Belliti Author-Workplace-Name: University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy Title: "Violence against Migrant Women. Reflections on Patriarchy, Migration and Gender-Based Violence" Abstract: The article aims to demonstrate that the condition of migrant women, analyzed through the lens of gender-based violence, represents the persistence of patriarchy in contemporary societies. Focusing specifically on the Italian case, the analysis shows that migrant women have been invisible in the public debate on migration for decades, and have only emerged in the last twenty years in relation to the phenomenon of gender-based violence. In fact, their representation as victims of violence makes them vulnerable and subject to the public powers of the host state, and reinforces and legitimizes security policies against migrants. The argument proceeds in three steps: 1) A philosophical-political reconceptualization of the nexus between gender, migration, and violence; the argument draws on Hannah Arendt's philosophical analysis of the deprivation of citizenship rights of stateless persons and Toni Morrison's sociological reconstruction of the processes of Othering. 2) A critique of international humanitarian law from an intersectional and postcolonial perspective; through Jane Freedman and Simon Turner's theories on vulnerability and victimization, the article aims to demonstrate how discourse on gender-based violence prevents genuine processes of empowerment and escape from violence. 3) The application of this approach to reception practices, starting from Leaving Violence Living Safe project, promoted by the anti-violence centers of the D.i.RE network in collaboration with UNHCR. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42, J61 Keywords: gender, gender-based violence, migration, patriarchy, intersectionality, postcolonialism. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 75-87 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Violence-against-Migrant-Women.-Reflections-on-Patriarchy-Migration-and-Gender-Based-Violence-.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:75-87 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Luigia Altieri Author-Workplace-Name: University of Chieti-Pescara, Italy Author-Name: Federica Bucciarelli Author-Workplace-Name: Pescara Bar Association, Italy Author-Name: Gianmarco Cifaldi Author-Workplace-Name: University of Chieti-Pescara, Italy Title: " Anti-violence law in Italy between reforms empowerment and self-criticism need rise of the sex industry: the phenomena of trafficking and sexual tourism. A sociological perspective" Abstract: The contribution preliminarily outlines the evolution of Italy’s anti-violence legislation, analyzing the various dimensions through which the Italian legal system has responded to the substantive and procedural challenges posed by gender-based violence against women. Within this framework, Law No. 69/2019 (the “Red Code”) and Law No. 168/2023 represent only the most recent “islands” of a broader “legislative archipelago” in which, as emphasized by the Supreme Court, legal practitioners are called to navigate. The analysis encourages a focused reflection—free from purely theoretical digressions—on the structural limits of the legal system, emphasizing the need for institutional self-criticism repeatedly urged by the monitoring bodies of binding international conventions for Italy, such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Istanbul Convention. Furthermore, the contribution examines the sanctions imposed on Italy by the European Court of Human Rights, highlighting the persistent shortcomings in the practical implementation of legislative provisions, especially with regard to the protection of victims exhibiting forms of discrimination intersecting with their gender. The paper aims to demonstrate that, despite an extensive normative framework, a significant gap remains—documented by women’s experiences and the data gathered by anti-violence centers—between the formal dimension of legal provisions and their actual effectiveness. Echoing the concerns expressed by the European Court of Human Rights, it advocates for systemic measures, including coordinated training and awareness initiatives jointly developed with civil society actors such as anti-violence centers, feminist shelters, and organizations promoting women’s rights. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42 Keywords: gender-based violence; anti-violence legal reforms; Italian legal system; Istanbul Convention implementation; victim protection; legislative effectiveness. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 88-97 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Anti-violence-law-in-Italy-between-reforms-empowerment-and-self-criticism-need.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:88-97 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Barbara Segatto Author-Workplace-Name: University of Padua, Padua, Italy Title: " High-conflict separations and intimate partner violence: A document-based case study from a Family Counselling Centre in Northeastern Italy" Abstract: The phenomenon of separation in Italy is increasingly marked by rising level of conflict that, in many cases, escalate into high-conflict situations or even domestic violence. In such cases, the role of the Family Counselling Centre proves to be crucial, as a local public service dedicated to the protection and well-being of women and children. This research therefore aimed to explore whether the Family Counselling Centre is capable of identifying complex situations, activating appropriate integrated care pathways, and promoting the protection of women and children in critical family contexts. Through a qualitative document analysis was conducted on 311 case files managed between 2020 and 2023 by a Family Counselling Centre in Northeastern Italy. Within this broader group, 26 cases (8.4%) were classified as high-conflict situations. For these cases, the study examined the sociodemographic characteristics of the victims, the forms of violence experienced, the access pathway to service, the interventions implemented, and the outcomes of case management. Findings show that physical violence was reported in 85% of cases, and psychological or verbal violence in more than half. In 80% of cases, contact with the service originated from Court orders, while spontaneous access by women accounted less than 20%. Case outcomes were heterogeneous: in about one-third of cases, conflict levels were reduced, and family autonomy was restored; in another third, protective custody or suspended visits were required to safeguard children; the remaining cases required long-term monitoring or further Court intervention. The Family Counselling Centre demonstrates its ability to effectively differentiate between symmetrical conflict and intimate partner violence, activating diversified pathway aimed at ensuring comprehensive protection for the women and children involved and preventing institutional re-victimization. However, it becomes essential to strengthen its institutional recognition and to develop inter-service protocols capable of ensuring more timely, coordinated, and continuous interventions. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K36, K42 Keywords: High-conflict Separation, Intimate Partner Violence, Domestic Violence, Gender-Based Violence, Social Service, Family Counselling Centre. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 98-111 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/High-conflict-separations-and-intimate-partner-violence-A-document-based-case-study-from-a-Family-Counselling-Centre-in-Northeastern-Italy.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:98-111 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Giuseppina Pellegrino Author-Workplace-Name: University of Calabria, Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy Title: " Against Silence as Violence: De- and Re- centering Gender-based Violence through Intersectionality as Interconnectedness" Abstract: The aim of this contribution is reconstructing the complex path of intersectionality as an approach enriching and enlarging the conceptual framing of Gender-Based Violence (GBV from now onwards) through a concurrent analysis of multiple forms of inequalities, oppression and discrimination, usually silenced and (made) invisible. Such a reconstruction will consist of three steps. First, the reconstruction of the peculiar path of intersectionality, from practice and activism to theory and back, until the official entry in the OED in 2015 (Perlman 2018), more than two decades after its appearance in literature (Crenshaw 1989, 1991). Secondly, intersectionality allows to go beyond the sole GBV, at once de-centering and re-centering the role of gender by a series of affiliated motives/origins of violence and oppression. It is not a matter of listing multiple sources of inequality, rather the way multiplicity is framed through accumulation, intersection and interlocking, as well as “asking the other question” as critical method (Lutz 2024). Third, intersectionality as a concept will be re-framed looking at the weight and violence of classification systems and their consequences: inclu-exclusion, orphanage and infrastructural violence based on “layers of silence”, torquing of individual and collective lives, and marginalization of borderlands and multiple vulnerabilities (Star and Strauss 1999; Bowker and Star 1999). If silencing the margins can worsen GBV, mapping and giving them a voice (hooks 1984) can trace a path to enhance strategies of prevention and care. Silence is a form of communication (Watzlawick Beavin and Jackson 1967), largely unavoidable and unintentional. However, it can be a powerful and opaque form of violence, especially in complex information infrastructures (Bowker and Star 1999). As silence constructs otherness and invisibility, its violence can take multiple forms as well, as in the enforced cancellation of DEI policies at the beginning of Trump’s second term (Ng et al. 2025). Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42 Keywords: intersectionality; GBV; multiplicity; silence; infrastructural violence. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 112-123 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Against-Silence-as-Violence-De-and-Re-centering-Gender-based-Violence-through-Intersectionality-as-Interconnectedness-.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:112-123 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Monica Calderaro Author-Workplace-Name: University of International Studies, Rome, Italy Author-Name: Vincenzo Mastronardi Author-Workplace-Name: University of International Studies, Rome, Italy Author-Name: Camilla Fruet Author-Workplace-Name: University of International Studies, Rome, Italy Author-Name: Marta Pinna Author-Workplace-Name: University of International Studies, Rome, Italy Author-Name: Ionut Virgil Serban Author-Workplace-Name: University of Craiova, Craiova, Romania Title: "Dysfunctional Couple Communication as Precursor to Gender-Based Violence: From Silent Threat to Overt Aggression" Abstract: Gender-based violence is never a sudden event, but rather the culmination of a gradual relational and psychological process, triggered by complex dynamics that often manifest below the threshold of immediate recognition. This article analyzes the precursors of gender-based violence—such as implicit or explicit threats, coercive control, social isolation, cognitive distortions, and traumatic bonding— considering them as early warning signs of risk. In clinical settings, recognizing these early indicators is essential to prevent escalation and interrupt the cycle of violence before it evolves into more severe forms. Through an interdisciplinary perspective that integrates criminological, psychopathological, and sociological literature—supported by institutional sources (EIGE, WHO, FRA)—this contribution aims to identify those “weak” behaviors that precede violent escalation and that, if properly recognized, allow for effective preventive interventions. The early detection of these elements enables us to interpret violence as a progressive sequence rather than an unexpected episode, thus providing both theoretical and practical tools for risk assessment and targeted intervention. The discussion concludes by emphasizing the need for a coherent system of monitoring and multidisciplinary response, one that translates risk awareness into protective action. Viewing violence as a progressive sequence rather than an isolated incident also allows for the refinement of clinical and operational tools in risk evaluation and targeted clinical intervention. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42 Keywords: gender-based violence; precursors acts; coercive control; early warning signs; relational risk; escalation; dysfunctional factors. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 124-133 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Dysfunctional-Couple-Communication-as-Precursor-to-Gender-Based-Violence-From-Silent-Threat-to-Overt-Aggression.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:124-133 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Andrea Casavecchia Author-Workplace-Name: University of Roma Tre, Rome, Italy Author-Name: Margherita Di Stefano Author-Workplace-Name: University of Roma Tre, Rome, Italy Title: " Defusing gender-based violence. A center reserved to men perpetrators of violence" Abstract: The paper explores gender-based violence to identify practices to counter the phenomenon through the analysis of a case study: the Center for Authors of Violence. Initially, the sociocultural context is analyzed in all its complexity. Men who commit acts of violence are conditioned by the logic of male domination exercised in a patriarchal context, in which violence is a manifestation of power. Subsequently, the peculiarities of the case study and the detection techniques used are illustrated. The information obtained is then analyzed to highlight critical issues of the mission and processes activated for the implementation of the project. In conclusion, some useful considerations for the design and implementation of similar services are highlighted, emphasizing the importance of prevention and training measures to combat the phenomenon. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, K42 Keywords: perpetrators violence; Responsible Men Project; violence; change. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 134-147 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Defusing-gender-based-violence.-A-center-reserved-to-men-perpetrators-of-violence-.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:134-147 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Angela Di Stasi Author-Workplace-Name: University of Salerno, Italy Title: " Prevention and repression of domestic violence in the jurisprudence of the Strasbourg Court" Abstract: The issue of the prevention and repression of domestic violence against women – especially within the family and close relationships – is analysed with reference to the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and its impact on the Italian legal system. In particular, this contribution examines the crucial role that an international court can play in guaranteeing women’s rights, especially when such guarantees are inadequately provided by their own national institutions. The analysis is based on the “unique” characteristics of the system of protection established by the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), which allows anyone who believes that their rights under the Convention have been violated to bring their case before the ECtHR. The Court can then determine the responsibility of their national State for breaching the obligations it has assumed by signing and ratifying the Convention. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K33, K36, K42 Keywords: Domestic violence; European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR); Gender-based violence; State responsibility; Istanbul Convention. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 148-157 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Prevention-and-repression-of-domestic-violence-in-the-jurisprudence-of-the-Strasbourg-Court.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:148-157 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Mattia Mogetti Author-Workplace-Name: “University of ”Bari Aldo” Moro, Bari, Italy Author-Name: Raffaella Patimo Author-Workplace-Name: “University of ”Bari Aldo” Moro, Bari, Italy Title: " Economic dependence and vulnerability: an intersectional perspective on risk factors for people in same-sex relationships" Abstract: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) can manifest in various forms: physical, psychological, sexual, and economic. In particular, economic violence can mark the onset of other forms of violence, from which the victim may find it increasingly difficult to escape. A context of inequalities, whether overt or subtle, in fact enables such violence by reducing the capabilities and agency of specific groups compared to others. Theoretical approaches focusing on access to resources and the inherent dependence highlight that asymmetries between partners could set the conditions for violence to occur, fuelled by power imbalances operating at both micro and macro levels, among other factors largely through gender-based differentiations. But in the absence of gender differentiation as an organizing principle of the intimate relationship, how are patterns of asymmetry and dynamics of dependence structured within same-sex couples? The study applies a gendered and intersectional approach to the analysis of the conditions of economic dependence and vulnerability, in order to prepare the way to a further analysis of their impact across various domains, and outlines potential risk factors and their different manifestations according to gender and sexual orientation. Socio-demographic and economic indicators, including age, citizenship, education, employment, and property regime, are compared here, in order to explore asymmetries that may constitute potential risk factors of IPV and especially economic violence. The study uses a descriptive approach based on ISTAT data on marriages and civil partnerships (2019–2023). The approach presented here is applicable across gender categories and able to highlight the specific outcomes for each group. In particular for LGBT+ people, who are exposed to specific gender-based violence that can foster conditions of vulnerability, increasing the risk of dependence on a partner, and creating a vicious cycle that is often difficult to detect before it escalates into violence. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K38, D63, G51 Keywords: Economic dependence; economic violence; same-sex couples; intersectionality; gender inequalities. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 158-179 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Economic-dependence-and-vulnerability-an-intersectional-perspective-on-risk-factors-for-people-in-same-sex-relationships.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:158-179 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Anna Gadda Author-Workplace-Name: University of Bari Aldo Moro, Bari, Italy Title: " Normative devices and the Institutionalization of Interactions Among Actors in Anti-Violence Networks" Abstract: This article examines how normative frameworks shape relationships among actors within territorial anti-violence networks in Italy, focusing on the Lombardy Region as a case study. Since the adoption of the Istanbul Convention, integrated policies and territorial networks have been promoted as key tools for preventing and combating gender-based violence (GBV). While these developments have strengthened coordination and expanded service coverage, they have also introduced tensions between feminist-rooted practices and institutional requirements. The study explores how normative devices define the scope of action for anti-violence centers (AVCs) and shelters (SHs), shaping their practices and influencing the pathways available to women exiting violence. The research combines document analysis with qualitative data from twelve semi-structured interviews and six focus groups conducted with representatives of AVCs and SHs across Lombardy. This mixed-method approach captures both the historical evolution of policies and their implications for the practices and organizational structures of AVCs and SHs, as well as for women’s trajectories of exiting violence. The findings reveal how institutionalization processes simultaneously expand service availability and ensure uniform territorial coverage, while also generating tensions that affect women’s pathways out of violence as well as the practices of AVCs and SHs. At the political level, these dynamics may further produce a backlash, leading to the normalization of the phenomenon, obscuring its structural causes, and legitimizing depoliticized forms of management and intervention — thereby highlighting the ambivalent effects of institutionalization on feminist anti-violence practices. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K42 Keywords: antiviolence networks; antiviolence centers; women shelters; normative devices; standardization; depoliticization; subjectification. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 180-194 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Normative-devices-and-the-Institutionalization-of-Interactions-Among-Actors-in-Anti-Violence-Networks.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:180-194 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Anna Micol Tropeano Author-Workplace-Name: Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy Author-Name: Paola Maria Torrioni Author-Workplace-Name: University of Turin, Turin, Italy Author-Name: Linda Scali Author-Workplace-Name: University of Turin, Turin, Italy Title: "Helping to Dream Again What Support Do the Orphans of Femicide Need? " Abstract: Although femicide represents the most extreme manifestation of gender-based violence, the condition of children orphaned by femicide remains an understudied issue (Baldry, 2017). These special orphans experience dual victimization: they often grow up witnessing domestic violence and then suffer the traumatic loss of their mother at the hands of their father or another family member (Baldry, 2017: 44-45). This reality underscores the urgency of targeted and multidisciplinary intervention to address both past trauma and future challenges. In response to these needs, the S.O.S. (Support for Special Orphans) project, funded through the “A Braccia Aperte” initiative by Con I Bambini, aims to develop a national program for the timely and integrated care of femicide orphans and their foster families. Our contribution, as the monitoring group conducted by the Department of Cultures, Politics, and Society at the University of Turin (Italy), focuses on the North-West consortium operating in Piedmont, Liguria, and Valle d'Aosta. This study presents initial findings from a multi-phase monitoring process (2021-2024) that employed participatory action-research through interviews and focus groups with 19 partners. By September 2024, the project had taken in 25 orphans, with educational grants addressing four main dimensions: basic needs, recreational activities, psychosocial support, and educational assistance. The analysis reveals critical challenges in identifying beneficiaries, communication fragmentation within the network, and the need for continuous specialized training on issues such as witnessed violence and the intergenerational transmission of violence (CISMAI, 2017; Bruno, 2022). The findings emphasize that femicide orphans require personalized and multidimensional interventions that address educational, psychological, and relational needs, while foster families need both financial resources and specialized training. The project represents an important step toward building a more integrated support system capable of responding to the specific needs of one of the most vulnerable groups in society. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K42 Keywords: male violence against women; orphans of femicide; intergenerational violence; support; prevention. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 195-209 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/Helping-to-Dream-Again-What-Support-Do-the-Orphans-of-Femicide-Need-.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:SI:p:195-209 Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Sara Corradini Author-Workplace-Name: Istat, Roma, Italia Author-Name: Lucilla Scarnicchia Author-Workplace-Name: Istat, Roma, Italia Author-Name: Claudia Villante Author-Workplace-Name: Istat, Roma, Italia Title: " The Sexual Exploitation of children through images: non-contact Violence" Abstract: Sexual violence and the exploitation of children through images involve the depiction of a child engaged in real or simulated sexual activities, or the display of intimate parts of their body for sexual purposes. Both national and international legislation generally refer to such images as pornography (Unicef, 2014). The term “child pornography or pedpornography” can now be considered inappropriate as it downplays the severity of the abuse. Therefore, the term “child abuse images” is preferred here, as it more accurately reflects the nature of this crime. "Non-contact sexual violence against a child" refers to any form of non-physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct, whether isolated or persistent, that involves unwanted references to any part of the body used for sexual activity or to the child's sexuality, including conduct facilitated by technology. These include: “exposing a child to sexual abuse and pornography, even through technology; live streaming of a child’s sexual abuse; online solicitation; sexual grooming, and so on.” The focus of the intervention is on examining the shift in perspective on the issue, the different types of non-contact violence, the effects on children, and the main risk factors. It also highlights the indicators and sources currently available to measure the phenomenon emphasizing the need to bridge the information gap on this topic. These forms of violence have severe, lasting effects and remain difficult to measure. Bridging current data gaps through systematic and harmonized collection is crucial to guide prevention, strengthen victim support, and protect children in both digital and offline contexts. This article frames non-contact online sexual violence against children as a continuum that includes child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) grooming, sexting/sextortion, live-streaming abuse, and emerging AI-generated content. These phenomena are situated within the international and EU policy context of the Lanzarote Convention (Council of Europe, 2007) and Directive 2011/92/EU, as well as its trajectory of revision in 2024. At the international level, a set of minimum rules for criminal offences, penalties, and cooperation is settled, by supporting cross-border enforcement and information sharing to detect, investigate and combat these forms of violence against children. At the national level, Italy’s law enforcement agencies (LEA) provide data and information on this topic on a regular basis, strengthened detection capabilities and enhanced cross-border coordination to prevent harm and improve victim support. Data are also gathered by the national hotline victims' support. LEAs (Polizia di Stato, Carabinieri, Guardia di Finanza) and national child-protection hotlines data are essential for giving the material’s transnational nature, but it’s also crucial to have a set of minimum common indicators to measure this fast-changing phenomenon. The article stresses the need for standardized Italian data schemas aligned with the UNICEFICVAC (International Classification on Violence Against Children) taxonomy, by providing regular anonymized reporting, and robust data-sharing protocols across LEAs, prosecutors, hotlines, and other relevant sources of data, both at institutional and non-institutional levels. Measuring these emerging forms of violence against children presents unique challenges. These challenges are key both for understanding the current data landscape and identifying entry points for action to address data gaps. Practical implications include establishing a national cross-agency task force, integrating platform takedown statistics with investigative data, and expanding frontline professional training on grooming, sextortion, and AI-generated content. Classification-JEL: K14, K15, K42 Keywords: Violence against children; sexual exploitation of a child; Csam; Csem; noncontact violence, online sexual violence. Journal: Sociology and Social Work Review Pages: 210-224 Volume: 9 Issue: SI Year: 2025 Month: October File-URL: https://globalresearchpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/The-Sexual-Exploitation-of-children-through-images-non-contact-Violence-.pdf File-Format: Application/pdf Handle: RePEC:edr:sswrgl:v:9:y:2025:i:1:p:219-226