Cluster Leads:
Science Lead & Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice & Social Work
Bethany.Backes@ucf.edu
UCF’s Violence Against Women Cluster researchers work across the disciplines of education, social work, criminal justice, sociology and medicine to create knowledge to guide policymaking designed to reduce the experience and impact of violence toward women.
About 33 million women will experience violence in their lifetimes. In addition to physical, sexual, emotional injury and even death, the economic costs of violence against women in lost work productivity and healthcare services are as high as $12.6 billion in the United States.
Effectively impacting this social issue can save countless lives and billions of dollars.
To better understand the complexity of violence against women and create innovative responses that transcend any one discipline, the cluster studies it from an interdisciplinary approach that merges health, social welfare and social justice perspectives.
The cluster incorporates all of these fields to better understand violence against women and provide insight into preventing it. To support this vital program, please visit here.
UCF Colleges Involved with Violence Against Women (VAW) Research:
In The News
Colleges & Campus
UCF Reach for the Stars 2023 Honorees Are Unleashing the Potential of People, Ideas
The researchers are working to improve how we respond to survivors of violence, promote positive healthcare, explore space, advance computing and enrich cultural understanding.
Colleges & Campus
UCF Podcast: Championing Against Violence
Bethany Backes, an assistant professor in the Violence Against Women faculty cluster who worked for the Department of Justice for more than 10 years, shares what…
Health & Medicine
Survivor Link National Training Program Launches at UCF
The program will support nine social work students, developing their ability to respond to domestic violence.
Violence Against Women (VAW) Research
Projects
Publications
- “Prosecutor use of victim video statements in domestic violence cases”, Bethany Backes, Ph.D., Anna Wasim, Ph.D., Noel Busch-Armendariz, Ph.D., Jennifer LaMotte, Ph.D., Leila Wood, Ph.D., Crime and Delinquency: Sep, 2021
- “Examining the Impact of Duration, Connection, and Dosage of Domestic Violence Services on Survivor Well-Being”, Bethany Backes, Ph.D., Leila Wood, Ph.D., Elizabeth Baumler, Ph.D., Maggy McGiffert, Ph.D., Journal of Family Violence 1-13: Jun, 2021
- Domestic violence and abuse through a sociological lens, Alison Cares, Ph.D., Amy Reckdenwald, Ph.D., K. Fernandez, Ph.D. In J. Devaney, C. Bradbury-Jones, R. J. Macy, C. Øverlien, & S. Holt (Eds.), The Routledge International Handbook of Domestic Violence and Abuse (1st ed., pp. 40-54) Routledge: 2021
- “A New Frontier: The Development and Validation of the Intimate Partner Cyber Abuse Instrument”, Erica Fissel, Ph.D., Amanda Graham, Ph.D., Leah C. Butler, Ph.D., Bonnie S. Fisher, Ph.D., Social Science Computer Review: Mar, 2021
- “The Effectiveness of a Coordinated Response Toward Nonfatal Strangulation in Facilitating Evidence-Based Prosecution”, Amy Reckdenwald, Ph.D., Chelsea L. Mandes, Ph.D., Ketty Fernandez, Ph.D., Criminal Justice Policy Review 32(8), 816-840: Oct, 2021
- “Social Disconnection as a Pathway to Sexual Risk Behavior Among Victims of Intimate Partner Violenc”, Jacqueline Woerner, Ph.D., Tami P Sullivan, Ph.D., Violence and Victims 34(3), 508-521: Jun, 2021
- “Understanding the Impact of Intimate Partner Violence Type and Timing on Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Knowledge, Acceptability, Sexual Behavior, and Gender Roles Among Women of Color”, Karina Villalba, Ph.D., Michele Jean-Gilles, Ph.D., Rhonda Rosenberg, Ph.D., Robert L. Cook, Ph.D., Amanda Ichite, Ph.D., Pilar Martin, Ph.D., Jessy G. Dévieux, Ph.D., Journal of Interpersonal Violence: Mar, 2021
- “Priorities for Alcohol Use Disorder Treatment and Prevention During COVID-19’s Second Wave”, Karina Villalba, Ph.D., Jennifer Attonito, Ph.D., Shelley Fontal, Ph.D., American Journal of Public Health 111(3), 359-362: Mar, 2021
- “Measurement invariance of the World Assumptions Questionnaire across race/ethnic group, sex, and sexual orientation”, Jacqueline Woerner, Ph.D., Haeny, A. M., Ph.D., Overstreet, C., Ph.D., Hicks, T. A., Ph.D., Ahuja, M., Ph.D., Amstadter, A. B., Ph.D., & Sartor, C. E., Ph.D., Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy: Apr, 2021
- “People downplay health risks to fulfill their goals: A motivational framework for guiding behavioral policy”, Jacqueline Woerner, Ph.D., Catalina Kopetz, Ph.D., SAGE Journals 8(1), 92-100: Feb, 2021
- “Internalizing symptoms, alcohol use, and protective behavioral strategies associated with regretted sexual experiences of college students”, Jacqueline Woerner, Ph.D., Roselyn Peterson, Ph.D., Robert D. Dvorak, Ph.D., Melissa A. Lewis, Ph.D., Journal of Affective Disorders 283, 363-372: Mar, 2021
- “Commuter Students’ Readiness to Help in Incidents of Campus Sexual Violence”, Julia O’Connor, Ph.D., Sarah McMahon, Ph.D., SAGE Journals: Feb, 2021
- “Victims’ Perceptions of Cyberstalking: an Examination of Perceived Offender Motivation”, Erica Fissel, Ph.D., American Journal of Criminal Justice: Feb, 2021
- “The Effects of Childhood Sexual Abuse: The Role of Anxiety and Alcohol Use among Haitian Women Living with HIV”, Karina Villalba, Ph.D., Jennifer Attonito, Ph.D., Michele Jean-Gilles, Ph.D., Rhonda Rosenberg, Ph.D., Mariana Sanchez, Ph.D., & Jessy Devieux, Ph.D., Journal of Child Sexual Abuse 29(7), 788-801: Oct, 2021
- “The longitudinal effects of rape myth beliefs and rape proclivity”, Julia O’Connor, Ph.D., Psychology of Men & Masculinities 22(2), 321–330: Nov, 2021
Violence Against Women (VAW) Degree Programs
UCF offers multiple degree programs for students interested in courses related to preventing violence against women. For more programs, search UCF programs below.
Violence Against Women (VAW) Faculty
-
Kim Anderson, Ph.D.
Professor of Social Work -
Bethany Backes, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice & Social Work -
Alison Cares, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Sociology -
Erica Fissel, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice -
Alondra D. Garza, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice -
Jana Jasinski, Ph.D.
Pegasus Professor of Sociology -
Elizabeth Mustaine, Ph.D.
Professor of Sociology -
Julia O’Connor, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Social Work -
Amy Reckdenwald, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Sociology -
Karina Villalba, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor -
Jacqueline Woerner, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Social Psychology
Violence Against Women (VAW) Post Doctoral Researchers
-
Karina Powell, Ph.D.
Post Doctoral Research Associate -
Kayla Toohy, Ph.D.
Post Doctoral Research Associate