Violence Against Athabascan Native Women in the Copper River Basin [Alaska], 2003

A participatory evaluation was used to examine factors associated with the prevalence and incidence of violence against Ahtna (Alaska Native) women in the Copper River basin of Alaska. Eligibility for participation in the study was limited to adult women over the age of 17 who were Ahtna shareholders or descendents of Ahtna shareholders and who lived in one of eight Ahtna villages (Mentasta Lake, Chitina, Cantwell, Copper Center, Gulkana, Gakona, Tazlina, and Chistochina) in the Copper River Basin of Alaska. The Ahtna Corporation provided research staff with a list of 185 women who met the eligibiltiy criteria. The list from the Ahtna Corporation did not include individuals born after 1972 who had not yet inherited shares in the Ahtna Corporation. With the assistance of subjects and village officials, researchers utilized snowball sampling to identify female Ahtna descendents over the age of 17 within the region. These subjects were recruited through face-to-face contact with project staff. Each of the 185 women on the list of eligible participants that researchers received from the Ahtna Corporation was sent a personal letter in 2003 inviting her to participate in the study. Included in the letter was the interview consent form. A few weeks after mailing, research staff contacted those women who had responded to the mailing to review methods for completing the survey and begin scheduling interviews. Study participants completed the Main Victimization Survey (Part 1) (n = 109), and if the respondent reported a violent incident, a Detailed Physical Assault Incident Report (Part 2) (n = 186) was completed for each offender that had assaulted the survey respondent. All respondents were paid 25 dollars for their participation in the survey and all of the interviewers were female. The Main Victimization Survey (Part 1) includes variables about physical violence the respondent experienced as an adult, how many times the violence occured, and the relationship between the respondent and the offender. The survey also included questions about cultural identity, involvement in the community, and the respondent's living conditions. Demographic variables include marital status, employment, income, and alcohol use. Questions were also included to gather respondents' opinions on health and social services delivery to Ahtna women in the Copper River region. The Detailed Physical Assault Incident Report (Part 2) includes variables about the victim/offender relationship, the time and place of the victimization, the amount of physical harm done in the victimization, whether alcohol or other drugs were involved in the victimization, whether formal assistance (i.e., police, medical treatment) was sought, the victim's perceptions of and satisfaction with the formal system response, the reasons for reporting or not reporting the offense, and if the victim attempted to obtain shelter from further victimization.

Tags: community-involvement, domestic-assault, domestic-violence, health-care-services, native-americans, social-attitudes, social-services, violence-against-women
Organization: Department of Justice