violence against women

Telephone number for the National Domestic Violence Hotline:
1-800-799-SAFE   1-800-787-3224 (TTY)

This guide is an introduction to the research process that, while not being an exhaustive list of information resources available, should be helpful in getting started in your research about violence against women.  Below you will find pointers to suggested research terms about violence against women, materials in the library catalog about violence against women, websites relevant to violence against women, and links to library databases that contain information about violence against women.  Please use our email reference service, contact us at (310) 434-4254, or visit us in the library at the reference desk if you need further assistance.

Go to:   Suggested Research Terms   Materials in the Library Catalog    Websites   Library Databases

Suggested Research Terms

One of the really helpful things when searching for information about a topic is a short list of terms related to a topic.  We think the following terms will help with your research about violence against women:

• battered women
• crime
• violence
• domestic violence
• victims of crimes
• abused wives
• conjugal violence
• wife beating
• rape

Back to top of page

Materials in the library catalog related to violence against women

We have the following materials in the library catalog related to violence against women:

• violence against women
• wife abuse
• family violence
• abused women
• women crimes against
• women
• violence

Back to top of page

Websites on violence against women

The following websites will help you with your research on violence against women:

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)

In the "Women's Issues" section of their public web site, ACOG addresses the pervasive problem of violence against women. ACOG is "recognized as the first national medical organization to respond to violence against women as a public health issue." Offering a Fact Sheet headed "Interpersonal Violence Against Women Throughout the Life Span", ACOG details the causes and effects of violence against girls, reproductive-age women, and elderly women. Psychological and behavioral effects such as depression, substance abuse, and suicidal behavior are commented upon as linked to violence against women.  The site also gives extensive statistics by age and ethnic background of women violence victims.  

U. S. Department of Justice Violence Against Women Office
Started in 1995, the Violence Against Women Office (VAWO) of the U. S. Department of Justice deals with policy-making, legalities, and direction for the department's efforts to address the issues of violence against women. VAWO administers a grant program to fund organizations and governmental agencies in training their staffs and in aiding victims of violence. They offer advice on what communities and agencies can do to curb and eradicate the insidious problem.
Victims of Trafficking and Violence Prevention Act of 2000
VAWO of the Justice Department provides information on, and the texts of, the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 and subsequent supplemental laws. The purview of VAWO includes dealing with the legal, political, and leadership issues regarding violence against women.
American Bar Association Commission on Domestic Violence
The ABA's Commission on Domestic Violence publishes this site which offers a wealth of useful information on many aspects of domestic violence. The site provides links to other valuable resources and agencies as well as postings of ABA policy on domestic violence, training materials, and sample legal forms. The Commission "networks with other domestic violence organizations to direct research inquiries and quickly provide victims with appropriate referrals to State Coalitions and other domestic violence service providers."
United Nations "WomenWatch"
WomenWatch, a project of the United Nations, maintains an Internet presence to report on "global women's issues".
NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund: Ending Violence against Women
The National Organization for Women (NOW) started its Legal Defense and Education Fund in 1970 to deal with all major aspects of the fight for women's rights "through litigation, education, and public information programs."
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV)
NCADV describes and offers information on "The Problem" of the battering of women through a set of significant questions such as "what is battering? why do men batter women? why do women stay?"; questions to which the organization propounds its answers on the website.
Back to top of page

Library Databases relevant to violence against women

The following Santa Monica College Library databases may contain material relevant to violence against women.  Databases may include magazine, newspaper, and journal articles, or other materials.  Off-campus users, please note: you must be a Santa Monica College student, faculty or staff member to use these services.
Academic Search Premier, MasterFile Premier
Academic Search Premier and MasterFile Premier provide full text for over 6200 periodicals including full text for more than 3,500 peer-reviewed journals. Coverage spans virtually every area of academic study and offers information dating as far back as 1975.
Health Source
Health Source: Consumer Edition offers information on many health topics including the medical sciences, food sciences and nutrition, childcare, sports medicine and general health. Has full text for nearly 300 journals.
Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
Provides coverage of nearly 550 full text journals, covering topics such as emotional and behavioral characteristics, psychiatry & psychology, mental processes, anthropology, and observational and experimental methods.
National Newspapers (1985- current)
Local, regional and national news coverage from selected newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, Denver Post, USA Today, Christian Science Monitor.
Newspaper Source Plus
Provides selected full text for many U.S. and international newspapers. The database also contains full text television & radio news transcripts, and selected full text for more than 800 U.S. regional newspapers.
Medline
Search abstracts from over 4,600 biomedical journals for information on medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, the health care system, pre-clinical sciences, and much more.
JSTOR
Back issues of over 300 scholarly journals in a wide variety of disciplines: African American Studies, African Studies, Anthropology, Archeology, Art and Architecture, Asian Studies, Ecology, Economics, Education, Finance, Geography, History, Language & Literature, Latin American Studies, Mathematics, Music, Middle East Studies, Philosophy, Political Science, Population Studies, Slavic Studies, Sociology and Statistics.
Encyclopedia Americana
Includes 45,000 articles, plus thousands of hypertext links to web sites featuring additional data. It is updated quarterly.

Encyclopedia, Funk and Wagnalls New World
Provides over 25,000 encyclopedic entries covering a variety of subject areas.