Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disaster
Abstract Background Accurately identifying the magnitude of gender-based violence (GBV) in humanitarian settings is hindered by logistical and methodological complexities. The ‘Neighborhood Method’, an adapted household survey that uses primary and secondary reporting to assess the prevalence of GBV...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2020-08-01
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| Series: | Conflict and Health |
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| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13031-020-00301-0 |
| _version_ | 1817987846360793088 |
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| author | Lindsay Stark Les Roberts Gary Yu Timothy M. Tan Aishwarya Nagar Alastair Ager |
| author_facet | Lindsay Stark Les Roberts Gary Yu Timothy M. Tan Aishwarya Nagar Alastair Ager |
| author_sort | Lindsay Stark |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Accurately identifying the magnitude of gender-based violence (GBV) in humanitarian settings is hindered by logistical and methodological complexities. The ‘Neighborhood Method’, an adapted household survey that uses primary and secondary reporting to assess the prevalence of GBV in humanitarian settings, reduces the length of time and cost associated with traditional surveys. Primary female adult respondents disclose incidents of physical violence, intimate and non-intimate partner rape for themselves, other females in their homes (standard reporting) and other women and children in their social networks (secondary reporting). This study examines the reliability and validity of this inclusion of secondary reporting to determine the comparability of the Neighborhood Method to a traditional survey approach. Methods Drawing on data from 1180 women reporting on 3744 females in respondent households and 15,086 in neighboring households across four humanitarian settings (Ethiopia/ Somalia, Liberia, Sri Lanka, and Uganda), reliability of secondary reporting was measured through intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Cohen’s kappas. Validity was assessed using two-sample z-tests for differences between standard versus secondary reporting. Results Prevalence estimates comparing a respondent’s household with a neighboring household show closer agreement (ICC: 0.999–0.986) than self-reports vs. secondary reporting on a female counterpoint in a neighboring home (ICC: 0.939–0.98). Kappa statistics analyzing the reliability of two separate neighbors reporting on a third neighbor showed moderate agreement beyond chance alone (κ = 0.45 for physical violence and 0.48 for rape). Prevalence rates corresponded between standard and secondary reports (i.e. showed no statistical difference) in 18 out of 24 compared populations. Conclusions For prevalence of GBV, secondary reporting about neighbors can serve as a useful adjunct to standard survey methodology. Findings offer important initial insights into the consistency and accuracy of secondary reporting as a tool for field epidemiologists in humanitarian settings. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-14T00:26:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4ad18c11e58742e2bc50a9577302537e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1752-1505 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-14T00:26:19Z |
| publishDate | 2020-08-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Conflict and Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-4ad18c11e58742e2bc50a9577302537e2022-12-22T02:22:42ZengBMCConflict and Health1752-15052020-08-011411910.1186/s13031-020-00301-0Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disasterLindsay Stark0Les Roberts1Gary Yu2Timothy M. Tan3Aishwarya Nagar4Alastair Ager5Brown School at Washington University in St LouisMailman School of Public HealthNYU Rory Meyers College of NursingDepartment of Emergency Medicine, New York Health + Hospitals/QueensIris Group, IncMailman School of Public HealthAbstract Background Accurately identifying the magnitude of gender-based violence (GBV) in humanitarian settings is hindered by logistical and methodological complexities. The ‘Neighborhood Method’, an adapted household survey that uses primary and secondary reporting to assess the prevalence of GBV in humanitarian settings, reduces the length of time and cost associated with traditional surveys. Primary female adult respondents disclose incidents of physical violence, intimate and non-intimate partner rape for themselves, other females in their homes (standard reporting) and other women and children in their social networks (secondary reporting). This study examines the reliability and validity of this inclusion of secondary reporting to determine the comparability of the Neighborhood Method to a traditional survey approach. Methods Drawing on data from 1180 women reporting on 3744 females in respondent households and 15,086 in neighboring households across four humanitarian settings (Ethiopia/ Somalia, Liberia, Sri Lanka, and Uganda), reliability of secondary reporting was measured through intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Cohen’s kappas. Validity was assessed using two-sample z-tests for differences between standard versus secondary reporting. Results Prevalence estimates comparing a respondent’s household with a neighboring household show closer agreement (ICC: 0.999–0.986) than self-reports vs. secondary reporting on a female counterpoint in a neighboring home (ICC: 0.939–0.98). Kappa statistics analyzing the reliability of two separate neighbors reporting on a third neighbor showed moderate agreement beyond chance alone (κ = 0.45 for physical violence and 0.48 for rape). Prevalence rates corresponded between standard and secondary reports (i.e. showed no statistical difference) in 18 out of 24 compared populations. Conclusions For prevalence of GBV, secondary reporting about neighbors can serve as a useful adjunct to standard survey methodology. Findings offer important initial insights into the consistency and accuracy of secondary reporting as a tool for field epidemiologists in humanitarian settings.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13031-020-00301-0Gender-based violenceIntimate partner violenceRapeSecondary reportingSurvey methodsNeighborhood method |
| spellingShingle | Lindsay Stark Les Roberts Gary Yu Timothy M. Tan Aishwarya Nagar Alastair Ager Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disaster Conflict and Health Gender-based violence Intimate partner violence Rape Secondary reporting Survey methods Neighborhood method |
| title | Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disaster |
| title_full | Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disaster |
| title_fullStr | Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disaster |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disaster |
| title_short | Evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender-based violence in conflict and disaster |
| title_sort | evaluating the reliability and validity of secondary reporting to measure gender based violence in conflict and disaster |
| topic | Gender-based violence Intimate partner violence Rape Secondary reporting Survey methods Neighborhood method |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13031-020-00301-0 |
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