Call for Consultant - Mental Health and Femicide

About ABAAD

ABAAD– Resource Centre for Gender Equality is a UN ECOSOC accredited organization that aims to achieve gender equality as an essential condition to sustainable social and economic development in the MENA region. ABAAD advocates for the development and implementation of policies and laws that enhance women’s effective participation, through a rights-based approach that would bring about tangible change to gender justice. With the purpose of ending gender-based violence, ABAAD adopts a holistic care approach to provide protection and support services to GBV survivors/right holders during times of peace, war and disasters since 2011.

About the project

The “Promotion of a gender equal and equitable society with and for women and youth in Lebanon” is a three-years project funded by the Regional Development and Protection Programme (RDPP) in the Middle East. The project’s strategic goal is to establish societies that ensure gender equality and are free of violence, centring efforts on women and girls in all their diversity. By advocating for gender equality, the aim is to effect systemic changes that tackle root causes of discrimination, sexism, and harmful norms that obstruct access to rights based on gender.

Women and girls in their diversity are not only the recipients of these efforts but also active participants in shaping this transformation. The understanding of diversity acknowledges that women and girls possess intersecting identities that affect their societal positions and access to rights and power.

This strategic objective will be achieved through lobbying, advocacy, and the strengthening of civil society, all guided by a gender-transformative approach (GTA). The GTA focuses on these key components: Amplifying the voices of women and youth, Enhancing the role of young men as allies in this transformation, promoting human rights and the agency of women and girls, Analysing and countering harmful norms and unequal power relations. A key component in the program, is to conduct a research to investigate the relation between mental health issues and femicide in Lebanon.

Background

Femicide, the gender-based killing of women and girls, is a grave and extreme form of violence against women. Mental health issues in both perpetrators and victims are often significant yet overlooked factors in such cases. Understanding the nexus between mental health issues and femicide is critical for developing effective intervention strategies to prevent femicide and better support at-risk individuals. This research aims to unpack the connection between femicide and mental health, revealing critical intervention points.

Intimate partner violence against women is a global and persistent public health issue. An extreme manifestation of this problem is intimate partner femicide (IPF), the killing of a woman by a male partner. While declining trends of homicide rates have been observed over decades, rates of femicide and IPF have remained stable. Yet, IPF as a phenomenon has until recently been fairly invisible in Lebanon, why research from on rates and characteristics of IPF has been relatively scarce. One area of research, particularly in need of further scrutiny, is to what degree perpetrators of IPF suffer from mental health conditions, and what are the driving factors. This investigation into the mental health aspects of both perpetrators and victims involved in femicide, particularly IPF, is aimed at shedding light on underexplored dimensions that could inform targeted interventions.

Overall Objective

The research will involve an in-depth exploration of the intersection between femicide and mental health in Lebanon.

• To conduct a comprehensive literature review on the topic of femicide and mental health, focusing on the role mental health issues play in both victims and perpetrators.
• To identify and analyze existing intervention strategies that address mental health issues related to femicide.
• To highlight gaps in current research and interventions and suggest areas for future study and action.
• To develop evidence-based recommendations for policymakers, practitioners, and communities to prevent femicide and support at-risk individuals through mental health interventions.

Research Questions:

Perpetrators

• Mental Health Prevalence: What is the prevalence of mental health conditions among perpetrators of femicide and intimate partner femicide (IPF)? Are there any specific MH conditions more commonly associated with IPF? To what extent are cases of suicide prevalent among perpetrators of IPF?
• Motivation and Mental Health: How do mental health conditions, if present, interact with other factors - including cultural attitudes towards women – to contribute to the risk of IPF?
• MH Services and Access: Do perpetrators of IPF have a history of seeking MH services? What access barriers, if any, contribute to exacerbating IPF?
• Risk Assessment: Is it possible to develop a risk assessment tool to identify potential perpetrators of IPF? What stakeholders should be involved, and how can such a tool be mainstreamed on a national level?
• MH Intervention and Response: What MH interventions could be effective in reducing the risk of IPF?

Survivors

• MH Impacts: How does experiencing IPV and the threat of IPF impact the mental health of women in Lebanon? Are there any specific MH conditions more prevalent among victims/survivors of IPF?
• MH Services and Access: Do women at risk of IPF have access to MH support services? What are the perceptions towards these services in terms of cultural appropriateness and effectiveness in addressing survivors’ or victims’ needs?
• Risk Assessment and Early Warning: Is it possible to identify risk and early warning signs of potentially escalating IPV which may lead to IPF, particularly when MH issues might be a factor?

National Overview

• Legal Framework: How does the current legal framework in Lebanon address IPF, and does it account for the role that MH may play in this phenomenon? What opportunities exist for legal reforms to enhance protection for victims and support for potential perpetrators with MH issues?
• Security and Firearms Regulation: Does the ability to easily acquire and wield arms affect the incidence of femicide? To what extent would firearms regulation affect its occurrence?
• Social and Cultural Factors: How do social and cultural norms influence the perpetration and toleration of IPF? How do these norms influence attitudes towards seeking MH support?
• Data Collection: How can data collection be improved to better understand IPF and its association with MH in order to inform effective interventions?
• Reporting: How can reporting of IPV and IPF be encouraged nationwide with the ultimate goal of ending the incidence of IPF?

Timeline

The research is expected to be finalized by October 2024

Deliverables

• Desk and literature review (Review existing ABAAD publications and other resources through a research lens to explore relevancy, ethicality pertinence, integrity, feasibility, and replicability, …)

• Inception Report including

• Methodology of study; qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods with justification of the intended approach selected
• Research questions; designing a clear, concise research questions
• Data collection methods; the researcher is required to specify the methods of data gathering; surveys, interviews, focus groups, and justify the selected option
• Data analysis framework
• Research tools

• Final report including:

• Data interpretation
• Findings
• Literature review; Summary of the literature review, the context and the theoretical framework
• Practical Recommendations

Ensure the research is conducted in an ethical manner (referring to the national or institutional ethical committees)

SKILLS REQUIRED

• Applicant must have experience in research –both qualitative and quantitative.
• Applicant must have experience working in the humanitarian field –particularly engaging with local communities (experience working with women and girls under the protection sector is preferable).
• Applicant must have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the local context in Lebanon.
• Applicant must possess excellent communication and writing skills in English and Arabic.
• Applicant must have experience working in culturally sensitive contexts.
• Proven experience of conducting similar assignments
• Excellent report writing and analytical skills