a positive influence on them. another way is to create more neighborhood programs to ensure that each child has a positive and stable place to go when school in not in session. many children have benefited from formal organizations now which aim to help mentor and provide a safe environment for the youth especially those living in neighborhoods with higher rates of violence. this includes organizations such as becoming a man, ceasefire illinois, chicago area project, little black pearl, and rainbow house". these programs are designed to help give the youth a safe place to go, stop the violence from occurring, offering counseling and mentoring to help stop the cycle of violence. if the youth do not have a safe place to go after school hours they will likely get into trouble, receive poor grades, drop out of school and use drugs and alcohol. the gangs look for youth who do not have positive influences in their life and need protection. this is why these programs are so important for the youth to have a safe environment rather than resorting to the streets. intimate partner joint base myer-henderson hall (jbm-hh) roundtable addressing digital stalking, ties to intimate partner violence main articles: domestic violence and intimate partner violence intimate partner violence refers to behaviour in an intimate relationship that causes physical, sexual or psychological harm, including physical aggression, sexual coercion, psychological abuse and controlling behaviours. population-level surveys based on reports from victims provide the most accurate estimates of the prevalence of intimate partner violence and sexual violence in non-conflict settings. a study conducted by who in 10 mainly developing countries found that, among women aged 15 to 49 years, between 15% (japan) and 70% (ethiopia and peru) of women reported physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner. a growing body of research on men and intimate partner violence focuses on men as both perpetrators and victims of violence, as well as on how to involve men and boys in anti-violence work. intimate partner and sexual violence have serious short- and long-term physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health problems for victims and for their children, and lead to high social and economic costs. these include both fatal and non-fatal injuries, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, including hiv. factors associated with the perpetration and experiencing of intimate partner violence are low levels of education, history of violence as a perpetrator, a victim or a witness of parental violence, harmful use of alcohol, attitudes that are accepting of violence as well as marital discord and dissatisfaction. factors associated only with perpetration of intimate partner violence are having multiple partners, and antisocial personality disorder. a recent theory named "the criminal spin" suggests a mutual flywheel effect between partners that is manifested by an escalation in the violence. a violent spin may occur in any other forms of violence, but in intimate partner violence the added value is the mutual spin, based on the unique situation and characteristics of intimate relationship. the primary prevention strategy with the best evidence for effectiveness for intimate partner violence is school-based programming for adolescents to prevent violence within dating relationships. evidence is emerging for the effectiveness of several other primary prevention strategies—those that: combine microfinance with gender equality training; promote communication and relationship skills within communities; reduce access to, and the harmful use of alcohol; and change cultural gender norms. sexual main article: sexual violence meeting of victims of sexual violence in the democratic republic of the congo. sexual violence is any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, unwanted sexual comments or advances, or acts to traffic, or otherwise directed against a person's sexuality using coercion, by any person regardless of their relationship to the victim, in any setting. it includes rape, defined as the physically forced or otherwise coerced penetration of the vulva or anus with a penis, other body part or object. population-level surveys based on reports from victims estimate that between 0.3 and 11.5% of women reported experiencing sexual violence. sexual violence has serious short- and long-term consequences on physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health for victims and for their children as described in the section on intimate partner violence. if perpetrated during childhood, sexual violence can lead to increased smoking, drug and alcohol misuse, and risky sexual behaviors in later life. it is also associated with perpetration of violence and being a victim of violence. many of the risk factors for sexual violence are the same as for domestic violence. risk factors specific to sexual violence perpetration include beliefs in family honor and sexual purity, ideologies of male sexual entitlement and weak legal sanctions for sexual violence. few interventions to prevent sexual violence have been demonstrated to be effective. school-based programmes to prevent child sexual abuse by teaching children to recognize and avoid potentially sexually abusive situations are run in many parts of the world and appear promising, but require further research. to achieve lasting change, it is important to enact legislation and develop policies that protect women; address discrimination against women and promote gender equality; and help to move the culture away from violence. elder maltreatment elder maltreatment is a single or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust which causes harm or distress to an older person. this constitutes a violation of human rights and includes physical, sexual, psychological, emotional; financial and material abuse; abandonment; neglect; and serious loss of dignity and respect. while there is little information regarding the extent of maltreatment in elderly populations, especially in developing countries, it is estimated that 4–6% of elderly people in high-income countries have experienced some form of maltreatment at home however, older people are often afraid to report cases of maltreatment to family, friends, or to the authorities. data on the extent of the problem in institutions such as hospitals, nursing homes and other long-term care facilities are scarce. elder maltreatment can lead to serious physical injuries and long-term psychological consequences. elder maltreatment is predicted to increase as many countries are experiencing rapidly ageing populations. many strategies have been implemented to prevent elder maltreatment and to take action against it and mitigate its consequences including public and professional awareness campaigns, screening (of potential victims and abusers), caregiver support interventions (e.g. stress management, respite care), adult protective services and self-help groups. their effectiveness has, however, not so far been well-established. targeted several rare but painful episodes of assassination, attempted assassination and school shootings at elementary, middle, high schools, as well as colleges and universities in the united states, led to a considerable body of research on ascertainable behaviors of persons who have planned or carried out such attacks. these studies (1995–2002) investigated what the authors called "targeted violence," described the "path to violence" of those who planned or carried out attacks and laid out suggestions for law enforcement and educators. a major point from these research studies is that targeted violence does not just "come out of the blue". everyday as an anthropological concept, "everyday violence" may refer to the incorporation of different forms of violence (mainly political violence) into daily practices. latin america and the caribbean, the region with the highest murder rate in the world, experienced more than 2.5 million murders between 2000 and 2017. philosophical perspectives some philosophers have argued that any interpretation of reality is intrinsically violent. slavoj žižek in his book violence stated that "something violent is the very symbolization of a thing." an ontological perspective considers the harm inflicted by the very interpretation of the world as a form of violence that is distinct from physical violence in that it is possible to avoid physical violence whereas some ontological violence is intrinsic to all knowledge. both foucault and arendt considered the relationship between power and violence but concluded that while related they are distinct.: 46 in feminist philosophy, epistemic violence is the act of causing harm by an inability to understand the conversation of others due to ignorance. some philosophers think this will harm marginalized groups. brad evans (author) states that "violence" "represents a violation in the very conditions constituting what it means to be human as such", "is always an attack upon a person's dignity, their sense of selfhood, and their future", and "is both an ontological crime ... and a form of political ruination". factors and models of understanding violence cannot be attributed to solely protective factors or risk factors. both of these factor groups are equally important in the prevention, intervention, and treatment of violence as a whole. the cdc outlines several risk and protective factors for youth violence at the individual, family, social and community levels. individual risk factors include poor behavioral control, high emotional stress, low iq, and antisocial beliefs or attitudes. family risk factors include authoritarian childrearing attitudes, inconsistent disciplinary practices, low emotional attachment to parents or caregivers, and low parental income and involvement. social risk factors include social rejection, poor academic performance and commitment to school, and gang involvement or association with delinquent peers. community risk factors include poverty, low community participation, and diminished economic opportunities. on the other hand, individual protective factors include an intolerance towards deviance, higher iq and gpa, elevated popularity and social skills, as well as religious beliefs. family protective factors include a connectedness and ability to discuss issues with family members or adults, parent/family use of constructive coping strategies, and consistent parental presence during at least one of the following: when awakening, when arriving home from school, at dinner time, or when going to bed. social protective factors include quality school relationships, close relationships with non-deviant peers, involvement in prosocial activities, and exposure to school climates that are: well supervised, use clear behavior rules and disciplinary approaches, and engage parents with teachers. with many conceptual factors that occur at varying levels in the lives of those impacted, the exact causes of violence are complex. to represent this complexity, the ecological, or social ecological model is often used. the following four-level version of the ecological model is often used in the study of violence: the first level identifies biological and personal factors that influence how individuals behave and increase their likelihood of becoming a victim or perpetrator of violence: demographic characteristics (age, education, income), genetics, brain lesions, personality disorders, substance abuse, and a history of experiencing, witnessing, or engaging in violent behaviour. the second level focuses on close relationships, such as those with family and friends. in youth violence, for example, having friends who engage in or encourage violence can increase a young person's risk of being a victim or perpetrator of violence. for intimate partner violence, a consistent marker at this level of the model is marital conflict or discord in the relationship. in elder abuse, important factors are stress due to the nature of the past relationship between the abused person and the care giver. the third level explores the community context—i.e., schools, workplaces, and neighbourhoods. risk at this level may be affected by factors such as the existence of a local drug trade, the absence of social networks, and concentrated poverty. all these factors have been shown to be important in several types of violence. finally, the fourth level looks at the broad societal factors that help to create a climate in which violence is encouraged or inhibited: the responsiveness of the criminal justice system, social and cultural norms regarding gender roles or parent-child relationships, income inequality, the strength of the social welfare system, the social acceptability of violence, the availability of weapons, the exposure to violence in mass media, and political instability. child-rearing while studies showing associations between physical punishment of children and later aggression cannot prove that physical punishment causes an increase in aggression, a number of longitudinal studies suggest that the experience of physical punishment has a direct causal effect on later aggressive behaviors. cross-cultural studies have shown that greater prevalence of corporal punishment of children tends to predict higher levels of violence in societies. for instance, a 2005 analysis of 186 pre-industrial societies found that corporal punishment was more prevalent in societies which also had higher rates of homicide, assault, and war. in the united states, domestic corporal punishment has been linked to later violent acts against family members and spouses.