The Use of a Board Game to Evaluate Professionals’ Perceptions of Violence Against Women

Violence against women stems from gender inequality, interfering with how women live, fall ill, and die. The consequences of these violations lead to a demand for support from social services and for qualified professionals to provide care to women in such situation. This study has used a game named Violetas: cinema e acao no enfrentamento da violencia contra a mulher (Violets: movie & action in confronting violence against women) as an educational technology for reflection on this theme. This study’s objective was to identify and analyze the professionals’ perceptions of violence against women from the perspective of gender. This qualitative study was conducted with 30 professionals of Casas da Mulher Brasileira (Brazilian Women’s Houses) in three of Brazil’s federative units. The data were collected from Critical-emancipative Workshops. Data treatment was performed with thematic content analysis supported by the webQDA software. Results led to three empirical categories: Implications of gender inequality in violence against women; Violated bodies: the feminine profane and sacred; The (in)visibility of violence against women. The professionals’ perceptions of violence against women emphasized the importance of understanding gender issues which compose this historically constructed social phenomenon in avoiding its recurrence and blaming the victim, as well as in the deconstruction of society’s sexist standards.