Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is the most pervasive violation of women’s rights worldwide, causing devastating lifelong damage. Victims can suffer physical, emotional or mental health problems, and experience detrimental effects in social, psychological and relational health with their families, especially children. Due to the complexity regarding violence against women in heterosexual couples, it is important to make a clear distinction between psychological and physical mistreatment, which also includes psychological violence. This differentiation is important in determining different emotional and psychological aspects of mistreatment in order to understand the reasons why some women stay in such relationships and to explain the personality profiles of victims and perpetrators. In this short narrative review, we have combined perspectives of depth psychology and attachment theory from studies on trauma, traumatic bonds and the perpetrator/victim complex in gender violence. We have also considered the growing literature on IPVAW as it relates to the medico-legal field. Our search strategy included intimate partner violence, attachment styles, risk factors and the victim/perpetrator relationship. Distinguishing the different types of IPVAW is a necessary step in understanding the complexity, causes, correlations and consequences of this issue. Above all, it enables the implementation of effective prevention and intervention strategies.

The maltreatment and torture of prisoners constitute a global problem. Methods of maltreatment are classified as the psychological and the physical, and physical methods inevitably lead to psychological sequelae. Our review offers an analysis from the medico-legal perspective of the literature on the torture and physical and sexual abuse experienced by prisoners and their psychological sequelae and aims to investigate the medico-legal issues of investigating maltreatment in prison so as to suggest methodologies and updated approaches for dealing with such cases in a forensic context. We performed a comprehensive literature search of peer-reviewed publications (articles and reviews), research reports, case studies, books, service models, protocols, and institutional documents available online using key electronic databases (Scopus, PubMed) and search engines (Google Scholar) with the following keywords: physical violence, psychological violence, torture, maltreatment, physical abuse, psychological abuse AND prison OR prisoner OR jail OR custody. In the medical literature, most of the publications on torture are based on retrospective studies of torture among survivors and often refer to asylum seekers. Forensic evaluation is crucial for assessing the determinant elements of torture and maltreatment. A multidisciplinary approach and standardized and updated methodologies are needed to support policymakers, national institutions, and public health system initiatives in this field.

In the current situation of growing information overload, individuals are gradually becoming less sensitive to traditional marketing communications. For this reason, traditional marketing research models are no longer capable of giving useful insights to management. This calls for new approaches that can grasp the inner meaning of consumer behaviors and evaluate their relevance. To this end, a new multidisciplinary approach is needed to interpret complex behavioral patterns so as to gain deeper and more effective insights into customers and to understand their behavioral patterns. In this paper, following a short introduction to the basic concepts of Jung's analytical psychology and their relevance for marketing, we propose the use of the Jungian archetypes to implement a market research model, considering the case of an Italian research company's development of the Archetipus® model.

Asylum-seeking migrants represent a vulnerable segment of the population, and among them, women constitute an even more vulnerable group. Most of these women and girls have been exposed to threats, coercion, and violence of many kinds, including rape, forced prostitution, harassment, sexual slavery, forced marriage and pregnancy, female genital mutilation/excision, and/or other violations of their rights (e.g., deprivation of education, prohibition to work, etc.). The perpetrators of the violence from which they flee are often their own families, partners, and even institutional figures who should be in charge of their protection (such as police officers). In the process for the acceptance/rejection of an asylum application, the forensic and psychological certification can make the difference between successful and unsuccessful applications, as it can support the credibility of the asylum seeker through an assessment of the degree of compatibility between the story told and the diagnostic and forensic evidence. This is why constant and renewed reflection on the ethical, forensic, and methodological issues surrounding medico-legal and psychological certification is essential. This article aims to propose some reflections on these issues, starting from the experience of the inward healthcare service dedicated to Migrant Victims of Maltreatment, Torture, and Female Genital Mutilation operating since 2018 at the Institute of Forensic Medicine of the University Hospital of Palermo.

Violence against women breaches women’s human rights and is a global public health issue that can cause devastating life-long damage. This study considers the characters of victims, abusers and traumatic bonding in heterosexual couples from a medico-legal and psycological standpoint. After considering the devastating effects on women’s health, and with the objective of preventing future violence, it illustrates the weaknesses and strengths of new Italian guidelines related to violence against women in emergency departments including the use of “Brief Risk Assessment for IPV in the Emergency Department – DA5”.

Asylum seekers often report exposure to persecution in their home countries, during transit, or while in detention. The primary purpose of a forensic medical certification is the objective documentation of physical and psychological findings associated with torture, abuse, or other forms of inhumane treatment. The study had two main objectives: (1) to analyze the demographic, clinical, and medico-legal data of individuals referred to the Specialized Outpatient Service for Survivors of Torture (SVT) at the Policlinic Hospital of the University of Palermo and (2) to evaluate how professional experience and specialized training shape the formulation of compatibility judgments according to the Istanbul Protocol, through a multicenter inter-rater analysis. This is a retrospective observational study that analyzed all consecutive forensic medical evaluations of asylum seekers at the Institute of Legal Medicine, University of Palermo, Italy, between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2024. In total, 324 patients were examined at the institute's outpatient clinic for survivors of torture. Our findings highlight the essential role of specialized forensic experience in the medico-legal assessment of asylum seekers reporting torture and ill-treatment. Comparative analysis across multiple international centers confirmed that physical trauma, particularly blunt injury, was the most commonly documented form of abuse. The study demonstrated high inter-rater agreement for injury identification, classification, and recognizing associated physical and psychological sequelae. However, discrepancies emerged in assigning consistency levels under the Istanbul Protocol, highlighting the need for structured training and standardized protocols to ensure the accuracy, reproducibility, and evidentiary value of forensic assessments.