No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.
Profile and Strategies of Women Who Have Ended Abuse
Abstract
Surveyed 185 survivors of abusive relationships to identify women who successfully ended such relationships, to present a profile of their personal and abuse histories, to describe the strategies for ending the violence, and to report their satisfaction with treatment methods and results. 16 Ss were living with the former abuser and were satisfied, 11 Ss were living with the former abuser and were not satisfied, and 158 Ss were not living with the former abuser. Ss tended to be advantaged in that they were older, married longer, better educated, and working outside the home. They had a substantial history of abuse and had tried numerous unsuccessful strategies before ending the abuse. Satisfied Ss clearly felt a strong emotional attachment to their partners and felt hopeful, as opposed to emotionally estranged, in contrast with dissatisfied Ss. Of the range of resources used to end abuse, the majority of survivors used friends and family. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
... Bu tahminlerin belirleyicileri ise kadının sahip olduğu kişisel özellikler ve imkanlardır. Çalışmalar, kadınların eğitim düzeyi yükseldikçe ayrılma kararı alma ihtimallerinin daha yüksek olduğunu göstermektedir (Horton ve Johnson, 1993; Lerner ve Kennedy, 2000). Eğitim düzeyi yüksek olan kadınlar, daha fazla profesyonel (hukuki, ekonomik veya psikolojik) destek ve sosyal destek kaynağına ulaşabilir, daha kolay iş bulabilir ve ekonomik olarak daha rahat bir hayat sürdürebilir. ...
... Kadının ayrılma kararı almasında en önemli belirleyicilerden bir diğeri, kadının çocuklarına karşı hissettiği sorumluluklardır (Landenburger, 1998; Hiller ve Recoules, 2013). Çocuk sahibi olmayan ya da daha az sayıda çocuğa sahip olan kadınlar, fiziksel şiddete maruz kaldıkları evliliklerini sonlandırmaya daha eğilimli görünmektedir (Horton ve Johnson, 1993). Kadın, ekonomik koşullarını da göz önünde bulundurarak, çocuklarının bakımı ve refahı için şiddet uygulayan erkeğin yanında kalma eğilimi gösterebilir (Pfouts, 1978). ...
... Burada daha profesyonel bir sosyal destek kaynağı olarak kabul edilebilecek psikolojik destekten bahsetmek yararlı olacaktır. Bazı çalışmalar şiddet gören kadınların ayrılma kararı verebilmelerinde aldıkları psikolojik desteğin önemli olduğunu göstermektedir (Horton ve Johnson, 1993). Profesyonel ve devamlı bir destek alabilen bireylerin sıklıkla problem çözme becerileri kazanma eğiliminde olduğu bilinmektedir. ...
... In another study, Horton and Johnson (1993) examined the profiles and strategies of 185 women who had overcome IPV. They found that the majority of the survivors had used friends and family as a resource to end the abuse. ...
... While informal and formal social support has been shown to improve the mental health of women exposed to IPV, it has also been linked with an increased ability and readiness to seek help from formal sources (Gondolf & Fisher, 1988;Horton & Johnson, 1993;referenced in Liang, Goodman, Tummala-Narra & Weintraub, 2005). Women who reported higher levels of social support were significantly less likely to report post-traumatic stress symptoms, anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts and actions than women who reported lower social support (Coker et al., 2002). ...
... Working with IPV requires taking multiple aspects into account. Research has found that in order to prevent abuse, many different resources need to cooperate such as family and friends, professional counselors, shelters, religious leaders, lawyers and police (Horton & Johnson, 1993). There are undoubtedly structural challenges in Pakistan requiring long-term work; for example enforcing legal protection, developing formal support, creating educational opportunities for women and empowering women's position in the society. ...
... The present study examines perceptions regarding the reasons why woman in Tarrant County returned to an abuser. This study utilizes ten recidivism variables that previous researchers have found influential in assessing the correlation between leaving an abusive relationship and subsequently returning (Griffing et al, 2002;Horton & Johnson, 1993& Strube & Barbour, 1983: (1) pressure from others, (2) felt it was in the best interest of the children, (3) no other good alternatives, (4) abuser promised to seek counseling, (5) abuser expressed remorse, (6) religious convictions, (7) belief in the covenant of marriage, (8) financially unable to make it on their own, (9) feared retaliation, and (10) continued emotional attachment/ love. This study seeks to uncover the relationships between women who return to their abuser on multiple occasions. ...
... The abuse from domestic violence does not end when a person leaves their abusive situation, it can continue on into their daily life, even years after leaving the violent relationship (Horton and Johnson, 1993 Domestic violence is not just a symptom that when fully researched and understood will be able to be repaired or fixed entirely. Domestic violence is full of underlying biological and psychological problems that affect those that are beaten, those that are the abuser, and those in the situation as onlookers; such as children and parents (Wolfe & Jaffe, 1999). ...
... 606). This is in correlation with what Horton & Johnson (1993) found in which many women feel they are unable or unwilling to end a violent relationship and that "because many victims return to their abusers after a shelter stay, effective methods for ending abuse without terminating the relationship need to be identified… [and] based on the longevity of these couple relationships and the need to provide interim solutions, agencies and practitioners are increasingly providing a wide range of support services for women and men who are attempting to end the cycle of abuse" (p. 482). ...
... H1. Workplace ostracism of female employees is negatively related to their in-role performance Loss of resources experienced at home can reduce performance aspects other than the employee's prescribed job role. These aspects include organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) or voluntary and altruistic actions performed at work (Horton and Johnson, 1993). It is reasonable to assume that employees whose cognitive and emotional resources are depleted by workplace rejection are more likely to use available resources to meet their role requirements. ...
... Consequently, awareness of the workplace as a haven can increase organizational support utilization, which can be an important aspect of terminating abusive relationships between employees by providing a pathway for economic self-sufficiency and independence (Horton and Johnson, 1993;Raghavan et al., 2005). Employers can optimize the favorable location of managers and coworkers to detect risks and provide instant assistance to affected employees through daily face-to-face contact. ...
Purpose
Based on the conservation of resource theory, this study developed and tested the relationship between workplace ostracism and job performance. And it assumes that the direct link between workplace ostracism and supervisor-rated in-role performance/organizational citizenship behavior is moderated by perceived organizational support.
Design/methodology/approach
For this, this study used a survey method and multiple regression analyses with multisource data from 256 Korean employees and their supervisors.
Findings
The results suggest the following. First, workplace ostracism was negatively associated with supervisor-rated in-role performance and organizational citizenship behaviors. Second, there was a stronger negative relationship between workplace ostracism and supervisor-rated in-role performance/organizational citizenship behaviors for employees with low as opposed to those with high levels of perceived organizational support.
Originality/value
This study is the first one to examine the moderating effect of perceived organizational support on the relationship between workplace ostracism and supervisor-rated in-role performance/organizational citizenship behavior.
... Resource loss experienced from home can also degrade other aspects of performance that lie outside the employee's prescribed work role. These aspects include organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) or voluntary and altruistic behaviors performed at work (Horton & Johnson, 1993). It seems reasonable to presume that an employee whose cognitive and emotional resources are depleted by IPA is most likely to channel available resources to satisfy in-role demands. ...
... Indeed, a supportive organizational culture characterized by awareness of IPA as a critical social and workplace issue may assist managers to be more responsive to the needs of affected employees. Consequently, the perception of the workplace as a safe haven may increase organizational support utilization, which is found to be an important aspect of abusive relationship termination among women as it provides an avenue for economic self-sufficiency and independence (Horton & Johnson, 1993;Raghavan et al., 2005). Employers can optimize the advantageous position of managers and coworkers to detect risks and provide immediate assistance to affected employees given their daily face-toface interaction with them. ...
Drawing upon the conservation of resources theory, we developed and tested a moderated mediation model linking domestic intimate partner aggression (IPA) to job performance and career advancement. Our model posits that the indirect relationship between IPA and career advancement via in-role performance and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) is moderated by perceived organizational support (POS). Overall, multisource and multiwave data obtained from two independent samples of employed women from the Philippines supported our predictions. Specifically, results suggest that: (1) IPA was negatively associated with supervisor-rated in-role performance and OCBs; (2) there was a stronger negative relationship between IPA and in-role performance and OCBs for employees with low as opposed to those with high levels of POS; and (3) the conditional indirect effects of IPA in predicting supervisor-rated promotability and actual promotion via in-role performance and OCBs were stronger under conditions of low as opposed to high POS. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.
... Researchers who have attempted to identify the factors associated with an increased risk of reunification have focused primarily on social and demographic variables (Griffing et al., 2002). These studies have revealed that abused women are more likely to return to an abusive relationship if they have limited economic resources (Horton & Johnson, 1993;Strube & Barbour, 1983) or a legal commitment or long lasting relationship with the abuser (Strube & Barbour, 1983). The authors of the previous research also provided results that emphasized the external constraints women face when making the decision to stay or leave the relationship. ...
... Researchers have been dedicated to considering why women who experience IPV may choose to stay within those relationships or why they may leave (Griffing et al., 2002;Horton & Johnson, 1993;Strube & Barbour, 1983). However, there has not been a significant amount of research as to the recovery process that occurs once these women have made the choice to leave their abusers. ...
This qualitative study explored the recovery experience of six women who have survived intimate partner violence. Interviews were used as an instrument to elicit the individual stories of each of these women. Qualitative analysis revealed two types of themes: process and supports. The process themes include (a) spirituality, (b) facing death, (c) future relationships, and (d) hope and encouragement. The support themes include (a) professional help (effective and ineffective) and (b) informal supports (family/friends/other survivors). Implications for helping professionals include the call for increased understanding of the recovery process and the need to abandon power agendas when working with survivors.
... Besides the factors we have already presented there are other factors that can be identified as having an influence on women's response to violence: the number of children, the severity and frequency of abuse (Horton andJohnson 1993, Gelles 1976), marital satisfaction and the victims' investment in the marriage (economic, emotional, temporal) (Rusbult 1980(Rusbult , 1983. ...
... The process of change for many battered women, including the possibly of leaving the relationship is usually lengthy, complex and unstable (Davies, Lyon and Monti-Catania 1998;Taylor and Davis 2006). Many authors found that the majority of battered women generally leave the abusive relationship for several times (between 5 and 8 times) an abusive relationship, before they leave permanently (Okun 1986;Campbell, Miller, Cardwell and Belknap 1994;Horton and Johnson 1993). ...
From 1970, research into women’s responses to marital violence became much more intense than ever before. Academic literature emphasizes two explanatory perspectives: of the woman as passive victim and of the woman who uses strategies to protect herself. The main goals of this study were to explore the effectiveness of personal strategies that women use to survive violence, the factors that influence the recurrence of violence, and the demand for shelter and the role of shelters in the process of recovery and healing. We interviewed eight battered women, from rural areas, all of whom had taken refuge in shelters, some of them several time. We identified a number of psychopathological consequences of domestic violence against women. Regardless of the severity of the attacks, the assumption that women are passive in face of violence doesn’t hold water. Women’s effort to survive violence is often hampered by inefficient response of rural police and the apathy of the community at large. The study concludes with suggestions for practice.
... resources (Horton & Johnson, 1993;Strube & Barbour, 1983) or a legal commitment or long-standing relationship with the abuser (Strube & Barbour, 1983). Other studies have demonstrated that a woman may be at substantial risk of further violence if she leaves her abuser; most murders committed by abusive partners occur after an attempt to terminate the abusive relationship (Pagelow, 1984;Walker & Meloy, 1998). ...
... Only a small minority of participants (6.7% of those with a history of past separations and 1.7% of those without a history of separations) indicated that they would consider returning to the batterer because they were afraid that leaving the batterer might lead to an escalation in the level of violence. The data on economic need and fear of further abuse are somewhat surprising because they were endorsed less frequently than might have been expected, given their emphasis in other studies (e.g., Horton & Johnson, 1993;Strube & Barbour, 1983;Walker & Meloy, 1998). ...
The present study examines self-identified reasons for returning to abusive relationships. Ninety female residents of an urban domestic violence shelter completed structured interviews that included questions about their previous attempts to separate from the batterer and their perceived likelihood of returning in the future. The results indicated that participants appeared to underestimate their likelihood of returning to the relationship. A particularly intriguing pattern of findings emerged with respect to emotional attachment. Compared to those leaving for the first time, participants with a history of past separations were significantly more likely to indicate that they might return to the batterer because of their continued attachment. Emotional attachment also had a high rate of repeat endorsement, indicating that those who considered returning because of their attachment to the batterer were significantly more likely to have done so for this reason in the past. Clinical implications of the findings will be discussed.
... Early research indicated that traumatized and abused women were deficient in coping skills, especially problem-solving strategies, and used mainly emotion-oriented coping strategies (Finn, 1985;Mitchell & Hodson, 1983. One study found that about 95% of women who left an abusive partner talked about their problem with someone or an organization, and more than 80% of women successfully obtained a legal separation or divorce (Horton & Johnson, 1993). Lerner and Kennedy (2000) found that more problem-oriented coping strategies were associated with greater self-efficacy for leaving an abusive relationship. ...
Objective: Violence against women is a severe mental health problem. Much research has been done separately on the perception of risk, socioeconomic status (SES), and coping strategies of women who are victims of domestic violence. This study aims to investigate how women's risk perception and socioeconomic status affect their choice of coping strategies and to compare women who are victims of violence with women who have not experienced domestic violence. Method: The statistical population is married women in Iran, 312 women were selected as a sample through random sampling. To measure the variables, four questionnaires were used: Ghodratnama's Socioeconomic Status (SES), Haj-Yahia's Questionnaire of Violence Against Women, Benthin Risk Perception Scale, and Jalowiec Coping Scale. After the data collection stage, the relationship between the variables was analyzed using SPSS software and Pearson's correlation and linear regression. Results: In women victims of violence, risk perception was significantly related to fatalistic and palliative strategies, and SES was significantly related to evasive strategy (p<0.05). In women who were not subjected to domestic violence, risk perception had a significant relationship with optimistic, fatalistic, and emotive strategies (p<0.05). The correlation coefficient between risk perception and fatalistic and emotive strategy was very weak and can be ignored. Conclusion: The present study showed that the perception of risk affects the fatalistic and palliative coping strategies of women who are victims of violence, and their low socioeconomic status leads to more use of passive strategies such as evasive. And women who have not experienced domestic violence, the less they see themselves in danger of violence, the more they will use optimistic strategies.
... Earlier we noted that the higher the SES of violent men in this sample the more likely they were to have ceased or interrupted the use of violence against their female partners. We know from research on the help-seeking behavior of battered women (Bowker, 1983;Horton & Johnson, 1993) that public disclosure of violence is one of the most common and most effective strategies used by women to stop their partners' violence. Men with greater SES presumably risk greater loss of prestige or social standing (with the accompanying cost in self-worth) when facing disclosure of violence and public condemnation than men with lower SES. ...
This study evaluated the utility of specific risk markers of wife assault in understanding the cessation and persistence of violence against women over a 3-year period. Longitudinal data were used to identify violent men who ceased the violence for 2 years and violent men who persisted in using violence. A group of nonviolent men was used for comparison. Factor analysis indicated that marital conflict, socioeconomic status (SES), and witnessing violence in the family of origin were the most powerful discriminators of these groups. Moreover, it was found that high levels of marital conflict and low SES were associated not only with the occurrence of violence but also with the continuity of wife assaults over time.
... Anderson (2003) found that 45.9% of participants returned due to lack of money, and a study conducted by Griffing et al. (2002) revealed that economic need was one reason for women having returned in the past. Frequency or severity of IPV and fear of further violence may also be implicated in women's decisions to return to these relationships (Foa et al., 2000;Horton & Johnson, 1993;Strube & Barbour, 1983;L. E. Walker & Meloy, 1998). ...
... Anderson (2003) found that 45.9% of participants returned due to lack of money, and a study conducted by Griffing et al. (2002) revealed that economic need was one reason for women having returned in the past. Frequency or severity of IPV and fear of further violence may also be implicated in women's decisions to return to these relationships (Foa et al., 2000;Horton & Johnson, 1993;Strube & Barbour, 1983;L. E. Walker & Meloy, 1998). ...
Study questions:
Although most women who are subjected to intimate partner violence attempt to leave their abusive partners, many return, and resultantly are at risk for even greater violence. Research to date has documented relations between several factors (income and economic dependence, frequency of intimate partner violence (IPV), fear of violence escalations, history of childhood abuse, and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms) and women's returning to their abusive partners. Nevertheless, the contribution of women's emotional bonds with their violent partners, known as identification with the aggressor (IWA), in explaining their perceived likelihood of going back to the relationship, has remained unclear.
Subjects:
The current study, conducted among 258 Israeli women who had left their violent partners, aimed to fill this void.
Methods:
An online survey was conducted. Demographic variables, history of childhood abuse, frequency of IPV, economic dependence on former partner, fear of future violence escalation, post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, IWA, and perceived likelihood of returning to the relationship, were assessed via self-report questionnaire.
Findings:
Results indicated that two aspects of IWA-becoming hyper-sensitive to the perpetrator and adopting the perpetrator's experience-were related to women's perceived likelihood of returning to the relationship. Furthermore, a logistic regression analysis indicated that only two factors-income and becoming hyper-sensitive to the perpetrator-uniquely contributed to explaining the likelihood of returning to abusive partners. Major implications: The current findings suggest that women's tendency to be highly attuned to their partners' feelings and needs, as a part of IWA, may impede their ability to permanently leave abusive relationships.
... In some studies, it showed that depending on the environment, gave a different perspective of helping oneself of victimization (Aleven et al., 2003). A study was done with jail inmates who had experiences of childhood victimization prior to their sentencing and it was found that the inmates preferred to cope with their victimization by seeking help from their friends and families (Goodkind et al., 2003;Goodman et al., 2003;Horton & Johnson, 1993). Another similar study was done but the targeted participants were the rural and urban women. ...
There are two objectives of this research. The first objective is to identify the process of overcoming childhood victimization, and the second objective is to identify the elements that facilitate the overcoming process. The participants of this research were from the researcher's circle of acquaintances. A qualitative method was used to gather information on 7 young adults, aged between 20 and 25 years. The selected participants were interviewed face-to-face using semi-structured questions. The results obtained for the process of overcoming were learning to accept, reaching out to help oneself and reaching out to help others. As for the elements that help to facilitate the healing processes were support system, forgiveness and spirituality. Contribution/Originality: This study contributes as healing process to understand the survivor's experiences of childhood victimization and the finding also assists the practitioners to counsel the victims.
... Un estudio encontró que las mujeres maltratadas habían dejado a sus parejas un promedio de cinco veces antes de lograr salir permanentemente de la relación violenta (Okun, 1986). En otra investigación sobre 185 sobrevivientes de abuso, Horton y Johnson (1993) descubrieron que a las mujeres maltratadas les tomaba un promedio de ocho años salir definitivamente de una relación abusiva. Los investigadores han dado cuenta de una multitud de razones por las que las mujeres maltratadas permanecen en estas relaciones (Bancroft, 2002). ...
This paper analyzes the exclusion of responsibility in cases of battered women who kill their abusive partners in self-defence, emphasizing the theoretical and practical difficulties from a gender lens. I investigate self-defence simultaneously from a double perspective: the perspective of intimate partner violence, and the perspective of Canadian law. I reflect on alternative solu-tions in cases where there was a deferred self-defence, seeking a more equitative response from institutions. Self-defence protects whoever kills another person to defend herself or a third party. Even though this legal figure seems unquestionable, it is actually an ambiguous area in criminal law. Women who are abused for extended periods of time, who one day kill their abu-sers, generally do not do so during a context of physical confrontation. In this paper, instead of merely restricting my analysis to the events that occurred on the day of the abuser’s death, I will go back in time to scrutinize in detail the cycle of systematic violence and the “battered woman syndrome”, as well as the theory of “coercive control” in the Canadian context. I draw from the famous Canadian case Rust v. Lavallee (1990). I problematize some of the requirements for self-defence, emphasizing their inability to respond to the realities of battered women. This research shows a problematic disconnect between the current legal framework and the realities of violence against women.
... Las pocas investigaciones que se han centrado en el reencuentro de parejas que han vivido violencia, señalan que factores externos como la limitación económica, una larga relación con el abusador (Horton y Johnson, 1993;Strube y Barbour, 1983), las presiones de la familia o del bienestar de los hijos (Griffing et al., 2002), y otros factores internos como la subestimación de su vulnerabilidad (Martin et al., 2000), el temor a un aumento de la violencia, la percepción de sufrimiento y arrepentimiento de sus agresores, permiten explicar la decisión de las mujeres por regresar con sus parejas (Griffing et al, 2002). Sin embargo estas investigaciones reconocen falencias como centrarse en aspectos externos más que en los internos de la decisión de regresar, y en olvidar el análisis de la interrelación y complejidad de los factores que llevan a esa decisión (Griffing et al., 2002). ...
... Weighing up the consequences of leaving, the attendant shame and threat of chronic poverty, compared with staying in an abusive relationship, contribute to the turmoil of the decision making. Research indicates that women will leave a violent partner between four to six times over a period of eight years before doing so permanently (Gondolf, 1988;Horton, & Johnson, 1993;Okun, 1986;Walker, 1979). ...
This paper addresses the importance for therapists, working with infants, of holding in mind all aspects of the parental couple's relationship history, both positive and negative. This also includes the therapists' possible ambivalence about a violent father. Using object relations and attachment theory frameworks we articulate our approach to the "original couple" when working in the area of family violence and infant mental health. We propose that if therapists can develop this capacity, it assists both mothers, and ultimately their infants, in tolerating thinking about their violent experiences. Work with infants and their mothers in an infant/mother psychotherapy group for those affected by family violence is described, illustrated by a clinical vignette.
... Formal support may be provided by the police, medical services personnel, mental health professionals, clergy members and staff at shelters [11]. Informal and formal support have been shown to improve mental health and subsequent capacity to stay safe in women who are victims of IPV [12]. ...
Aim: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health issue in both developed and developing countries. A view of IPV as a personal problem, often reinforced by community and perpetrator denial as well as fear of retaliation and social ostracisation, deter many women from confiding in others and seeking help. The study aimed to assess help seeking pattern and knowledge about non-governmental organizations (NGO) among postpartum women attending postnatal and infant welfare clinics of LAUTECH Teaching Hospital (LTH), Osogbo. Study Design: This was a cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted at LTH, Osogbo Nigeria, between September and November 2015. Methodology: The study was conducted among 220 consenting postpartum women attending postnatal and infant welfare clinics of LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Osogbo using composite abuse scale and socio-demographic questionnaire. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21. Results: Majority of those who experienced IPV, 42 (71.2%) did not seek help. Among the 28.8% that sought help, majority used informal strategies like mother and other family members. Ninety-four percent of those who sought help said it was helpful and sixty-one percent of those exposed to intimate partner violence are aware of non-governmental organizations. Conclusion: There is need to strengthen the family members on how to support those exposed to intimate partner violence (through education on the media) since many women prefer them to formal services and more awareness creation about existence of NGO is needed.
... Formal support may be provided by the police, medical services personnel, mental health professionals, clergy members and staff at shelters [11]. Informal and formal support have been shown to improve mental health and subsequent capacity to stay safe in women who are victims of IPV [12]. ...
Aim: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health issue in both developed and developing
countries. A view of IPV as a personal problem, often reinforced by community and perpetrator
denial as well as fear of retaliation and social ostracisation, deter many women from confiding in
others and seeking help. The study aimed to assess help seeking pattern and knowledge about
non-governmental organizations (NGO) among postpartum women attending postnatal and infant
welfare clinics of LAUTECH Teaching Hospital (LTH), Osogbo.
Study Design: This was a cross-sectional study.
Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted at LTH, Osogbo Nigeria, between
September and November 2015.
Methodology: The study was conducted among 220 consenting postpartum women attendingpostnatal and infant welfare clinics of LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Osogbo using composite
abuse scale and socio-demographic questionnaire. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package
for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21.
Results: Majority of those who experienced IPV, 42 (71.2%) did not seek help. Among the 28.8%
that sought help, majority used informal strategies like mother and other family members. Ninety-
four percent of those who sought help said it was helpful and sixty-one percent of those exposed to
intimate partner violence are aware of non-governmental organizations.
Conclusion: There is need to strengthen the family members on how to support those exposed to
intimate partner violence (through education on the media) since many women prefer them to
formal services and more awareness creation about existence of NGO is needed.
... Formal support may be provided by the police, actors within the criminal justice system, social services, medical service staff, crisis hotline workers, mental health professionals, clergy members, advocates, and staff at battered women's shelters (Goodman, Dutton, Vankos, & Weinfurt, 2005;Kaukinen, 2004). Friends and relatives often provide women informal support (Gondolf & Fisher, 1988;Horton & Johnson, 1993). Even if abused women seek social support, they may not receive the support they need because potential support providers may blame or ignore them as victims. ...
This article uses data from the 2015 Spanish Survey on Violence Against Women, a nationally representative survey of 10,171 women aged 16 or above, to analyze the relationship between the severity of intimate partner violence and formal and informal help-seeking strategies, the link between the severity of abuse and the reasons for not seeking formal help, and the influence of social reactions to violence disclosure on the process of leaving a violent relationship. The results show that in Spain, many abused women disclose violence and seek help. However, the severity of the violence strongly determines their help-seeking strategies, especially the search for formal help. Women who experienced less severe incidents tended to minimize their importance and did not seek formal help. For informal help, the differences were smaller, and a high proportion of women talked about the abuse with someone within their social environment, regardless of the severity of the suffered violence. A supportive reaction to violence disclosure had a strong and positive influence on the process of leaving the abusive relationship. The implications of these findings for the design of public policies, education, and awareness-raising campaigns are discussed.
... For instance, of the 67 Florida women who were murdered in 1994, 58 percent were killed by an intimate partner while the parties were estranged, separated, or in the process of leaving (Websdale 1999). Many, if not most, physically abused women eventually leave their partners permanently (Okun 1986;Strube and Barbour 1984), though in doing so they attempt to leave an estimated four to six times (Gondolf 1988;Okun 1986;Walker 1979) over an eight-year period before they finally leave for good (Horton and Johnson 1993). Thus, leaving an abuser, which often entails the aid of a safe house, tends to be a process rather than a discrete event (see Anderson and Saunders 2003 for thorough review). ...
Domestic violence is a growing public health concern in the United States. Research to date has focused more on why women stay in abusive relationships than on factors influencing their leaving. The work presented here explores the social structural connections between culturally defined social events and the timing of entry into the shelter system. Handwerker's (1996) taxonomy of the causal theories of domestic violence is used and expanded upon here as an organizing framework for exploring the leaving process. This study investigates the temporal patterns of domestic violence crisis line and safe house use by the hour, day, and month, including women's motivations for seeking help when they do. Analyses were based on a review of 2,387 crisis call records covering a three-year period, supplemented by formal and informal interviews with abused women and agency staff. The widely held belief that more women seek shelter during "drinking holidays" such as New Year's and the Super Bowl was unsubstantiated, while the contention that women with school-aged children time their leaving to coincide with breaks in the academic schedule was supported. The patterning of domestic violence calls to the shelter is the mirror opposite of that previously found for calls to police and emergency room visits.
... Perhaps most significantly, the conceptualization of resistance needs to be expanded beyond exit to include those women who do not want to leave their partners. This is an important yet understudied element of violent relationships (for exceptions, see Bowker, 1983;Horton and Johnson, 1993). Forcing women to leave will not only exclude these women but also possibly work to their detriment. ...
While there has been considerable attention paid to Canada's anti-woman abuse policy framework, much of this attention has neglected its implications for women's resistance to abuse. This paper attempts to address this gap by using the lens of women's resistance to analyse the anti-woman abuse policy in Canada. I begin by exploring the ways in which the policy framework constructs the `problem' and considering its implications for women's choice in resistance strategy. Using the Canadian General Social Survey on Victimization (1999), I apply independent samples tests to explore women's (non)usage of various strategies, as it varies by class, race, and ability. I conclude with suggestions for policy reform.
... However, the association is not straightforward. Horton and Johnson (1993) found higher rates for women who no longer lived with their violent partner (37%) than women living with their formerly violent partner in distressed (18%) or satisfactory (17%) relationships. African American women seeking medical services for attempted suicide reported higher means for partner violence (M = 14.95) than a nonattempter comparison group (M = 7.14)) (Kaslow et al., 1998). ...
... Those families that reported at least seven of these factors have a chance of experiencing wife battering (Gelles & Cornell, 1990;Horton et al., 1993). ...
... What allows these women to resist the lure of the familiar and face the unknown with courage? Several studies looked at the learned resourcefulness of these women and identified many attitudes and resources that contributed to a successful end to violence (Dunbar & Jeannechild, 1996;Hage, 1998;Halcrow, 1995;Horton & Johnson, 1993;Ulrich, 1991). Of particular importance to this study were the direct and indirect references to spirituality as a strength and resource in the process of leaving and maintaining change. ...
This phenomenological study of nine women who successfully interrupted the cycle of domestic violence focused on their spiritual experiences. Twelve integrated themes emerged to provide a composite description of the process of leaving abusive relationships and maintaining this change. The oppressive nature of the abusive relationships restricted growth as safety and survival were prioritized over self-development. The leaving process afforded opportunities for the redirection of energy and intention. A complex set of actions moved the women from false beliefs and assumptions about themselves and their circumstances to beliefs that ultimately led to healing and new perspectives of self, life, God, and others.
... Finally, studies that are specifically focused on partner violence and work typically have included assessments of women's employment status and have noted that being employed is positively correlated with women's decision to leave the relationship (Horton & Johnson, 1993;Johnson, 1992;Strube & Barbour, 1984;Wilson, Baglioni, & Downing, 1989). Clearly, being employed provides women with income and thus potentially serves as a resource in the process of leaving an abusive relationship. ...
In this study we examined the relationships among partner abuse, work quality, and women's sense of self. In particular, we explored the potential for women's work to serve as an alternative source of feedback for the self in the context of partner abuse. The sample consisted of 100 working women who reported experiencing a range of partner abuse. Relationships among partner abuse, work quality, and three self constructs were tested using multivariate multiple regression. Work quality was significantly and positively associated with self at work and general self-esteem and approached significance for self at home. There were no significant associations between partner abuse and self at work. Partner abuse was negatively and significantly associated with self at home and approached significance for self-esteem. These varied results support the importance of assessing multiple aspects of the self and the potential of women's work to be a resource in the context of partner abuse.
... The perspective of a battered woman is as important as particular theoretical constructs that are superimposed on her experience. Most women in abusive relationships do not want to leave their partners-they want the battering to stop (Horton & Johnson, 1993). Thus, a battered woman who leaves an abusive relationship has a different worldview, a different sense of herself, than does a woman who remains. ...
There is no agreement on the theories that attempt to explain the abuse of women by their partners or spouses. Thus, interventions vary, depending on individual practitioners' conceptualizations of the problem. This article uses attachment theory and theories of connection and relationship to examine the causes of spousal violence and the tendency for abusive relationships to persist.
... However, successfully ending the violence may be difficult and complex. A woman's ability to escape or stop the violence often depends on her material resources as well as the availability of both official and unofficial support networks that can assist her (Bowker 1993;Dobash and Dobash 1995;Horton and Johnson 1993). Class status, race, ethnicity, immigrant status, and sexual orientation may also affect a woman's help seeking decisions and experiences (Bachman & Coker 1995;Coulter et al. 1999;Dasgupta 2003;Hutchinson, Hirschel & Pesackis 1994;Rasche 1995;Renzetti 1989). ...
This study uses data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) to explore the impact of model selection on determining the association of victim-level and incident-level factors to the likelihood of homicide clearance. We compare both traditional operationalizations of clearance rates as well as the time to clearance as dependent variables in examinations of correlates of solvability in homicide cases. Using a different approach than most other analyses of this problem, the results affirm the consistency of some effects but also reveal some important differences when the aspect of time is factored into the model. Implications for analyses of efficiency and effectiveness of police response to homicide, cold-case analyses, and other strategies for solving crime are discussed.
... Battered women's advocates have long recognized that professionals and the majority of society have perceived a woman's decision to stay in or return to an abusive relationship to indicate that "she was unable to make decisions in her own interest" (Davies, Lyon, & Monti-Catania, 1998, p. 14), rather than being aware that women make decisions based on whether they have the resources and social support necessary to leave an abusive relationship, the assailants' expected responses, and the fact that the assailants' behavior is not within their control unless society cooperates. However, given that women typically separate multiple times from their assailants (e.g., Okun, 1986, found that women left their assailants an average of five times before ending the relationship permanently, and Horton and Johnson, 1993, found that it took women who were leaving their assailants an average of 8 years to permanently end their relationships), it is important to investigate the impact of women's number of separations on the responses of their family and friends. ...
This study examined the degree to which battered women talked with family and friends about abuse they were experiencing and how family and friends responded. Participants were 137 women who had recently experienced domestic violence and were exiting a shelter. Most women confided in family and friends about the abuse. Family and friends’ reactions depended on contextual factors, including the woman’s relationship with her assailant, number of separations, number of children, and whether family and friends were threatened. Family and friends’ negative reactions and offers of tangible support were significantly related to women’s well-being, although positive emotional support was not.
... Of those who left, 47% left from two to five times, and approximately half returned in a week or less. The women interviewed by Horton and Johnson (1993) required an average of 8 years to leave permanently. ...
The domestic violence literature documents the cyclical nature of women's relationships with violent partners. Furthermore, research on low-income women also indicates that many cycle between welfare and low-wage work. This qualitative study illustrates how these cycles intersect in the lives of 17 low-income battered women. Longitudinal in-depth interviews reveal three factors that may contribute to cycling in and out of both work and abusive relationships: lack of court-ordered child support, lack of formal child care, and interference or abuse that limits the woman's ability to work. The women's stories illustrate the limitations of the Family Violence Option. More flexible policies are needed to address domestic violence among Temporary Assistance to Needy Families recipients.
... Not only were participants in these studies more likely to seek help as the violence worsened, but they also were also likely to seek a wider variety of forms of Goodman et al. / IPV STRATEGIES INDEX 165 help (Bowker, 1986;Gondolf & Fisher, 1988). A number of other studies-both qualitative and quantitative-have since demonstrated support for the finding that IPV victims are tremendously active and persistent in their attempts to stop the violence (see, e.g., Follingstad, Hause, Rutledege, & Polek, 1992;Horton & Johnson, 1993). ...
Although research has documented the myriad ways that victims of IPV struggle to keep themselves safe, little research has gone the next step to investigate patterns in women’s use of strategies, the factors that influence choice of strategies, or which strategies are most effective. One obstacle to conducting such research is the absence of an instrument to measure the nature and extent of battered women’s strategic responses to violence across specific domains of strategies. This article describes the development of such an instrument, the Intimate Partner Violence Strategies Index, in the context of a longitudinal study of battered women’s experience over time.
This chapter provides an overview of the limited existing research that has examined intimate partner violence (IPV) desistance processes and describes the mechanisms or theory of change underpinning the cessation or reduction of violent and abusive behaviours. The role of victims-survivors in IPV desistance pathways is also explored, finding that victims-survivors as potential agents of change are largely absent. However, consistent with dyadic models of IPV, a number of studies demonstrate that victims-survivors are engaging in a range of strategies to keep themselves safe, and these strategies have both positive and negative impacts on the abuser’s behaviour. This strongly suggests a need to explore the role of victims-survivors in desistance processes and to move beyond focusing solely on abuser-centric processes and attributions for behavioural change.KeywordsDesistance of intimate partner violenceOffender characteristicsAbuse patternsRelationships dynamicsTheory of changeDomestic abuseTranstheoretical model of changeReadiness to changeLongitudinalCriminal careers
People are rarely passive, and battered women are no exception. This study investigated the types of coping strategies women of Japanese descent (both Japan‐born and U.S.‐born) chose and their perceived effectiveness in dealing with their partners' violence. Japan‐born respondents were significantly less likely to use “active” strategies and perceived them to be less effective than did U.S.‐born respondents. For the Japan‐born, the more effective they perceived “active” strategies, the higher their psychological distress, whereas the more effective they perceived “passive” strategies, the lower their psychological distress. In contrast, for the U.S.‐born, the higher the perceived effectiveness of “active” strategies, the lower their psychological distress, and the perceived effectiveness of “passive” strategies had little effect on their psychological distress. The complex relationship between individuals' country of birth, the choice and perceived effectiveness of coping strategies, and psychological distress calls for increased attention to the role of culture in studies of coping and domestic violence.
Studies on the effect of marijuana on domestic violence often suffer from endogeneity issues. To examine the effect of marijuana decriminalization and medical marijuana legalization on serious domestic assaults, we conducted a difference-in-differences analysis on a panel dataset on NIBRS-reported assaults in 24 states over the 12 years between 2005 and 2016. Assaults disaggregated according to situation and extent of injury were employed as dependent variables. We found that while the total number of assaults did not change, decriminalization reduced domestic assaults involving serious injuries by 18%. From a harm reduction perspective, these results suggest that while the extensive margin of violence did not change, the intensive margin measured by the seriousness of assaults were substantially affected by decriminalization. This result may be partially explained by reductions in offender alcohol intoxication and weapon-involved assault.
The purpose of this study was to explore rural women's accounts of intimate partner violence and the strategies they used to protect themselves from such adversity. Convenience sampling included women currently in an abusive relationship (N = 22), who were receiving mental health services at a rural victim-service provider. Standardized measures indicated, on average, that study participants were symptomatic for depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), yet exhibited higher resilience than other PTSD populations. Participants used a variety of strategies to halt, escape, or resist violence in their lives. Informal and safety planning strategies were rated as most helpful, though resistance and placating strategies were most commonly used. Formal strategy use among participants was associated with higher levels of resilience and depressive symptoms; while participants' increased use of safety planning and resistance strategies were also related to greater resilience. Implications for rural victim service providers include addressing psychological distress and hardiness for women currently in an abusive relationship, while providing the necessary resources to secure their safety.
Rural crime in general ranks among the least studied social problems in the social sciences; however, a growing body of research shows that rural woman abuse is a major problem. The current state of progressive critical feminist social scientific knowledge enhances an empirical and theoretical understanding of intimate violence against rural women. Revealing the complexities of rural women's experiences and struggles with violent relationships reconstitutes violence against women as a public crisis that requires continued serious attention with regard research, theory, and policy. Three primary objectives of this article are as follows: (i) briefly review recent feminist social scientific literature on research, methodology, and theoretical contributions on violence against women in rural areas, (ii) suggest new directions in researching and theorizing rural women's experiences with intimate violence, and (iii) offer creative practical and policy solutions towards a broad vision of social change.
A review of the domestic violence research was conducted to assess the most salient factors that predict the likelihood of a woman remaining in or leaving an abusive relationship. The research is still in its early stage and no single theory can confidently predict this tendency on the part of battered women. Research that currently appears to provide the best explanations for remaining in an abusive relationship and factors that enable women to end their abuse are summarized.
The London Borough of Croydon, in the south of England, established, in December 2005, a Family Justice Centre (FJC) to respond in a flexible way to meet the varied needs of those abused in intimate relationships. The FJC brings together some 33 agencies under one roof. This article draws on a small, grounded pilot study of the Croydon FJC - the first study of a FJC in the UK - to consider if the co-location and cooperation of services to victims of domestic abuse has the potential to empower victims to make informed choices about their futures.
This study evaluated a one-day domestic violence training for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) workers and analyzed the relationship between worker characteristics and the use of work exemptions. In a post-only evaluation, trained workers reported a greater tendency than untrained workers to refer clients to couples counseling, make a safety plan, and file a report to child protection services. In a pre/post evaluation, workers reported after training that they would be less likely to refer clients to couples counseling, and more likely to ask about the emotional and physical impact of abuse, make a safety plan, and ask about access to weapons. Workers most likely to offer a waiver from work requirements reported a higher likelihood of making referrals for a variety of services.
The study explored how men were deterred from using aggression toward a female partner by examining men's evaluation of their female partner's readiness to respond to their aggression (by involving formal and/or informal social agents and by threatening to leave or leaving the relationship). The data were obtained from 217 men. Findings show that the higher the men evaluate the women's readiness to respond to their aggression, the more severe their aggression. Findings also indicate that women's readiness to threaten to leave, actually to leave, or to involve informal social agents is higher than their readiness to involve formal social agents. Findings that show that when the men decide that the women will respond to their aggression, this evaluation directly affects the other variables, as well as the association between these variables. The more the men evaluate that the women will respond to their aggression, the more likely they are to restrain their violent tendencies.
There is a major epidemic in today's society that is rapidly gaining attention. It exists in many different forms and is very difficult to define. Society has learned to deny it to the extent that it is often not even identified or recognized. It affects men and women of all ages, income levels, races and educational levels. It can occur in every type of home and within every type of family, including those which appear to be strong Christian homes. By nature, it is a very secretive problem that stays behind closed doors. The problem is domestic violence, which can be defined as any situation involving the physical, verbal, emotional or sexual abuse of children, spouses, or others within the household. While the information in this paper may be applied to each of these different situations and possibly others, it will be presented here as applied to a wife who is being physically abused by her husband. Domestic abuse is an extremely difficult situation for a pastor to deal with. The challenge increases if the couple happens to be active members of the church or friends of the pastor. The purpose of this essay is to introduce a strategy for dealing with domestic abuse that encourages a time of separation as a means of protecting the victim, treating the problem, and reconciling the marriage. A period of physical separation may seem like an overly drastic step. The reason it may be necessary is twofold -separation produces change and it protects the victim. It can be the key which prevents future abuse and permits real change and healing to take place. Most important, physical separation is the only way to help assure the victim's safety. The home in which abuse has occurred in the past is not a safe place to be. While abuse varies in form, severity and frequency, domestic abuse experts have discovered a pattern known as the cycle of violence. This cycle is repeated in nearly every abusive relationship. The necessity of physical separation becomes clearer once this pattern is identified and understood. The cycle begins with the tension mounting phase which escalates to the point when the abuse occurs. Following the abuse, there is a period of seemingly sincere regret and remorse by the abuser which leads the victim to falsely believe and hope that the abuse will never happen again. Unfortunately, extensive research indicates the abuser will not change when the victim remains passive and understanding. The honeymoon period soon wears off and tension once again begins to build. The severity and frequency of the abuse generally increases with each cycle. Explaining the cycle of violence to a woman and identifying this pattern in her own relationship may help her realize that the cycle needs to be interrupted to produce change.
The increasing rate of imprisonment of women in the United States and the over-representation of women victims of violence in the corrections system confirms that there are long-term, often substantially debilitating consequences to women victims of intimate partner violence, sexual violence and youth maltreatment and injury, including incarceration. As part of a study funded by the National Institute of Justice, the authors pursued an exploration of the personal risks, resiliencies and life opportunities that make a difference in the lives of women who have ended up incarcerated. The findings of this study about the prevalence and consequences of youth maltreatment and adult victimization and the mitigating factors, which may have had an impact on the life trajectories of adult incarcerated women will be reviewed. Recommendations will be given for preventive and interventive policy and practice measures that stand to reduce the negative consequences of victimization, particularly those that can prevent incarceration.
This report presents findings on the impact of a coordinated community response effort on offender accountability. A quantitative analysis approach was applied to dispositional data from all intimate partner violence arrests (1,079) occurring between August 1, 1999 and July 31, 2000. Results of the quantitative statistical analyses support that the community coordinated response under investigation resulted in perpetrators of intimate partner violence being held more accountable. Police officers in the specialized Domestic Violence Unit (DVU) made 35.1% of all intimate partner violence arrests while comprising about 1.6% of the total force. Arrests by the DVU were more likely to be felonies and remain so at disposition; and DVU average jail sentences, probation, and time conditionally discharged were longer.
A total of 150 women who qualified for a protection order against an intimate partner wereinterviewed on the day of application and 3 months later to study factors associated with the receipt or dropping of a protection order. At 3 months, 54% of the women received protection orders, 28% dropped the process, and 18% did not receive protection orders. Differences (p < .05) in relationship status existed at intake between the women that received or dropped the protection order. Women who dropped were more likely in current relationships with the perpetrator, whereas protection order recipients considered the perpetrator a former partner. At intake and 3 months later, women in current relationships, irrespective of protection receipt or drop, reported significantly (p < .005) more physical assaults. Relationship status is a significant correlate of abused women’s receipt or dropping of a protection order as well as the level of assault experienced.
Using data from the Chicago Women's Health Risk Study (CWHRS), which includes a sample of battered women (n = 500; 69% African American and 21.3% Latina) and a sample of abused women who either killed or were killed by their intimate partners (n = 63; 81% African American and 10% Latina), we find that several factors affect battered women's decisions to contact the police and their experiences with the police, including the severity and frequency of violence, other harassing behaviors committed by the abuser, the length of the relationship, and the women's social support network.
There are many studies of marital and dating violence. However, methodological differences between these studies make it difficult to determine differences in the nature and extent of physical assault between marital status groups. This paper helps fill that gap by analyzing data from two surveys: a study of 526 dating couples at a large midwestern university, and a study of a national probability sample of 5005 married and 237 cohabiting couples. The results show that cohabiting couples have a higher rate of assault than dating and married couples. These findings persist after controls for age, education, and occupational status are introduced. Violence is also more severe in cohabiting than dating or married couples. A number of factors may account for the more frequent violence in cohabiting relationships. These include social isolation, the issue of autonomy and control, and the investment in the relationship.
A woman seeking to prosecute a violent husband is likely to find the criminal justice system far less concerned and responsive than she expects. This study of 325 battered women in Marion County, Indiana, suggests that the prosecution process is governed as much by chance as by rational procedures. Findings demonstrate that a woman's decision to invoke criminal justice was affected not only by her special needs but by her interaction with agents of the criminal justice system. Their discretion created uncertainty in outcomes and their discrimination on the basis of victim-offender conjugal status often rendered a victim's efforts useless.
This study examined the role of several factors that past theory and research suggest should influence a battered woman's decision to leave her partner. Both objective and subjective measures were collected from 251 abused women. Results indicated that eight variables contributed independently to relationship decisions. Women who had left the relationship at follow-up were more likely than were those who remained to be employed, to have been in their relationships for a shorter period of time, to be nonwhite, and to have tried a greater number of other coping strategies to alleviate the abuse. In addition, women who indicated at intake that they were living with their partners because of love, economic hardship, the belief that the abuser would change, or because they had nowhere else to go were likely to be still with their assailants at follow-up. These results qualify past research and underscore the utility of using both objective and subjective assessment.
Mildred Daley Pagelow draws from the largest existing sample of women victims and records their experiences and perceptions of those experiences. She integrates this material into a larger theoretical framework, challenging current myths about woman-battering.
In an experimental study of “entrapping” conflicts —situations in which a decisionmaker may continue to expend resources in part to justify previous expenditures—subjects were given an initial stake of $4.00 and had the opportunity to win an additional $2.00 jackpot. Two independent variables (Process of Resource Allocation and Prior Limit-Setting) were combined in a 2 × 3 design. Once the subjects had started to invest, half of them had to make an “active” decision to continue. Unless they actively decided to continue, their investments automatically ceased and they were no longer eligible for the jackpot (Selfterminating condition). The other half only had to make a “passive” decision to continue. Unless they actively decided to dis continue, their investments for the jackpot automatically increased (Self-sustaining condition). In addition, before investments began, some subjects were asked to inform the experimenter of the nonbinding limit they had set on the amount they planned to invest (Public condition), some were asked to set a limit which they kept to themselves (Private condition), while a third group was not asked to set a limit (Control condition). Subjects invested significantly more money in the Self-sustaining condition. Also, investments were somewhat greater in the Control than the Public condition. Although the mean investments in the Public and Private conditions did not differ, those in the Public condition deviated significantly less from their earlier set limits, suggesting greater commitment to these limits. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Development of research on intrafamily conflict and violence requires both conceptual clarity and measures of the concepts. The introduction to this paper therefore seeks to clarify and distinguish the concepts of "conflict," "conflict of interest," "hostility," and "violence." The main part of the paper describes the Conflict Tactics (CT) Scales. The CT Scales are designed to measure the use of Reasoning, Verbal Aggression, and Violence within the family. Information is presented on the following aspects of this instrument: theoretical rational, acceptability to respondents, scoring, factor structure, reliability, validity, and norms for a nationally representative sample of 2,143 couples.
Could it be that women who are abused by their male partners do not become passive "victims" but "survivors" who actively seek help? The authors of "Battered Women as Survivors" answer with a resounding yes. Still, they point out, most modern methods of assistance have centered on the theory that battered women are subject to "learned helplessness," a phenomenon by which they apparently give up or give in to their abuse.
Authors Gondolf and Fisher present fresh empirical research that counters the popular "learned helplessness" theory with evidence that battered women are, in fact, helpseekers who persistently search for resources and support services. They further suggest that those same sources may not provide sufficient aid. The book's findings come primarily from a comprehensive survey of more than 6,000 women in Texas shelters—the largest data base on this topic to date.
The results of this illuminating study are clearly and concisely presented, with innovative discussions of several heretofore "accepted" modes of thinking: victimization—reexamines the process of victimization and raises alternative interpretations in order to effect treatment; helpseeking—focuses on battered women's efforts to seek help and exposes several deficiencies among community services; battered women versus batterers—challenges the stereotypic notions of battered women and their batterers, suggesting that different types of women and abusers need different types of treatment or services [and] community service delivery—considers the shortcomings of community services in responding to battered women and outlines specific recommendations for addressing them, including shelter advocacy, shelter-agency priority, shelter clearinghouses, and integrated interventions.
Indeed, a broad range of service practitioners and professionals countrywide will find this thoroughly researched handbook immeasurably helpful in the treatment of battered women and the intolerable problems they are struggling to overcome. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Presents evidence from diverse sources to document the prevalence of violence directed at wives in contemporary societies. Analysis of police and court records and of interviews with women who have been beaten by their husbands shows that the incidence of wife beating is high, and that it is firmly associated with the domination, control, and chastisement of women in their position as wives. (52 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Research in the area of family violence has shown unprecedented growth during the past decade. Recognizing this fact, three leading authorities conducted extensive surveys of family violence research in the field in order to improve the quality of that research, its relevance to understanding causes and—especially—prevention. The research proposals outlined this practical, authoritative volume were selected for their urgency to the field, with special attention to physical child abuse, child sexual abuse, and spousal violence. Each proposal is presented with sufficient detail to provide researchers with a clear idea of the methodologies involved, cost estimates, degree of difficulty, and time requirements.
The first book of its kind, "Stopping Family Violence" sets agendas for the next generation of research—and is sure to attract new researchers to the field. Researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and advanced students in all fields of the social sciences concerned with domestic violence will find this volume an invaluable resource—it is their roadmap for meeting the urgent and growing research needs in family violence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Attempted to determine why a woman who had been physically abused by her husband would remain with him. Interviews were conducted with members of 41 families in which women had been beaten by their husbands. Nine of these women had been divorced or separated from their husbands; 13 had called the police; 8 had sought counseling from a private social service agency; and 11 had sought no outside intervention. Three major factors influence the actions of the abused wives: The less severe and less frequent the violence, the more a wife remained with her husband. Secondly, the more a wife was struck as a child by her parents, the more likely she was to remain with her abusive husband. Finally, the fewer resources a wife had and the less power she had the more likely she was to stay with her violent husband. In addition, external constraint influenced the actions of abused wives. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Presents a sociologically oriented study of the meaning of violence between husbands and wives based on data from informal unstructured interviews with 80 adults. Findings on the incidence, methods, and meanings of intrafamily violence, types of violent situations, the influence of social and family structure on conjugal violence, the roles of victim and offender, and the possibility of a "social structure" of violence are presented. (71/2 p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Existing marital counseling procedures have not been experimentally evaluated or generally have not been based on an experimentally derived theory. The present study formulated a model of marital discord based on reinforcement theory, developed a marital counseling procedure based on that theory and experimentally evaluated its effectiveness. The model viewed marital discord as the resultant of non-reciprocated reinforcement. The counseling procedures attempted to establish general marital reciprocity of reinforcement by teaching reciprocity in several specific areas of marital unhappiness. The reciprocity procedure was conducted for about 3–4 weeks with 12 couples, after first conducting a catharsis-type counseling as a control procedure. The results showed that the reciprocity procedure increased reported marital happiness, whereas the control procedure did not. Once reciprocity was achieved in a specific problem area, the benefits generalized somewhat to other yet-to-be counseled areas. The increase in marital happiness occurred for each of the specific areas of marital interaction, for 96 per cent of the clients, and was maintained and increased during the available follow-up period. These results indicate that the procedure is an effective, rapid and enduring method of producing marital happiness.
A theoretical schema analyzing and categorizing responses of abused wives is useful to the social worker in understanding the problems and helping to effect change in the situation.
One hundred battered wives were interviewed. All had bruising, often together with other injuries, such as lacerations and fractures, There was a high incidence of violence in the family histories of both partners, and of drunkeness and previous imprisonment among the husbands. Netherless, both husbands and wives had wide range of educational achievements. Mmost wives were subjected to repeated violence because they had no alternative but to return to the marital home; There was an association between wife battering and child abuse. Places of sanctuary are needed where a woman can take her children when violence is out of control.
A common problem in clinical practice with cases of intrafamilial violence is incomplete assessments and, therefore, treatment interventions based on incomplete data. The problem is not surprising since the literature in the field is complex, multidisciplinary, unintegrated, and rarely comprehensive. In this article the author integrates theory and research on violence in families into five areas that need to be evaluated for a complete clinical assessment. Those five areas include physiological-medical factors, individual psychological factors, current interpersonal-familial factors, cultural and family-background factors, and level of life stress and available resources. Those factors must also be considered when a method of intervention is selected. In the article following this one, the author outlines stages of intervention in cases of intrafamilial violence.
Although not a new phenomenon, wife-beating has been largely ignored by mental health professionals. The author describes a context in which the physical abuse of women as wives can be understood and suggests alternative theoretical constructs to traditional theories of masochism as explanations of why women stay in violent marital relationships. She discusses the societal attitudes that normalize the use of family violence as well as attitudes about women, men, and sex roles that leave women vulnerable to assault; summarizes the research on abused wives; identifies a specific stress response syndrome caused by violent abuse; and elaborates on the problems posed for clinicians working with abused women.
Wife beating: Facts and figures
- M D Fields
- Tierney K.
Addictive love and abuse: A course for teen-aged women
- G Nicarthy
Scream quietly or the neighbors will hear
- E Pizzey
A sociological perspective on the prevention and treatment of wife beating
- M A Straus
- Hilberman E.