Domestic violence, also referred to as intimate partner violence, intimate partner abuse or domestic abuse, affects over one million people in the United States alone. It can be carried out in any number of ways including physically, emotionally, sexually, psychologically and/or financially. Its legal definition considers it to be “any assault, battery, sexual assault, sexual battery, or any criminal offense resulting in physically injury or death of one family member or household member by another who is residing in the same single dwelling unit” (Brown, 2008). In the United States it is considered a major health problem so much so that it was declared the number one health concern by the U.S. Surgeon General in 1992 (Peterman & Dixon, 2003). Not only is it a rapidly growing health problem but it is a growing societal concern as well. Extending beyond the effect felt by the victims and their families, it impacts our communities, government, law enforcement and public service agencies. However, domestic violence is not a new issue within our society. For centuries, women have been regarded as the property of men, offering them leeway in the enforcement of domestic abuse laws. Public opinion held that as heads of households, they had the right to discipline their wife and children as they saw fit. Eventually, women came to view this prevailing belief as truth. An inevitable outcome was their denial as victims at all. They simply saw it as the way it was and accepted it as such. Non-intervention has typically been the preferred method in regard to family matters. The long standing belief held that ‘what happened behind closed doors was no one’s business other than that family’s’ ruled the attitudes of society, the lega... ... middle of paper ... ...nal of Family Violence, 20(6), 363-363-371. doi:10.1007/s10896-005-7798-4 St Pierre, M., & Senn, C. Y. (2010). External barriers to help-seeking encountered by canadian gay and lesbian victims of intimate partner abuse: An application of the barriers model. Violence and Victims, 25(4), 536-536-52. Stapel, S. (2007). Falling to pieces: New york state civil legal remedies available to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender survivors of domestic violence. New York Law School Law Review, 52(2), 247-277. Tesch, B., Bekerian, D., English, P., & Harrington, E. (2010). Same-sex domestic violence: Why victims are more at risk. International Journal of Police Science & Management, 12(4), 526-535. doi:10.1350/ijps.2010.12.4.204 Tully, C. T. (2001). Domestic violence: The ultimate betrayal of human rights. Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services, 13(1), 83-98.
Stark (2006) would suggest that thirty years of research has failed to produce a consensus as to what constitutes a case of domestic violence considering that 90% of women who report the abuse have no physical injuries. Methods of coercive control do not meet the criminological viewpoint rather, control extends to financial, emotional, and psychological aspects of subjugating the partner thus no physical violence occurs. If only violent means are reported, then the reported number of victims would perhaps change thus creating a more gender symmetrical pattern. Until operational definitions are defined throughout the disciplines with consistency then there will continue to be discrepancies and opposing views. However, integrative theories of feminist views are being explored which investigate the intersection of not only male dominance as a form of oppression but the use of race, class, national origin, age, sexual orientation, and disability and their impact on intimate partner violence as stated by McPhail and colleagues
Domestic violence can be described as any form of abuse towards a victim, whether physical, emotional, sexual, verbal, psychological, or economical. The stakeholders in such violence are the abuser(s), the victim(s) and the bystander(s), all of whom are affected in some form or another by the abuse. For further clarity, domestic violence in this discussion refers to situations where the principle stakeholders, i.e. abuser and victim are in a relationship, for example partners, co-workers or friends. Domestic violence affects all stakeholders, not only the victim but the abuser and bystanders, and it can be easily prevented.
Domestic violence can affect anyone. Domestic violence is a pattern of behavior used to establish power and control over another through emotional attack, fear, and intimidation. Domestic violence or battering, often, includes the threat or use of violence; this violence is a crime. Battering occurs when one person believes he/she is entitled to control another. Domestic violence affects people in all social, economic, racial, religious, and ethnic groups; whether the couple is married, divorced, living together, or still dating. Another reality is that abusers and their victims can be gay, strait, young, or old. Violence develops from verbal, physical, emotional, financial, and sexual abuse. Most domestic violence victims are women by men, but that doesn’t suggest that others cannot be battered or are perpetrators of abuse -- such as women on men, or same sex abuse. Battering or domestic violence, is now mutual and it is not a ‘couple’s quarrel’. Disagreements arise occasionally in all relationships, but battering involves every aspect of a relationship. While physical violence is the “enforcer” or the criminal act, other behaviors erode the partner or victim’s sense of self, self-determination, and free will; this is ultimately lethal for many women.
Domestic Violence Statistics states, “Around the world, at least one in every 3 women has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused during her lifetime” (1). The United States Department of Justice defines domestic violence as, “a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner” (para. 1). Domestic violence is a crime that numerous citizens fall victim to in every country. Anyone can be a victim of domestic violence regardless of race, gender, sexuality or religion. Being a victim of domestic violence can affect a person’s way of life permanently and the way these victims interact with other people can become a difficult task and can eventually affect their future. Domestic violence is substantially wrong because it can cause drastic permanent effects in a person’s life, can cause physical, emotional and intellectual damage, and affects a child’s state of mind of what is normal and what is not if they are in a domestic violent atmosphere. While women are usually victims of domestic violence, men are victims of this crime as well. The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney states that, “According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics Crime Data Brief, men account for approximately fifteen percent of the victims of reported intimate partner crimes” (Clark County Prosecuting Attorney, par.1). Physical, emotional, economic and physiological abuses are all forms of domestic violence that many people would consider to fall under another crime. There are many crimes that many citizens commit, but domestic violence is one of many that should not be taken lightly.
Drijber, B., Reijnders, U., & Ceelen, M. (2013). Male victims of domestic violence. Journal Of Family Violence, 28(2), 173--178.
Kennedy, Bernice R. Domestic Violence: A.k.a. Intimate Partner Violence (ipv). New York: iUniverse, 2013. Print.
Domestic violence is a universal phenomenon, with millions of people as victims and perpetrators (World Health Organization (WHO), 2012). It destroys homes and families. Victimization occurs regardless of race, gender, religion, class, and sexual orientation. The term is often used to refer to violence that occurs between two people in an intimate relationship, but extends to violence against children and the elderly (Valiulis, 2014, p.124). I use the term domestic violence in this research refers to intimate partner violence. Globally, 30% of women have endured either physical or sexual abuse at the hands of their partner (WHO, 2012, p.2). Unfortunately I was not able to find a reliable global statistic on the victimization of men.
Mantel, Barbara. "Domestic Violence." CQ Researcher. N.p., 15 Nov. 2013. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. .
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is historically referred to as domestic violence. It describes a pattern of coercive and assaultive behavior that may include psychological abuse, progressive isolation, sexual assault, physical injury, stalking, intimidation, deprivation, and reproductive coercion among partners (The Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF), 1999). IPV leads to lifelong consequences such as lasting physical impairment, emotional trauma, chronic health problems, and even death. It is an issue affecting individuals in every community, regardless of age, economic status, race, religion, nationality or educational background. Eighty-five percent of domestic violence victims are women (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2003).
Thesis: In my paper, I will be examining the different types, possible causes, and effects of Intimate Partner Violence, and what treatments or programs are available to combat this growing problem in America. Regardless of differing approaches to fight it, statistics show that women all across the world suffer from the effects of domestic violence at a similar rate independent of class, race, or religion.
The analysis was combined with all forms of violent crime, which was not limited to nonsexual and sexual offenses. For adult offenders, female perpetrators accounted for between 19% and 29% of criminal assaults. Twenty-three percent of domestic offenses that were reported as assaults against family members, were discovered to be female-perpetrated. “When domestic offenses were further broken down by victim identity, adult women were the reported offender in 29% to 35% of assaults against children, parents, and other family members. The percentage was somewhat lower for intimate partner victims, which were only 20% female-perpetrated. Thus, these data may suggest that assaults by women against intimate partners are not disproportionately reported to law enforcement” (Hamby,
Domestic violence is not just fighting, hitting or an occasional argument. It’s a chronic abuse of power. The abuser of domestic violence, controls and tortures the victim of threats, intimidation, and physical violence. Domestic violence is one of the leading causes of violence in America. The abusers are not only men, women can be abusers as well. Women make up the vast majority of domestic violence. According to the American Bar Association (ABA), 90-95% of domestic violence victims are females and 70% of intimidating homicides are females. Domestic violence is a serious crime and everyone needs to be aware of its effects. This essay presents and explains the evidence supporting the major risk factors for intimate partner homicides.
For the purpose of this paper, domestic violence is “the emotional, physical, psychological, or sexual abuse perpetrated against a person by a person's spouse, former spouse, partner, former partner or by the other parent of a minor child” (McCue, 1995, p. 2). While it is these things, the violence is also a pattern of demeanor used to create power and control over another individual with whom an intimate relationship is shared through fear and coercion (Bonem, Stanley-Kime & Corbin, 2008). The previously mentioned definition can include both same and opposite sex couples, however for the purpose of this review I will focus primary on opposite-sex couples.
McHugh, M. C., & Frieze, I. H. (2006). Intimate partner violence. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1087, 121–141. doi: 10.1196/annals.1385.011
Domestic violence is skyrocketing in our society. In the U.S., as many as 1.5 million women and 850,000 men were physically assaulted by their intimate partner last year, and numerous children abused by their parents. These sad criminal acts will continue to grow in our society, unless our community takes action to stop these crimes.