domestic violence Flashcards
what is domestic violence?
physical,psychological, sexual or financial violence that takes place within an intimate or family type relationship and controlling behaviour
National Statistics
(how many adults aged 16 to 74 experienced domestic abuse in the last year)
-An estimated 2.3 million adults aged 16 to 74 experienced domestic abuse in the last year
-1.6 million women and 757,000 men)
data supplied from 28 police forces showed victim was female in just
74% of domestic abuse-related crimes recorded by police in year ending March 2020
how many women and men act as victims
1/4 women, 1/6 men are victims in their lifetime
criticisms of official statistics
-ignores dark figure of crime-> some people do not report what happened to them
-people may exaggerate extent of violence
-people may lie
-men may not report -> toxic masculinity
Stephanie Yorkshire (1997)
-on average a women suffers 35 assults before making a report
-domestic violence=violent crime least likely to be reported
David Cheal|(1991)
police reluctant to record crime
-reluctance may be due to the fact that police + other state agencies are not prepared to become involved in family
cheal, what 3 assumptions do police make about family life?
-it is private= access by state agencies should be limited
-family is a good thing, agencies neglect dark side of the family
- individuals are free agents
explanations for domestic violence
-gender role socialisation
-Crisis in masculinity
-alienation and powerless
-a patriarchal society and police force
-familial ideology
gender role socialisation
feminist sociologists note that boys are socialised into ‘masculine’ values which revolve around risk-taking behaviour, toughness, aggression and proving oneself.
-Violence for some men may be a product of such socialisation.
crisis in masculinity
some men may experience a ‘crisis of masculinity’, as working women and unemployment have challenged men’s status as head of the household and breadwinner.
-Some men, therefore, may use violence to re-assert their masculinity and status within the family unit.
alienation and powerlessness at work
-Marxist-feminists suggest that capitalism has stripped male workers of dignity, power, and control at work.
-Marxist feminists, such as Ansley and Feeley, argue that men’s frustration and alienation within capitalism is absorbed by the wife in the form of domestic violence.
-The powerlessness that men experience at work can be partly compensated for by asserting power and authority in the home.
A patriarchal society and police force
(sociologists Dobash and Dobash)
-feminist sociologists point out that patriarchal society has until fairly recently condoned male violence in the home
- Dobash and Dobash argue that both the State and the criminal justice system have failed to take the problem seriously in the past,
e.g. the police traditionally regarded it as a ‘domestic’ or private affair between husband and wife and were extremely reluctant to prosecute husbands.
familial ideology
-the mother-housewife role carries with it certain cultural expectations which are largely defined by men.
- If a woman fails to fulfill these expectations punishment in the form of domestic violence may be forthcoming.
-Research indicates that men’s view that women have failed to be ‘good’ partners or mothers is often used to justify attacks or threats. However, even women are influenced by this ideology – many of them blame themselves for their partner’s violence.
Coleman et al (2007)
women were more likely than men to have experienced intimate violence across all types of abuse
-partner abuse, family abuse,sexual assault and stalking
