This thesis examines the limitations of the legal responses to ‘domestic violence’ from the perspective of two central arguments; first, domestic violence is a social problem, rather than one caused by the deviancy of particular individuals, and, secondly, legal and societal understandings display a misplaced focus on ‘violence’ as the defining feature of an abusive relationship. By failing to address the root social causes or comprehend the true dynamics of abusive relationships as a range of coercive and controlling strategies, incidents of mainly physical violence and the behaviour and personality of the abused woman become the social and legal focus. The thesis asserts that the root causes of domestic violence are the gendered expectations placed upon masculinity and femininity, thus explaining why it is women that are predominantly the victims. To refute the common misconception that women would exit an abusive relationship if they wanted to, a comparison is made between domestic violence and capture crimes such as kidnapping, and the range of social and psychological difficulties encountered by women as a result of the abusive relationship are used to support the claim that the sense of self, autonomy and decision-making ability of the victim is so undermined by the abuser’s tactics that they become entrapped in the abusive relationship. It is then argued that societal and legal misunderstandings of the dynamics and impact of the abuse lead to misinformed legal responses based upon the premise that women are able to safely report domestic violence and receive an adequate response, should they choose to do so. Bringing together critiques of the operation of the civil and criminal justice system in this context with the possibilities and limitations of the international human rights system, the thesis aims to demonstrate not just where the legal responses pertaining to domestic violence are limited, but also why. The research concludes that a legal approach to this problem which overlooks the root causes and over-emphasises isolated incidents of mainly physical violence does not and cannot work; the causes and impacts of domestic violence must be understood and addressed at a society-wide level.

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No abstract available / Dissertation (MA (Theology) : Practical Theology)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Practical Theology / unrestricted

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Legal protection of the victims of domestic violence In my thesis I focused on such a sensitive and very actual topic as domestic violence, especially from the perspective of existing legislation on protection of victims and also from the perspective of possible approaches to the possible solutions of this phenomenon. Despite the development of the legislation in recent decades the occurrence of domestic violence is still a major problem of modern society, mainly because of the fact that it usually takes place in private situations between the offender and the victim in a domestic environment "behind the closed doors" and the concerned persons are usually in close relationship. In my thesis I tried to focus on the phenomenon of domestic violence mainly from the perspective of the victims and their legal protection. I tried to define domestic violence by defining the necessary concepts, and also from the perspective of existing legislation of this phenomenon, including a description of previous development. In the introduction to my thesis I pay particular attention to the description of the characteristics, types and forms of domestic violence, its usual consequences. I also describe the victimological aspects and focus on the concepts of "victim" and "offender". Marginally I also describe...

Aim: Violence does not stop with age. There are many studies on the topic of domestic violence but few focus on the elderly and the role of the social worker in dealing with this issue.  The purpose of this study is to analyse and describe how social workers in the field of gerontological social work are actively identifying cases of domestic abuse involving the elderly.    Method: This study has a qualitative approach and the data has been gathered through ten semi structured interviews with social workers. The gathered material has been analysed through content analysis.    Results: The result of the study highlights various means of identifying abuse such as asking direct questions about violence, asking for assistance by managers and other professionals, adapting the conversation with the client to the given situation, being watchful of physical or abstract signs of violence. In spite of these strategies, the analysis shows that organisational deficiencies puts a large responsibility burden on the individual social worker. Lack of adequate training and standardised questions leads to the social worker having to gather information themselves in order to perform their duties.       Keywords: Social worker, elderlies, domestic violence, need assessment

Although some analyses of genocide in Brazil consider the intersectionality of race, gender and class, few address the ways in which heteropatriarchy and sexism also impact women’s experiences with anti-black violence and terror. In order to better understand anti-black genocide in Brazil, we must take into account black women's multiple gendered and sexualized experiences with this violence. As a result, this thesis explores black women’s experiences with domestic violence as a form of anti-Black genocide. This contention, through an analysis of my fieldwork in Rio de Janeiro and Salvador in the summer of 2013 as well as my engagement with Black Brazilian feminist theory, argues that domestic violence against Black women occurs at both a macro and micro level. Essentially, State violence against Black women is domestic violence writ large. Micro-sites of domestic violence against black women, typified by inter-personal violence, are not isolated manifestations. Instead, they are extensions of macro-state processes of domestic violence. In other words, we must read inter-personal violence against black women as part of the continuum of the state’s racialized, gendered, sexualized violence against the broader black community. / text

Mental health professionals have observed that children who witness interparental violence frequently display either an affrontive, demanding personality style, or a passive, compliant style. The prevalence of these personality types and their relation to identification, stress, and other variables was evaluated in a sample of 40 children (age range = 6 - 12 years old) who have witnessed parental spouse abuse. Children completed the Children's Personality Questionnaire and the Parental Identification Questionnaire. Mothers completed the Life Experiences Survey. Independent ratings of the children's personality were made. The results validated the existence of these two personality styles among both male and female witnesses, and supplied evidence for their relation to paternal identification, familial instability, and parental ineffectualness. The implications of these findings for assessment and intervention are discussed.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

This study qualitatively explored the practice of domestic violence (DV) intervention in the emergency department (ED) from the distinct perspectives of service users, service providers and co-ordinators of DV voluntary organisations. The research participant group was made up of eight survivors of domestic abuse, fourteen staff members from an ED (including their manager) and eight co-ordinators from a voluntary organisation offering services for DV issues. The study was informed by the dearth of evidence regarding pragmatic intervention for the specific context of emergency departments (EDs), a need to develop system level interventions and a solid theoretical base to inform implementation of a more effective interventional strategy (Feder et al., 2009; Thurston and Eisener, 2006; Ramsay et al., 2002).The study utilised constructivist grounded theory and feminist perspectives to elicit unique viewpoints from interviews with the three separate groups. A range of meanings and conceptualisations were found which contribute to a more complex understanding of the issues involved and the responses to them. These included how women experience DV, the way DV is rendered invisible by ED culture and, perhaps most importantly, how a lack of policy implementation has influenced the practice of ED staff with regard to DV. Adopting a perspective that takes into account the sensitivity and gendered nature of DV made visible the socio-political and personal influences that affect both health providers' and health users' attitudes to seeking help. System-wide barriers to intervention ranged from personal to situational levels within the context of EDs. They included deep-seated ambivalence, fear and trust issues located within the constructs of both service users and providers regarding identifying and assessing the problem, seeking help, and providing support. Three overarching concepts were identified: 1) meanings and complex realities relating to DV and its intervention 2) barriers to seeking and providing help and 3) strategies for overcoming barriers and developing DV intervention within ED. Using rigorous, inductive, comparative and interpretive attributes of grounded theory procedures, conclusions were reached about the development of DV interventions in the department. These informed the propositions made for a comprehensive and integrated DV intervention including universal interventions which can be helpful irrespective of service user's disclosure and stage of abuse, providing resources within the ED to enhance DV intervention; improving the ED environment so that it is more favourable for DV intervention; implementing policies that make the experience of psychological abuse visible; and promoting DV awareness. Areas of concern were highlighted for practice, policy, and research relevant to DV intervention in EDs.