The aim of this research was to explore the impacts that local culture in rural places has on women's experiences, and men's perpetration of domestic violence. The Australian literature on domestic violence is abundant. Feminist explanations have brought the issue to the public agenda, and informed services and responses. Yet, in recent years, such understandings have been criticised for being limiting and failing to recognise significant empirical differences in patterns of violence in society or to allow analysis of other factors that play an important role. Furthermore, despite the richness of domestic violence research, only a few Australian and overseas studies have looked specifically at domestic violence in rural areas. These studies have predominantly identified barriers that keep women trapped in abusive relationships. Some researchers have alluded to rural culture based on conservative, patriarchal belief systems and the pursuit of a rural idyll as being amongst these barriers, and have argued that the effects of patriarchal relationships and structures cannot be ignored. Other researchers have argued that the contexts and cultures of rural communities are changing, that there is not one rural community and culture but many varied rural communities and individual identities, and that these need to be understood and explored. Other than recommendations that rural culture needs to be explored, research has not yet concentrated on how local culture plays itself out in relationships between women and man where domestic violence exists in their lives. / Hence, this thesis aims to investigate this. It focuses on the impacts of local culture on rural women and men, specifically the impacts on domestic violence in a rural context. In this study, 'culture' is defined as meaning 'created by people to make sense of the world'. Their values, beliefs, ideas and opinions arise out of interactions with other people and are constructed out of the discourses available to them. / The study described in this thesis explored local culture in the Barossa Valley region of South Australia. The methodology and analysis were informed by feminist poststructural understandings of knowledge, as these enabled discourse analysis and an insight into women's and men's identities, and local power. Semi-structured interviews and investigations of local cultural texts were used to collect constrictions of local culture from local stories. Discourses dominating local culture were identified, and the way in which these impacted on domestic violence was analysed. / The study found several local cultural discourses that impacted on the issue of domestic violence. Discourses included self-reliance, pride, privacy, belonging and closeness, Christianity, and family. The power and influence of these discourses made it difficult to name, identify and challenge domestic violence in the Barossa Valley because it is entrenched as an acceptable expression of the local culture's overarching patriarchal discourse. / It has been argued that by listening to people's stories, it is possible to explore local culture in rural contexts and identify how particular understandings and interpretations of that culture impact on people and their experiences of domestic violence. Identifying and acknowledging discourses that have power and strength within the community make it possible to challenge discourses that silence domestic violence by making it difficult for women and men to seek assistance. However, analysis of, and any challenge to a specific local culture need to be sensitive to the community, as effecting change to address domestic violence works best if it is supported within that community. Therefore, it is imperative to learn about local culture from the community, and to do so with respect, openness, and willingness. Listening to communities provides a better opportunity to create alternative discourses that confront domestic violence. Using localised, feminist poststructural understandings and approaches enables exploration of different cultures in different rural contexts, and provides the analytical tools to move beyond the context of patriarchy to local understandings, community contexts, and community-owned solutions to domestic violence. Encouraging rural communities to define their local situations is important when trying to find local solutions to social issues. / This study recommends that when developing policy and practice for addressing domestic violence issues, it is crucial to provide locally-based and culturally-appropriate services if these are to be supported by the community and used by local people. Arguing for localised, feminist poststructural understandings and approaches to domestic violence provides directions for further research about domestic violence specifically in rural contexts, and more generally in other contexts. / Thesis (PhD)--University of South Australia, 2005.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/267433 |
| Creators | Wendt, Sarah. |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | copyright under review |
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