Battered Woman Essays (Examples)

Battered Women

ational of the Study

In preceding years, numerous studies on the battered woman syndrome, or BWS, have been presented to sustain and expose the bitter realities on battered women. The rational of this paper is to present information in relation to the nature of aggressive relationships, as well as the psychological consequences ensuing from recurring abuse. Specially, studies and laws relating to the battered woman syndrome are highlighted to elucidate the occurrence of repeated abuse that formed a battered woman's insights and rulings, making her belief that she was in danger of impending death or physical injury.

Public consideration to the dilemma of domestic violence has risen over the past two decades. esearchers and practitioners have measured the dilemma and its prospective solutions employing both quantitative and qualitative research techniques. More lately, public-policy makers have united in the attempt. However, even though the attention has augmented, the dilemma…

According to the study, men were overall more likely to experience only emotional abuse than were women, while women experienced more power-and-control abuse along with other types of partner violence (Frieden pp). Furthermore, men who had experienced only verbal abuse were much more likely to carry a gun for protection than women in that category (Frieden pp). According to Ditter, results from other studies of emotional abuse also indicate that it can be very harmful (Frieden pp).

Investigators in one study found that all of the twenty-five emotional abuse subjects that were studied had three sequelae of "battered woman's syndrome" six months after leaving their partners, 'including trauma symptoms, low self-esteem, and a paradoxical attachment to the former partner," while another study revealed that the victims of even severe intimate partner violence reported psychological humiliation as their worst battering experience (Frieden pp).

A report from the American Psychological Association Task…

Criminal Defense -- Mental Insanity / Georgia v. Randolph / Fernandez v. California

hat defenses, if any, were used in these cases? (Georgia v. Randolph) Scott Randolph wanted the cocaine possession thrown out because he said he did not give permission; however Georgia defended the search because the consent of one "joint occupant…who has common authority," is consistent with the Fourth Amendment and with U.S. v. Matlock. However, the High Court ruled that when co-occupants are not in agreement as to letting police search, the search is then illegal. In the Fernandez v. California case, the High Court argued that if the police were restricted from getting permission from the girlfriend -- and had to ask the suspect to grant a search -- that would "impose unnecessary restrictions on law enforcement."

How did these cases impact law enforcement and prosecutors? The decision in Fernandez v. California overturned Georgia v. Randolph,…

Cassandra: Case Study

There is evidence that substance abuse and other mental disorders associated with substance abuse such as anxiety and depression have strong genetic links. In the case of Cassandra, her father and her brother both have had substance abuse issues. For example, "a NIDA-sponsored study of alcohol dependent patients treated with naltrexone found that patients with a specific variant in an opioid receptor gene, Asp40, had a significantly lower rate of relapse (26.1%) than patients with the Asn40 variant (47.9%)" (Genetics of addiction, 2008, NIDA). However, the genetics of addiction are not like the genetics of sickle cell anemia, in which a single, targeted variation causes the illness. At best, there are certain genetic patterns which increase the tendency to develop certain addictions, in the presence of other social factors.

Cultural influences, such as an environment where addiction is the norm rather than the exception can lead genetically…

Battered Women

The problem of internal hostility and shabby women has been a matter of great concern that attracted increasing concentration in both nationally and worldwide in the course of media campaigns, legislation initiatives, and research performed in fields like criminal justice, social science, and women's studies. (McWhirter, 120) It is estimated that on an average one women is physical abused by her husband in every 7.4 seconds in the United States. The hostility at home is considered to be the most significant cause of hurting the women who are in the health care system. With the passage of time the battering of women is growing in intensity and also in occurrence with the 75% of battering women being victimized in more than one number of cases. (Leon, 36) About 20 to 25% of married women have acknowledged the fact of physical abuse in the Identifying Battered Women National Surveys.…

Women Who Kill Their Abusive Spouses

In the last several decades, criminologists and social scientists have begun to pay a greater attention to cases of battered women who kill their abusive spouses. Many of these women who kill their husbands claim they do it to defend themselves. Nevertheless they are often convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to imprisonment. Until recently, battered women were viewed by the public as either "mad" or "bad" (Noh, Lee, & Feltey, 2010) who should be punished as murderers. But lately scholars have begun to argue that killing an abusive spouse must be justified in extreme cases and codified in the law (Ewing, 1990). This paper is of the opinion that women who kill their abusive spouses should have the right to defend themselves in the court before any verdict is issued.

According to legal systems of most civilized nations, self-defense is justified when one is…

, 1994)." (Salazar, 253) This is not just troubling as a statistical illustrator of the problem's prevalence but it is indicative of a much larger cultural condition predisposing us to violence toward women. ith ties to the patriarchal machinations of the country's monarchical origins and a dependency upon the fortification of such leanings in modern legal, social and even familial structure, the issue of domestic violence is very much a result of a long-standing and still present heritage of sexism. As we contend with the apparent root causes of domestic violence by helping women find ways out of negative relationships, we are yet contending with a more deep-seeded impulse toward misogyny and violence.

The rationale for further study on this subject will be to provide those in social services, outreach programs and other positions of counsel with the understanding of this problem to address and navigate the correlation and cycle…

omen in Abusive Relationships

According to a report in the Public Broadcasting Service, the home is one of the "most dangerous places for a woman" (PBS). That is because of the legacy of domestic abuse that many women have had to go through, and are going through today. Indeed, the U.S. Department of Justice reports that two-thirds of violent attacks against women are perpetrated by someone that woman knows. Every year about 1,500 women are actually killed by boyfriends or husbands, the Justice Department explains. And every year nearly 2 million men "beat their partners," according to the FBI. This paper reviews the statistics, the reasons that women decide to stay in those relationships, and what alternatives there are for her.

The Abuse of omen -- Background Information

The Public Broadcasting Service story indicates that 95% of victims of domestic violence are women, and that women are "7 to 10…

Women and men are two parts of the human race. Men are important to society just as women are. However, because of the social structure of many cultures and society, men appear as the dominant, superior sex. This leads to the belief that men must control women, dominate them in order to be seen as 'real men'. Katz explore in his novel the need to remove such belief systems and create gender equality to end violence against women and create a balanced society.

Domestic violence is an issue many people face on a daily basis. However, in Katz book, The Macho Paradox, chapter 1 opens the discussion of domestic abuse seen as a common event in the American landscape. "...found that two-thirds of American men say that domestic violence is very or fairly common in the U.S., and in a 2005 national survey...92% of respondents said that family violence is…

But sometimes the victims themselves are afraid to voice their grievances in the public because speaking up entails shame, ostracization, and even extra-judicial killings. The victims can express their grievances in public "only at certain times and in certain ways" because their rights are infringed on social and cultural levels (Dewey).

The fact that cultural and traditional beliefs and attitudes contribute to violations of women's rights in a systematic manner can be observed by reading literature on the practice of dowry. Many Indian legal and philosophical thinkers use relativistic terms to contest the notion that the practice contributes to the abuse of women. They contest the notion because they argue the concept of human rights is a estern notion, sometimes disregarding cultural variations and sensibilities of the Indian nation (Gupta). The general critique of the concept of human rights as a western notion may be valid in some matters, but…

The problems that these women have encountered have ranged from domestic issues to career issues to stereotypes. To solve these problems, the United Status must view them in the light of immigrant women.

eferences

Anderson, M.J. (1993, April). A License to Abuse: The Impact of Conditional Status on Female Immigrants. The Yale Law Journal 102(6). etrieved January 28, 2008, from No Status Quo. Web Site: http://www.nostatusquo.com/ACLU/anderson/brides/pg2.html

Grieco, E. (2002, May). Immigrant Women. etrieved January 28, 2008, from Migration Information Source. Web Site: http://www.migrationinformation.org/usfocus/display.cfm?ID=2

Jewish Women's Archive. (2009, January 27). Exhibit: Women of Valor, Emma Lazarus

Introduction. etrieved January 27, 2009, from the Jewish Women's Archive. Web site: http://jwa.org/exhibits/wov/lazarus/

Lee, a. (2008, March 10). Justice Denied for Battered Immigrant Women.

etrieved January 28, 2009, from the American Prospect. Web Site: http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?

A article=justice_denied_for_battered_immigrant_women

McDonnell, J. And de Lourenco, C.I., 2005-08-12 "Women's Stories: Brazilian

Immigrant Women as "Transnational" Migrants" Paper presented at…

Being of nature, a supposedly passive entity does not necessarily stime the female poet, it can also, in Bishop's construcion, empower her as a speaker.

Yet, there is one caveat -- for Bishop's poem remains tantalizingly silent about her own gender as a female. Thus, even as late as Bishop, the idea of an openly female speaker within a poem associating herself with nature, and seeing herself reflected in nature remains tenuous. Thus, although not Byronic in its imposition of meaning upon the natural world, nor Barrett Browning like in its denial of it, Bishop does not comlpetely deny the cultural assumptions of associating women with nature that still haunt female poets today. Unlike men, women must grapple with this association as authors, of passivitity and feminine voicelessness as mere subjects of the poetic experience -- while men can chose to view nature as neutrals, rather than as conciously gendered…

Immigrant Chinese omen in Canada

Immigrant Histories: Chinese omen in Canada

Nothing is as difficult and as painful as uprooting oneself or one's family for a new life in a strange land. However, many have had to do so throughout history, to not only survive, but also to prosper. The New orld, fabled for its freedoms and its promises of riches, has appealed to many people across this vast world. This appeal has reached as far as China, parts of whose population started their voyage to North America almost 150 years ago (Multicultural History Society of Ontario [MHSO], 2001). This research will examine a brief history of the Chinese population in Canada, starting at the turn of the century, and will continue by describing this population's lifestyle, complete with its problems, its disappointments and its successes, in detail.

According to the Multicultural History Society of Ontario (2001), the Guangdong province,…

abuse of women has grown to near epidemic levels. Some professionals think this may be because women are finally reporting the abuse that has always been. Abuse can start out as actions as seemingly harmless as name-calling or pushing, but over time may turn into something far more dangerous. There are many emotional dynamics at play in an abusive relationship. These emotions propel the abused toward staying in a relationship that she knows is unhealthy. In her heart, however, the abused feels it almost impossible to break free. Over time she forgets about her wants and needs, and learns only to react to the abuser's feelings and emotions. Her very survival may depend on how well she reacts to the demands of her abuser. Abused women often learn at a very early age how to feel normal and adjust to an abusive environment. They stay with their abuser because it…

Criminalization occurs when women are treated like offenders rather than victims when they defend themselves against abusive males. Criminalized women are made to feel like they are the ones responsible for situations such as damage to property, child exposure to violence, immigration status issues, reputational damage, homelessness, and poverty occurring as a direct result of male violence. We have heard of numerous cases -- for instance, where women living with abusive partners are accused of failing to protect their children, and are held responsible in the unfortunate event that the children fall victim to, or witness disturbing episodes of domestic violence. The situation is no different in the prison system, where these women are incarcerated upon conviction. ather than strive to address the social injustices such as poverty, sexual and domestic abuse, and psychological issues that drive such women to commit crime, we dedicate our attention to making their lives…

However, Suzanne is a white woman. Obviously, a woman of color would have had a different experience in that same time period, because there were not darker skinned women in powerful roles in the media. When they did appear, they may have been relegated to subservient positions or be women with very Caucasian features, like Dorothy Dandridge. Therefore, it is important to keep in mind that Suzanne's experience is probably not reflective of all women of her time period.

In fact, to me it appears clear that media images are another issue that could be seen as a comparable harmless or less important inequality rather than an evil. For instance, "North American feminism, in particular, has focused on securing equal political and economic rights for women (inequalities) and prioritized these problems rather than focusing on domestic violence and traffic in women and girls (evils)" (Brennan, 2009, p. 146). While women…

he has lived through violence, rape, slavery, and betrayal and seen the ravages of war and greed. The old woman's story also functions as a criticism of religious hypocrisy. he is the daughter of the Pope, the most prominent member of the Catholic Church. The Pope has not only violated his vow of celibacy, but has also proven unable and unwilling to protect his daughter from the misfortunes that befell her.

Candide also displays this sense of hope in light of his many hardships. He honors his commitment to marry Cunegonde at the end of the story despite the physical abnormalities that have plagued her. Cunegonde is a young and beautiful woman at the beginning of Candide. Mirroring Candide's naive optimism, their love plays out in unrealistic romantic cliches: a blush, a dropped handkerchief, a surreptitious kiss behind a screen. However, this romance in the shelter of the Baron's estate…

Women in Prison

Major Legal Issues Concerning Female Inmates

Problems in corrections:

Dealing with the unique needs of women in the prison system

The number of female prison inmates in America and internationally is growing. Although men still outnumber women in the prison population, the rates of female incarceration, once considered relatively nominal, have skyrocketed. "In the U.S., where the prison and jail population reached two million in the year 2000, women's incarceration is also spiralling upwards at a greater pace than that of men. While the number of men in U.S. prisons and jails doubled between 1985 and 1995, women's imprisonment during the same period tripled" (Sudbury 2002). These escalating rates are surprising, given that women are far more likely to be the victims rather than the perpetrators of violent crimes. "While their relative proportions are small, the growing numbers of women being sent to prison is disproportionate to…

Silence and Withdrawal - where the man "punishes" the woman for her "behavior" by becoming silent and withdrawn.

Lack of Emotional Connection - where the woman reaches out for support and empathy, and the man withholds it (Chang 73-81).

It is easy to see how these conditions of verbal and mental abuse could lead to feelings of low self-esteem and depression in women. Author Chang quotes a woman stuck in a mentally abusive relationship as saying, "He complained I never communicated with him, but whenever I tried to communicate with him, he would always tell me why I was wrong to think that way. And so it finally reached a point of why bother. You know, I got tired of listening to him criticize me'" (37-year-old nurse) (Chang 73). Studies indicate that abuse in a relationship, no matter what type of abuse, can lead to long-term depression, especially when the…

The Macy et al. (nd) research, coupled with the lack of federal support for a nationwide network of services, point to one of the root causes of domestic violence: gender inequity. Gender equality remains elusive in a society that claims otherwise. Learned helplessness and financial dependence are both linked to traditional gender roles and norms for behavior. Domestic abuse has long been considered a "private" issue: one that rarely surfaces until the problem escalates into ancillary issues including alcohol and drug abuse that demand help seeking (Macy et al. nd). Because of the stigma surrounding victims of domestic violence and because of the lack of sufficient social censuring of domestic violence, women who seek counseling for a substance abuse problems are unlikely to bring up their domestic violence issues. In extreme cases, battered women syndrome leads to what should be a preventable murder. atifying initiatives like CEDAW sends a clear…

Helplessness (Domestic Violence)

Domestic violence is a social problem of epidemic proportions in the United States. This is evident by the fact that it is estimated that anywhere between two to four million women are battered each year. Often, the battering results in severe physical injury requiring hospitalization and emergency care (NOW, para 2). The magnitude of the problem has led to societal help and interventional measures being made available to help women who are victimized by domestic violence. Yet, there are many women who choose to stay in abusive relationships primarily due to a psychological condition, which is termed as the "battered woman syndrome." Viewed as a subcategory of post traumatic stress disorder (PSTD), the "battered woman syndrome" hypothesizes that the ongoing trauma suffered by battered women leads to development of coping mechanisms, which make her unable to predict the results of her actions, and so, she acts in…

male entering a domestic violence/battered women's shelter, I was not immediately made to feel welcome. No one embraced me warmly, and more than a few faces revealed not a little bit of suspicion as to what my motives were for being there. However, I was given the opportunity to explain myself. After I registered, received my guest pass, and received a short tour with one of the volunteers, I was able to share why I wanted to observe the shelter for a few hours as a component of this school assignment. I told the volunteer assigned to me that I was no stranger to abuse, as I witnessed my mother being abused by men she trusted. Sharing my story with the women at the shelter helped them to trust and understand me. After a short while, the people in the shelter opened up and warmed up to me.

The shelter…

Among the negative effects of living in a violent relationship include increased depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress (Bogat, et. al, 2004). There is some evidence that suggests that social support may influence a woman's reactions to domestic violence, and may in fact influence whether or not a woman decides to stay or leave a relationship (Bogat, et. al, 2004). When support exists it is related to a positive outcome more often than not for women (Bogat, et. al, 2004). There are some studies that find that women who are in violent relationships often lack positive support role models and even when they do they are reluctant to ask for help (Bogat, et. al, 2004).

There is adequate empirical evidence which suggests that most battered women tend to be socially isolated and thus do not have a readily available network of people they can rely on for support and encouragement when…

Cause of Domestic Violence

Prior to November 2, 1987, a good part of America was laboring under the myth that domestic violence was something that happened to poor people. This assumption had much to do with the fact that poor people utilized community resources to deal with domestic violence, while the wealthy had the resources to keep domestic violence, and its solution, a dirty little secret. However, on November 2, 1987 that myth was exploded. Responding to a phone call that a child had stopped breathing, the police found a dying little girl, a boy tied to a playpen with a length of rope, and a severely battered mother. The little girl, Lisa Steinberg, was later pronounced brain dead and the world began to understand what went on behind the doors of the Steinberg/Nussbaum home.

One of questions that the A Family Secret: The Death of Lisa Steinberg attempts to…

isk analysis in disclosure cases also demonstrates that disclosure hazards are events that organizations repeat in cyclic patterns. Thus, to prevent violations and to accurately estimate the probability of an unauthorized disclosure, there are many opportunities to measure the abuses just as there are many opportunities to discover abuse on pregnant women.

Breaking the pattern of violence on pregnant women without help is very difficult and leaving home is not always a feasible or safe alternative. The high number of domestic murders for pregnant women demonstrates that leaving an abuser can be fatal. The abused is usually the only one in the world who truly knows if and when to go but that may be a time that is too late. But addressing the needs of the abused in regard to the HIPAA rules is possible.

Identify Antecedents And Consequences

Although pregnant and recently pregnant women are far more likely…

Moreover, most of the police officers believed that criminalization was not an appropriate or effective method to deal with batterers because it "leads to the break-up of the family" (Ganapathy).

According to a 2004 study of 1,200 women in Bangladesh, some 67% reported having experience domestic violence, and 35% during the past year (Islam). Domestic violence was higher among women with a dowry agreement, and was also higher among women with a registered marriage and women who cover at least some of their expenses (Islam). Khairul Islam reports, "The proportion experiencing domestic violence was non-significantly lower among women with more than five years of education than among less educated or non-educated women" (Islam).

However, in the United States, much progress has occurred during the past thirty years regarding the recognition of domestic violence as a major problem, resulting in the development of numerous services by different professional disciplines to address…

Sexual Liberation

In addition to sexual intercourse and its variations, sexual liberation refers to the universe of human issues affecting all genders. America was propelled from the sexual enslavement of the 1950's to considerably increased sexual liberation of the 1980's and beyond. Two significant events of the 1960's that contributed to sexual liberation were the FDA approval of The Pill and the birth of the omen's Liberation Movement.

Sexual Suppression of the 1950's

An examination of liberation should begin with the sexual slavery of the 1950's. By current standards, sexual suppression was a numbing fact of 1950's America, particularly for women. For example, the legendary "Good ife's Guide" (Housekeeping Monthly, 1955) spouts standards that are otherworldly by today's norms. Perhaps its most oppressive statement is "A good wife always knows her place" (Housekeeping Monthly, 1955), though the guide serves up plenty of other now-hilarious goodies. "Assisting" housebound married women in…

Employers responsibility in regards to the VAA

Violence against women can be defined as any act of sexually or non-sexually oriented violence that results or is possible to result in physical, sexual and psychological trauma, irrespective of the environment it occurs. Every act of violence diminishes and destroys women's basic human rights and freedoms. Her nature is that of a caring nurturer, while men's character typically includes the desire to go into the marketplace and compete to win at his career. The differences between men and women create the opportunity for women to be taken advantage of and/or suffer violence.

The reauthorization of the Violence Against omen Act (VAA) is a needed step toward protecting women in the workplace, and in society as a whole. Complete with over $3.3 billion over the next five years for VAA programs, the VAA authorizes:

875 million for shelter services for battered women;

200…

Gay & Lesbian Studies

Reflection upon an Experience at a Battered Women's Shelter

For the purposes of this paper, the subject of my diversity experience is my visit to a shelter for women who are victims of domestic abuse and any children they might have in their custody. I began by performing some rudimentary Internet research about centers in my area. I was particularly interested in centers that serviced women with children. I wanted to volunteer my time with children who in urgent need of healthy adult contact. I feel children from abused homes especially should have examples of adults who they can feel safe around. I also wanted to provide women in unsafe relationships time to relax and perhaps focus on themselves while someone else responsible, mature, caring, and safe attended to their children. I had a passing conversation with a friend who knew of a center and I…

" Media can also learn and report on what happens to men convicted of domestic assault, what local schools are doing about battered women and domestic violence, and what grants might be available from the federal Violence Against Women Act.

The help for women - in the context of educating people on the issues whether they come into contact with domestic assault or not - should also be planned for and provided in the workplace, Jones write on pages 240-242. Employers can and should sponsor workshops and seminars about violence in the home, and also they should be encouraged to make donations to local shelters or other groups that support women who have been abused.

FIVE: Critique of the book. This is an effective book in terms of its overall tone and theme and the factual, investigative narrative strategy. Its blunt, sometimes shocking stories of abuse and injustice done to…

Domestic Violence

Evolution of Domestic Violence to Today: What it Is, and How We See It

Domestic violence has become a very important issue to be tackled in today's society. Fortunately, over the years, many have recognized the need to address this issue, which can grow to quite serious proportions. In order to provide a context for the following paragraphs, I would like to include some statistics on domestic violence here. Though upsetting, these statistics are necessary to see just how much of a problem this issue can be. According to Strengthen Our Sisters, an organization that aims to help domestic violence victims by providing them with information and a hotline which to call in times of trouble, women suffer greatly under this issue, with a woman being physically assaulted nearly every 15 seconds. Battery also contributes to the single major cause of injury for women, and exceeds any other…

At the same time that movement activists were pushing for the enactment of new legal measures, they were also working to develop a grass-roots community-based approach to providing direct services to victims of domestic violence. In 1979, the first domestic violence shelter in the United States was opened in an apartment in St. Paul, Minnesota, staffed entirely by volunteers. Today more than 2,000 shelters and crisis centers dot the North American landscape. Some are funded through private donations and staffed by volunteers but most are sustained by a combination of public and private monies and are run by a mix of professional and nonprofessional, paid and unpaid staffs. Thus we see that contemporary efforts to address domestic violence are characterized by a pattern of service provision and problem definition that from the outset has involved a reliance on state and community measures.

The dual focus on the development of both…

From a national fiscal point-of-view, after the Clinton's Personal esponsibility and Work Opportunity reconciliation Act gave welfare control back to the states, there was a 60 per cent overall drop in welfare recipients, but critics point out that much of this was part of a reclassification from welfare to workfare during an unusually strong economic time (the late 1990s) (DeParle, 2009). Into the 21st century, the $16.5 billion that the states received as welfare rolls dropped were spent on block grants or other types of assistance, rather than saving for economic downturns or recessionary times (Goldstein, 2008).

Scholars point out that the perceptions of welfare also contribute to the cycle of underfunding. In America, one Political Science professor noted, "while Americans with the most exaggerated misunderstandings of the racial composition of the poor are the most likely to oppose welfare," which, in turn, perpetuates racial stereotypes and could increase Americans'…

Spousal Abuse

This wire story is about the increase in the, and the continuously increasing, of women in reported spouse abuse arrests since the passing of the "Primary Aggressor Law" in 1997 in the state of California (Clifford 1999). In the past, police officers were accustomed to handling domestic violence calls from women and delivering the men straight to jail. Now, the police in at least 24 states receive training on how to decide who between the partners the "primary aggressor" is. It does not automatically point to the party who strikes first or causes the most severe damage. Police must check out on a long checklist of factors, including a history of violent or coercive behavior.

The news account notes that, in 1987, those arrested in California's domestic violence cases, only 5% were women (Clifford 1999). This figure rose to 15% after the passage of the Primary Aggressor Laws…

Domestic Violence and Abuse: Ethical Issues

Domestic violence is an epidemic in the U.S., but it is frequently a hidden one: many women are afraid to report what they are suffering to the authorities. "Over two-thirds of violent victimizations against women were committed by someone known to them: 31% of female victims reported that the offender was a stranger. Approximately 28% were intimates such as husbands or boyfriends, 35% were acquaintances, and the remaining 5% were other relatives…In 2003, among all female murder victims in the U.S., 30% were slain by their husbands or boyfriends" (Domestic violence statistics, 2011, AADVAC). Some of these battered women may still harbor genuine affection for their partner, given that they associate violence with 'caring.' Others may genuinely want to separate themselves from their attacker but may fear they cannot economically survive on their own. Counselors and social workers dealing with victims of domestic violence…

Domestic violence often occurs outside of marital bonds, and so will go underreported in analysis which employs the NSFH data set.

In researching the NSFH, some shortcomings are revealed. The NSFH asks short series of questions based on outcome, which do not draw the respondent in to answer the questions in a thoughtful, and ultimately, honest fashion. NSFH questions appear in the middle of a lengthy interview, and respondents may be tired, or simply lose attention at that point. Additionally, the importance of domestic violence issues may be lower in the mind of the respondents than in those of the interviewers, so reports of domestic violence may be underrepresented. Moreover, the NSFH did not consider the extent that nonviolent argumentative tactics are used as means of intimidation.

In a study that is trying to determine whether economic variables are salient risk factors in increasing domestic violence on women, a fatal…

People v. Goetz (1986)

1. Give an overview of the case.
The controversial People v. Goetz (1986) involves the Defendant, Bernhard Goetz (Defendant) who shot and injured four young black men on a subway train in the Bronx. Four black youths, Troy Canty, Darryl Cabey, James Ramseur and Barry Allen were riding the subway train; two of the youths had screwdrivers hidden on their person, later admitting the intention of using these screwdrivers to unscrew the coin boxes attached to arcade games. The defendant was also riding the train and had an unlicensed .38 caliber pistol, a gun he had procured in 1981. Canty approached Goetz with possibly one of the other young men beside him, and said, “Give me five dollars”: there was no use of force nor was their a display of a weapon. The Defendant answered by standing and releasing four shots from his unlicensed gun, the…

During this time period I also began studying leadership and the more interesting aspects of motivation. I found that the concepts of autonomy, mastery and purpose can have a transformational effect on those I am leading as well. Instead of concentrating just on carrots and sticks to motivate others, I looked at how to create entirely new jobs that would allow for autonomy, mastery and purpose to be included in each role. This worked out extremely well in Iraq where there were many more projects that people to go around, and time, resources and talent were nearly always in short supply. This experience taught me that focusing on results was not enough; there had to be a focus on providing those reporting to me with a chance to grow professionally and find their path to their own leadership styles and approaches too.

Conclusion

I'm a veteran, single-mother and proven leader…

Marital rape is defined as sex without mutual agreement, which can occur through the vagina, anus or even the mouth. The definition is not consistent; it changes from one country to another (ergen, 1996; Russell, 1990). Marital rape is marked as one of the most widespread ways of violation against women with most studies indicating that victims are legally married couples, those separated, divorced or living together. The basic concept is that the different forms of sexual violence between couples who have lived together for long and those that are married remains the same (Mahoney & Williams, 1998). In as much as no publications of marital rape between gay and lesbian couples have been found, am emergence of such literature is slowly coming up (ergen & arnhill, 2006).

The extent of marital rape was brought to light by Diana Russell's research that was done in 1990 in San Francisco. The…

Let such programs fund themselves through private charitable contributions. If they're justified they'll survive.

Laws and policies should be reformed so they protect all the rights and due process for both men and women equally.

In concluding, justice and fairness can only be attained and preserved where we rely on the judgment of people as jurors. hen we subtly suggest that they defer to expertise in human behavior for a judgment we're in for trouble.

A great deal of propaganda can be created these days to force people to think in a way they normally - and healthfully -- wouldn't. The abuse syndrome defense has gone beyond fairness. It's acceptance has triggered an enormous amount of unfairness in society -- aside from what the propanganda would have you know.

orks Cited

Bartholomew, K., Regan, K.V., Oram, D., & hite, M.A. (2008). Correlates of Partner Abuse in Male Same-sex Relationships. Violence…

Domestic violence is an ongoing experience of physical, psychological, and even sexual abuse in the home that is often a method used by one adult to establish control and power over another person (Flitcraft et al., 1992). Exposure by children to marital aggression is now a recognized public health concern. The investigation of the effects of the exposure to this type of aggression on the functioning of a child is a significant societal concern. Marital conflict is generally defined as any difference of opinion between martial or domestic partners whether it is minor or major. Marital conflict can assume many different forms including displays of both negative and positive emotions and/or constructive and destructive tactics. Marital aggression is characterized by physical and/or psychological abuse and would fall at the negative extreme on a continuum of marital conflict (Cummings, 1998). Marital psychological/verbal aggression refers to things such as threats, insults, and…

By doing so right now, we are not only making a societal and human investment in today's citizens and today's crime rate, but we are improving the quality of life of entire families as well as working toward the reduction of future perpetrators of violence against women since the sons will see appropriate models of behavior and wil not be apt to become violent in the future.

eferences

A programme for action. (2008). etrieved May 5, 2010, from Care Against Domestic Violence, http://www.cadv.org.uk/points.html.

Coy, M., Kelly, L., & Foord, J. (2009). Map of gaps: The postcode lottery of Violence Against Women support services in Britain (United Kingdom, End Violence Against Women and Equality and Human ights, London, England). London: End VIolence Against Women.

Giles-Sims, J. (1985) a Longitudinal Study of Battered Children of Battered Wives. Family elations, 34 (2), 205- 210.

Great Britain., Home Office., Crime in England and Wales…

Setting the stage for the group

Psychological intervention might be most efficient when females start modification by leaving the abuser and get in a shelter. Shelters are an essential resource for victims because they offer females and kids security and link them with social, legal, and financial resources (Dutton, 1992). Furthermore, battered females in shelters have a greater threat for PTSD than those who do not look for shelter (Jones et al., 2001). Provided the problems connected with PTSD, these signs might disrupt victims' capability to successfully utilize resources made to enhance their security once they leave the shelter (Foa, Cascardi, Zollner, & Feeny, 2000).

Unlike various other PTSD victims, damaged ladies in shelters deal with continuous security issues. Numerous of their viewed dangers are genuine (Foa et al., 2000). For that reason, conventional PTSD therapies that include exposure are contraindicated, as habituation to feared stimulations might enhance their danger…

Drawing information from around the globe the report suggests a number of social welfare organizations and outreach programs in order to prevent younger children from beginning to abuse either drugs or alcohol and assisting those members of the population already addicted in their rehabilitation.

Pomerleau, J., McKee, M., ose, ., Haerpfer, C., otman, D., Tumanov, S. (2008). Hazardous drinking in the former Soviet Union: A cross sectional study of eight countries. Alcohol and Alcoholism, 43, 351- 359.

This paper discusses the prevalence of alcoholism within the countries that once comprised the Soviet Union as a regional phenomenon. Observing the behavior trends within a group of people formerly linked ideologically provides a great deal of insight into the specific problems facing these eight countries as a unified population as opposed to eight distinct population samples. This approach may be crucial in understanding the social divergence of addiction facing Armenian women as…

Burning Bed Theories

Spousal Abuse Theories -- alker's Cycle Theory & Learned Helplessness Theory

'The reasons why Mickey Hughes pounded on Francine Hughes repeatedly in many instances and in many locations can be examined by looking at theories of spousal abuse. There is no one exact theory would appear to explain Mickey's violent outbursts, but there are several theories that offer reasonable explanations.

One theory found in the book Stopping Domestic Violence: How a Community Can Prevent Spousal Abuse is "alker's cycle theory of violence." This theory posits that violence against women (a spouse or an intimate partner) occurs in three stages: Stage one, is the building of tension; stage two, is the trigger that sets off the violent incident; and stage three, is the "honeymoon phase" (Jenkins, et al., 2001, p. 47).

In Francine's case the building of tension was near constant. There are myriad passages and sections of…

Federal and State Legislation

Domestic Violence Legislation at the Federal and State Level

Domestic violence is considered any violent act taken against someone involved in an intimate or family relationship (Eulich, 2013). It is a serious problem with countless victims each year. In 1994, Congress passed the United States Crime Bill which gave power to the federal government to help combat domestic violence, in particular violence against women and children. Specifically, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) was created to address this problem which is considered to not only hurt victims, but also damage families, children and society as a whole (Eulich, 2013). The Act mandates that such crimes may be prosecuted by the Department of Justice and that the Gun Control Act (that existed as part of the federal Crime Bill) be extended to include issues related to domestic violence crimes. This VAWA gives the federal government a platform…

Awareness about psychology behind domestic violence has been greatly enhanced in recent years, as have legal protections for victims. However, the courts' major decisions on domestic violence cases have been somewhat equivocal. For example, in the case of Castle ock v Gonzales, the abused woman filed a complaint against the police department, arguing that it violated her right to Due Process when "acting pursuant to official policy or custom" the police "failed to respond to her repeated reports over several hours that her estranged husband had taken their three children in violation of her restraining order against him. Ultimately, the husband murdered the children" (Castle ock v Gonzales, 2012, Cornell). In the case, the woman had a restraining order against her husband, prohibiting him from coming near her or her children. However, ultimately the court did not find favor with the defendant since a restraining order is not a property…

Step 3: Discuss the Precipitating Event

After relationship is recognized, the emphasis goes to the family insights of the condition, the sequence of proceedings leading up to the predicament, and the issue that started out the sequence of events (Graham-Bermann, S.A., 2002). Consultations inspect when and how the disaster happened, the causal conditions, and how the family endeavored to covenant with it.

Step 4: Assess Strengths and Needs

The Family valuation of strengths and needs start right after and the goes on throughout crisis intervention. The crisis worker will start to draws conclusions that will regard the family's needs and strengths that are related to the present disaster and, with the family, assesses the prospective for recovery (Edleson, J.L.,1999). Client strong suit are tapped in order to make self-esteem better, while also providing skills and energy that is for problem-solving.

Step 5: Formulate a Dynamic Explanation

This next step really…

(Potter-Efron, 2007). Both alcoholics and domestic violence offenders seem to be out of control at times, especially to their victims. (Potter-Efron, 2007). Finally, both family violence and alcoholism create tension in families, which can lead to an increase in assaultive behavior or alcoholic binges, making both problems very self-perpetuating. (Potter-Efron, 2007).

In addition, the drinking behavior can be a catalyst for family assaults. This is rarely due to the fact that non-violent people become violent when drunk. However, alcohol use lowers inhibitions, making it more likely that an abusive person will resort to violence. Furthermore, many abusers may actively seek to become intoxicated prior to abusing, knowing that their victims, and the rest of society, are less likely to hold them accountable for their abusive behavior when they are intoxicated. Therefore, it is quite likely that drinking patterns will establish abuse patterns in a household. For example, children may "keep…

Finally, domestic violence advocates argue against family counseling because the idea of family counseling may bolster a batterer's argument that his or her victim somehow contributed to or helped cause the violence. From a criminal justice point-of-view, such a position is untenable. A person who steals a car is no less guilty of grand theft auto if the owner left keys in an unlocked car than if they broke the window and hotwired the vehicle. Domestic violence perpetrators should not get a break simply because their victims have made themselves "easy" targets.

The third solution to the problem of how to sentence domestic violence offenders is to force them to participate in BIPPs. Battering intervention and prevention programs are a relatively new development in domestic violence, which is, in itself, a relatively new area of law. However, they have been around long enough to demonstrate results, and the results that…

Protecting Personal Data

Protection of personal data is paramount in any situation. Battered women receiving help in a shelter, part of a community clinic require confidentiality to avoid problems should their abusers locate them. When computerizing an appointment system and records, sometimes such information can easily be taken if there is no protection available. Things like passwords and encryption help keep would be criminals from accessing sensitive data. Although hackers may still access the data should they gain password information, adding those layers of protection, safeguard sensitive data on most occasions. While not all negative situations can be avoided, extra precaution must be taken when attempting to protect personal data.

The stakeholders of this scenario are several. The first and most important are the battered women and children in the shelter. They are the ones that may be endangered should their information leak out. The second are the staff working…

socialworkers.org/pubs/code/code.asp of the National Association of Social Workers).

Social workers strive to ensure access to needed information, services, and resources; equality of opportunity; and meaningful participation in decision making for all people (Code of Ethics http://www.socialworkers.org/pubs/code/code.asp of the National Association of Social Workers)."

One of the most important ethical considerations in the field of social work is the constant respect that social workers show to the people they server. The dignity of a client is highly valued and held in high esteem in the field of social work and social workers strive to help individuals maintain their sense of dignity and value so that they can regain their sense of self-worth.

Social worker ethics also include the embracing of the value of human relationships. According to the ethical expectations of social workers, the relationships among people are very important to the people who want to change. Those relationships can play…

Love Got to Do with It? (1993): Tina Turner

BEHS 453 (section)

Plot synopsis

The movie, 'What's Love Got to do with it?' is a biography of pop/&B singer Anna Mae Bullock (stage name- Tina Turner). It records the struggle she underwent to escape the clutches of her violent husband, Ike (played in the movie by Laurence Fishburne). The first few scenes of the movie portray young Tina's (played by Angela Bassett) initial singing career in Nutbush, Tennessee, before Ike Turner discovered her. By the time they met, Ike had already become a household name in the music industry, as a guitarist, record producer, and songwriter. Under Ike's guidance, Tina became a star; however, he soon got jealous of her fame and began abusing her; Tina had to struggle hard to escape his control (MASLIN, 1993; What's Love Got to Do With It [1993], n.d).

The movie introduces a shy…

What appears to explain their shared high rates of violent behavior is their increased interpersonal dependency. They are socially withdrawn and entertain a negative view of themselves. These difficulties with trust are common in the two disorders. They are thus more personally dependent on their partners. Furthermore, veterans with a major physical health problem are likelier to commit domestic violence than the other veterans surveyed. The physical problem tends to increase their irritability and dependence on their partners. Other studies found this characteristic high partner-specific dependency among physically abusive men who exhibit personal inadequacy, low social self-confidence and increased reliance on those nearest them. Many of these physically abusive men greatly fear abandonment and are anxiously attached. They are thus hypersensitive to rejection and often show anger in their intimate relationships. Veterans often display excessive coercion to which the partners respond by distancing themselves. The veterans' fear and dependencies can…

I would not suggest that Mary Lou plea-bargain to any offense.

II. First, I would suggest that all she did was buy gasoline, which is not illegal, and that she was not aware of Bubba's plans to use it to burn down the houses. If the evidence demonstrated that Mary Lou was aware of Bubba's plans to use the gasoline to burn down the house when she purchased it, I would explore the use of the Battered Women's Syndrome. Using that, I would suggest that if Mary Lou purchased gasoline knowing that Bubba intended to use it to commit an arson, that she did so because she feared the consequences of telling Bubba "no." I would show Bubba's history of domestic violence with a prior spouse, his long string of marriages, and present any evidence suggesting that Mary Lou was a battered woman.

Roe v. Wade

From a constitutional perspective,…

Domestic violence poses serious mental and physical health risks. In fact, it is estimated that" more than 1.5 million women nationwide seek medical treatment for injuries related to abuse each year" (Stark, 2001, p. 347(Tomison, 2003)). Those who are abused can experience mental health issues, such as anxiety attacks, posttraumatic stress disorder, chronic depression, acute stress disorder, and suicidal thoughts and ideation (Tomison, 2003)."

Domestic violence in America comes with an annual $44 million price tag with more than 20,000 hospital stays and 40,000 doctor visits each year (Tomison, 2003).

One of the issues that literature has uncovered is a lack of services or resources for women who are the victim of abuse by their domestic partner.

Shelters and batterer's intervention programs are often geographically inaccessible and not community based (Asbury, 1987; Williams & Becker, 1994; Williams-Campbell, 1993). Inaccessible services are less likely to be used despite the need. Transportation…

theories listed, the relative deprivation theory and the general strain theory best explain domestic violence, as well as the high rate of recidivism, despite punishment. However, we should mention in the very beginning that each theory listed best explains a certain category of people, generally divided by income and level of education. The two I have selected are a match for the highest percentage of women batterers.

The relative deprivation theory believes that domestic violence occurs when there is a significant difference in the achievements of each of the members of the couple. In general, in my opinion, these tend to be professional achievements and the theory is best exemplified by those couples where the husband is unemployed or having a job that is not satisfying, while the wife is earning much more than him and is the one contributing most to the family budget.

The relative deprivation theory was…

Self-Defense

One of the fundamental concepts of any free, democratic society is the idea of the individual's right to self-defense -- that one may use any means at one's disposal to protect one's person or property from assault from another. However, there are important stipulations and limitations that define the allowable limits an individual may approach -- and crossing over these limits can make the difference between being a justified victim and an outright criminal.

According to the legal definition of self-defense, the use of force is allowed when an individual "reasonable believes that it is necessary for the defense of oneself or another against the immediate use of unlawful force. However, a person must use no more force than appears reasonably necessary in the circumstances." This means that one can only employ enough force to remove the present threat. For example, one may only use lethal force in self-defense…

I am motivated to continue with my volunteering experience because of a caller I had one night when I had hotline duty.

The caller had been raped several years before and was a repeat caller, who just needed to talk when the nightmares came. In the morning, at the end of my volunteer shift, she phoned me back to thank me and to tell me that, after talking to me, she had been able to sleep through the night for the first time in years.

Journal Entry 5: Partner Abuse

Take the Domestic Violence Screening Quiz at http://psychcentral.com/dvquiz.htm. andshare your thoughts on living with domestic violence. How could you help, and what would you say to a friend who was experiencing domestic abuse?

My domestic violence screening score was a 3. I am not in an abusive relationship and have committed myself to never being a victim or perpetrator of…

In light of the evidence in this literature review then it is of great import that monitoring of the health of pregnant women is vital in reference to LW infants not only in the sense of present terms but as well to lifelong health considerations for the LW infant which is probably why stated further is: "Given the relative neglect that mothers and newborns have suffered, their centrality to the Millennium Development Goals, and the cost-effectiveness of maternal and newborn health interventions, a greater emphasis on safe motherhood and newborn health is clearly needed within many health sectors." (JHPIEGO, 2003)

Literature Review

Stated in the publication "Shaping Policy for Maternal and Newborn Health: A Compendium of Case Studies (2003) is that: "The health of a newborn is inextricably linked to the health of the mother; the majority of newborn deaths are caused by the poor health of the mother during…