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Family Violence Notes

By on January 16, 2014

 

Social Stresses on Families

Stressor events

Hardships

How we respond to them – social learning

ABCX Model of Stress

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A (the event) interacts with B (the family’s crisis-meeting resources) which interacts with C (the meaning or definition the family makes of the event) to produce X (the crisis)

Losses of or gaining of persons, jobs, or incomes

STRESSOR EVENTS

Do they have resources and networks to help them cope with the problems?

WHAT IS DEFINED AS A CRISIS?

HOW ARE CRISES DEALT WITH?

Variations of the ABCX Model

Pile-up of demands

Family as and interdependent social system

Stress in one area spills over to stress in other areas

Violence in Families and Among Intimates

Intention of causing physical harm to legally related individuals or to those in close primary relationships

1:4 murder victims in the U.S. is killed by a member of his or her own family

Violence is not a part of all families (not in families emphasizing cooperation, commitment, sharing, and equality)

Myths of Family Violence

Causes of Family Violence

Intrafamily conflict

Male dominance in family and society

Cultural norms permitting family violence (parents or husbands)

Family socialization in violence

Pervasiveness of violence in society

Child Abuse and Violence

Hitting children for punishment is legal in most places

Illegal in Sweden and England

Corporal Punishment

Cultural spillover theory: violence in one sphere of life tends to engender violence in other spheres (Straus)

Linkage between physical punishment of children and crime in society

Conformity at first but deviance in the long run

Effects: juvenile offending, alcohol and abuse/dependence, mental health problems

Violence higher in poor families

Single parent families

Mothers – more contact

1/3 verbal aggression

Changes within the family have reduced child abuse: increased age at marriage, decreased number of unwanted children, economy, treatment programs, and legal sanctions

Child Sexual Abuse

National survey 27% women and 16% men reported being abused

Median age – under ten

Boys- strangers

Girls- family members

Male perpetrators

Nonbiologically related caretakers were overrepresented

Effects: sexual disturbance and dysfunction, homosexual experiences in adolescence or adulthood, depression, alcohol abuse, and suicidal ideas

Women: relationship with educational attainment and annual earnings

Prostitution

Sex at earlier ages, more partners, more likely to bear children before they turn 19, and more likely to experience sexually transmitted infections and forced sex

Parent Abuse and Violence

Violence against the parent – unreported

Violence to an animal

Wife and Female Partner Abuse and Violence

Cohabiting couples more likely

Common couple violence: conflict with occasional outburst of violence from either husbands or wives

Patriarchal terrorism: economic subordination, threats, isolation, and other control factors

Wife beating, battery, and battered women

Escalates

Culture

Abuse and Pregnancy

Low income and unemployment

Effects: depression, marital dissatisfaction, and relationship dissolution

Shelters and community resources

Rape among Intimates

Marital rape is not as recognized – in the past it wasn’t illegal

Rape: 1) sexual intercourse 2) force or threat of force 3) nonconsent of the victim

Male control and domination

Unreported

Why Do Abused Women and Wives Stay?

Learned helplessness (nothing can do to change situation)

Psychological entrapment

Investment model (costs and benefits)

Reasoned action and/or planned behavior

Husband and Male Partner Abuse and Violence

Less attention to the abused husband

1. less data

2. wife abuse is more serious

3. men do not report

4. not as visible – injuries

Research – comparable violence – mutual fighting

Mutual Abuse and Violence in Couples

More common

SUPERBOWL AND VIOLENCE

Witnessing Abuse – Children

Sibling Abuse and Violence

Frequently accepted

82% some form of violence

40% hit…

Explained – sibling rivalry or jealousy – resentment

Division of labor in the family – inequalities

Elderly Abuse and Violence

Passive vs. active neglect

Verbal and emotional to physical abuse

Caregiver overtaxed

Violence among Other Intimates

Dating and courtship violence

College students – 1/3 violence

Date Rape and Sexual Coercion

Treating and Preventing Family Violence

Police and crisis intervention centers

MINNEAPOLIS EXPERIMENT

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Teaching Sociology is very enjoyable for me. Sociology is like a gateway to a plethora of knowledge and understanding. The subject material is directly applicable to real-world events and situations found in everyday life. The methods and concepts of sociology yield powerful insights into the social processes shaping the contemporary world. The ability to identify and understand these processes is valuable preparation for professional participation in an ever changing and complex society.