Why Ethnic Minority Women Stay In Abusive Relationships Sociology Essay

Why Ethnic Minority Women Stay In Abusive Relationships Sociology EssayThe problem of ignominious relationships has attracted national at cardinaltion in England and Wales. Historically Domestic violence has a strongly entrenched patriarchal system, which gives men proprietary rights over women. Traditional and heathen values as direction of resolving conflict ar critical in shaping and perpetuating violence of men toward women. A womans social condition is believed to be derived by her relative put to a man that is as a daughter, wife, girlfriend or mother of his children. One solution to ending the abuse and leading violence free lives would be to leave the relationship. While this is a possible solution it should be noted that in order for women to leave it requires enormous restructuring of material, physical and social relations strategies. What makes the cultural minority women stay in ignominious relationships?A qualitative feminist research methodology was used with a convenience sample of 8 women who concord to participate in the study. In depth interviews were conducted with the participants to explore the perceptions and experiences of cultural minority women in abusive relationships. A number of themes that emerged from the study suggested clearly womens perceptions and experiences to remain in their abusive relationships. These themes relate to commitment, staying because of children, cultural beliefs, economic dependence and lack of social support.Chapter 1IntroductionDomestic violence is a social phenomenon that is universal and perverts social club at all levels, Hague (1998). Domestic violence is one of the most common crimes and is present throughout society, usually hidden but there none-the-less. Violence towards women by intimate partners is a social problem of enormous proportion. The impact of domestic violence is broad and substantial with serious consequences not only for the women who are victimise but also for their childr en and society at large.According to the United Nations Domestic Violence is an act of gender based violence that results in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women including threats of such acts of cohesion, arbitrary deprivation of liberty whether occurring in public or private life. The United Kingdom brass adopted a gender neutral definition, any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between adults who are or reserve been intimate partner or family members regardless of gender or sexuality.Activists spieling in the area of domestic violence reiterated that, if domestic violence is so common and the abuse that bad, why do these women stay with the perpetrator. The answer is perplexing and thought provoking and without being judgemental, cornerstone be painfully obvious. Professionals, including social cut backers who work directly with victims of domestic violence often find themsel ves scratching their heads at the decisions women make when they are victims of domestic violence and why they remain in those abusive relationships.The study aims to explore why ethnic minority women in England and Wales remain in abusive marital relationships despite the risks of being hurt, both physically and psychologically during the abusive episodes as well as the coping mechanism they employ to cope with the violence. This study emerged from a great interest that developed from an inspirational work with victims of Domestic Violence in a womens Refuge during my Second Year Placement in 2011.I had the opportunity to deliver a domestic violence cognisance programme to the women in the refuge. The victims were mainly from the ethnic minority community. The women shared vital in sortingation regarding their experiences with the abuser. It is this indebtedness that has provoked an eagerness, to explore subject further.Aims of the studyTo explore the lived experiences of ethnic m inority women who remain in abusive relationshipsTo explore the reasons why they remain in abusive relationshipsTo explore their coping strategies in abusive marital relationshipsTo dissertate the theoretical perspective as to why ethnic minority stay in abusive relationshipsTo let on the legislation regarding Domestic Violence in England and WalesTo identify and discuss the implication to Social Work PracticeTo design a methodologyObjectivesTo determine the type of abuse that ethnic minority women in abusive marital relationship endureTo explore how women construct their stay and the coping strategies employed to survive.To ascertain whether abused women in abusive marital relationships have approach shot to supportChapter 2 The researcher leave review the literatureChapter 3This chapter focuses on the research design and methods that the rearcher used in the studyChapter 4This chapter will cover data collection analysis and interpretationChapter 5This chapter will cover discus sion of the results and findings ,the wider question of the research and the conclusion.It will further make recommendations for rising studiesLiterature ReviewHistorical overview of domestic violenceHistory reflects the enormous magnitude of the problem of violence against women. For centuries patriarchal norms dominated and women were considered to be the property of their husbands. around postulate that woman abuse has its roots in Roman law, which permitted a husband to kill his wife if she committed a variety of offences (Stacey, Hazelwood Shupe, 1994). position Common law gave husbands the right to beat their wives with any reasonable instrument. These laws were maintained throughout Europe and America until the late 1800s when a few states rescinded this right. Domestic assaults go along and were termed domestic disputes. They were considered to be nuisance behaviour, not criminal. As a result they were not seriously in the criminal justice system until the past ten year s when a variety of statutes were developed which specifically protect people from domestic abuse.Domestic violence and PatriarchyDobash Dobash (2002) states that there are several jural and political ideologies supporting the idea that husbands have authority over their wives. The legal right of a man to use physical force against his wife is no longer explicitly recognised in England and Wales, however the legacy of the patriarchy continues to generate the conditions and relationships that lead to a husbands use of force against his wife (Dobash Dobash 2002).Patriarchal dominance is salvage supported by moral order which reinforce the marital hierarchy, making it difficult for women to struggle against the dominance. As a result womens struggles are therefore considered as wrong, immoral and a validation of the respect and loyalty a wife is support to give to her husband. The fact that Domestic violence is seen as a form of patriarchal dominance is irrefutable in light of histo rical evidence. The historical, legal and religious writings all contribute to the understanding of the status of women regarding domestic violence. This status encompasses the explanation why women remain in abusive relationships.Culture ,religion and PatriarchyDomestic violence take on different forms within the BME communities (Richards 2004).Various tactics are employed by their partners to destroy self-esteem and prevent complaining or escape as echoed by Dasgupta (2000).Choudry(1996) noted that culturally specific abuse, includes threats to ruin a womans reputation among relatives, accusing women of instigating the abuse. Although domestic abuse tends to focus on intimate partner violence, However as Minhas 2002, Gill 2002 andGangoli 2004) observed that other members of the abusers family are cited as being involved in the violence. Violence connected to dowry can often underpin the extended familys involvement in the abuse (Dasgupta and Warrier, 1996). Cultural, social and re ligious norms may deter women from seeking help or exposing the problem through a prosecution, as they may fear censure from within their families or communities, or fail to receive the necessary validation to name their experience as victimisation (Hart 1996, Viano 1996, Erez 2000, Erez 2002, Raj Silverman 2002, Nicholson et al 2003).In BME communities, women face dishonour and rejection if they leave their partners, even if they do so as a result of domestic violence (Choudry 1996). A study in the Western Isles of Scotland (MacNeil et al 2004) demonstrates how some tight-knit communities can have strong cultural and religious norms which stress family privacy and non-interference, and attach considerable social shame to domestic violence, perceiving it to arise through victims failing in exercising family responsibilities. These factors can affect womens exposure to violence, and their ability to acknowledge its occurrence and seek or obtain community support.Domestic violence h as been legitimised in law, religion, and in cultural ideologies of male dominance and womens inferiority (Gill 2004).In contrast, Hearn (1998) argues that although there have been some legal changes, cultural discourses of masculinity continue to inform mens justification for violence. In male-dominant cultures, the notion that women are responsible for upholding family honour remains a major force influencing law, religion and cultural values and shaping the nature of and responses to domestic violence (MacNeil 2004) For this reason it can be argued that in such cultures it may be difficult for women to leave or seek help to escape domestic violence because to do so would bring shame on the whole family and could result in community ostracisation.