Domestic Violence - Research Paper Example

The strongest theory amongst all, however, is the feminist theory that explains domestic violence in the light of unequal power resting with individuals of the opposite gender. It typically points out that the unequal balance of power translates into the subordination of female authority over male authority. In other words, the feminist theory emphasizes the fact that domestic violence (against women) is a natural outcome that arises out of men’s urge to control (McCue, 2008). These imbalances in power are most persistent in patriarchal setups where the structure of the society denies equal opportunity to women in the socioeconomic and political arena (McCue, 2008).

These societal imbalances have a ripple effect on the family which is demonstrated in men’s use of coercive power against women which they perceive as control. A primary example of this is demonstrated in the works of Dobash and Dobash who empirically researched that patriarchal systems contribute to female abuse and that such a system is reinforced by the socioeconomic structure of the society (Dobash & Dobash, 1979). . In such societies, it is commonplace to see women working as housewives (taking care of the husband and the children) and men going out of the house to earn a living (Eswaran & Malhotra, 2011).

Therefore, the feminist theorists argue that these pre-described notions of gender roles and the inevitable power that men exercise over women helps explain domestic violence to a large extent. Since men are ascribed primary roles in the society, they are granted access to privileged resources whereas women are ascribed secondary roles and are considered inferior. In an interesting research conducted on villages in a state in Southern India, Rao discovered that females who had little control over the allocation of resources in their households were the ones who experienced greater domestic violence (Rao, 1997).

Feminists argue that early social experiences of women perpetuate these gender roles and condition them to become a part of them. For instance, the mother is required to serve “coffee” to the father before he goes to work and that young girls “play house” at home (Eswaran & Malhotra, 2011). Therefore, males develop the right to be violent towards their female counterparts due to these gender role differences. Poor education and low socioeconomic status also contribute to greater violence under this theory.

According to a research, households with lower level of education experienced greater domestic abuse than otherwise (Eswaran & Malhotra, 2011). Furthermore, households where men were employed (indicating high socioeconomic status) experienced less incidents of domestic violence than otherwise. Also, as pointed out by Bloch and Rao, males with weak bargaining power tend to resort to domestic violence which proves to