Spousal Abuse Multicultal - Research Paper Example

?Spousal Abuse in Different Cultures Introduction Cultural identities reflect in spousal abuse like in all areas of life. Maeder examined race’s prejudicial effect on the decision making of the juror by manipulating the victim’s and the defendant’s race in a case of domestic violence and found out harsher attitude of the female jurors toward the defendant compared to that of the male jurors. When the attitudes toward the Asians were controlled for in the cross-cultural pairs of defendants and victims, the defendants were found to be more often guilty in the cases that were about interracial couples than in the cases of same-race couples. In spite of the universalism of the elements of abuse, the cultural background of an individual has a great influence upon the way he/she responds to the abuse. Families and individuals derive strength from culture and traditions. Culture influences and shapes the values, behaviors, beliefs, and people’s tendency to deal with issues. Culture is one of the main factors that play a role in the formation of a complicated set of resources, influences, and constraints. Other such factors include religion, socioeconomic status, and ethnic background. Important Definitions Definition of culture Culture can be defined as the aggregate of acquired traditions, beliefs, principles, and behavioral guides that the members of a specific group commonly share with each other. People are products of their respective cultures. Culture has many dimensions that include but are not limited to religious, ethnic, geographic, political, and socioeconomic. People may be stereotyped because of their affiliation with a certain culture rather than being seen as unique individuals. Definition of multiculturalism in America As the name of the term indicates, multiculturalism in America refers to the simultaneous existence of a variety of cultures in America. Over the past two centuries, America has become an increasingly multicultural society as a result of immigration and massive in-pour of people from all over the world into America in search of better opportunities of education, employment and lifestyle in general. Multiculturalism in America has played an important role in the increase of cross-cultural marriages all over the world in general and in America in particular. Definition of spousal abuse Spousal abuse can be defined as physical, verbal, sexual, or any other kind of harm caused by an individual to his/her partner or anybody related to the partner with whom he/she is in a relationship. Spousal abuse may be caused both in marriage and outside it; like in relationships. Spousal abuse is also termed as domestic violence or domestic abuse. Spousal abuse may not necessarily be caused to the immediate partner, but any harm caused to the relatives of the partner like to the partner’s children also lies in the category of spousal abuse. Definition of crisis counseling Crisis counseling can be defined as the therapy directed at eradication and solving of the immediate problems related to groups, families, or individuals that are going through a crisis. Crisis counseling aims at solving the problems by identifying the root-causes and trying to execute a behavioral change so that the individuals in crisis can perform better in their relationships. Spousal Abuse in Cross-Border Marriages In the present age, migratory flows that are officially recognized are dominated by different forms of family reunification and cross-border marriages. Cross-border marriages provide an easy path to the attainment of citizenship of the host countries. Nevertheless, the foundations of cross-border marriages are often shaky because of the dependence of the immigrant spouses upon their partners from the host country for the obtainment of legal status. Failure of the cross-border marriages because of spousal abuse brings to surface the incompatibility of the conflicting legal domains about immigrant regulation as well as prevention of spousal abuse. Friedman (2012) studied the legal conflicts in a case study involving the murder by the Chinese wife who was a victim of domestic violence for several years of her Taiwani husband in Taiwan. “Despite the district-level court's unprecedented ruling of legitimate defense, the case continued to serve as a flashpoint for competing ethical orientations as it made its way through the appeals process, in turn exposing conflicting legal principles and gendered family role expectations faced by immigrant as opposed to citizen women” (Friedman, 2012). The initial ruling of the case highlighted the increasing judicial recognition of the emotional and psychological impacts of spousal abuse, yet the overall effects of the case were undercut by the immigrant status of the defendant as well as the pervasive suspicions regarding the triggering of the marital motives by the immigrant status. Spousal abuse in the Asian Americans Research on the intimate partner violence (IPV) among the Asian American couples is limited. Cho (2012) examined the ethnic differences among the subgroups of Asian American couples and their risk for IPV and found that in spite of the variation of the prevalence rates of IPV across different ethnicities, controlling for the sociocultural, demographic, and interpersonal variables caused the differences to diminish. Cho (2012) also found that the US-born Asian Americans assumed a greater risk of IPV compared to others and also that the risk increased as a result of the perceived discrimination. The diversity of the Asian American community since it constitutes a variety of nationalities including Chinese, Indians, and Filipinos makes counseling difficult. Spousal abuse in the Japanese culture IPV in the Japanese culture is a grave social issue. There is dire need to clarify the appropriate screening method for IPV especially in the settings of healthcare to make effective interventions. Kataoka (2010) carried out a randomized controlled trial for the participants’ screening in a Tokyo based prenatal clinics at three different times during pregnancy and found the self-administered questionnaire to be more effective in identifying IPV compared to the face-to-face interview. Spousal Abuse in the Muslim Communities African American Muslim women often seek counseling for spousal abuse. Muslims are a growing minority community in the US. Counseling and services are needed for the women. Islam condemns its followers to display any kind of violence against women. It is mentioned in the Quran, [M]en are the protectors and maintainers of women because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient and guard in (the husband’s) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whose part you fear disloyalty and ill-conduct, admonish them (first), (next) do not share their beds, (and last) beat (tap) them (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them means (of annoyance); for Allah is Most High, Great (above you all). (4:34 cited in Badawi, n.d.). Islam has clearly defined the roles and responsibilities of men and women in married life which if completely followed and complied with leaves no room for spousal abuse. Islam declares husband as the household’s head, thus making it compelling upon the wife to obey him in all matters unless the husband’s wishes, instructions, or suggestions get in conflict with those allowed by Islam. One of the most fundamental traits of an observing and practicing Muslim wife is her obedience toward her husband. Obedience to the husband helps Muslim couples deter from spousal abuse. However, in many Muslim societies, these Quranic verses are not followed in their right essence. The society expects women to keep making sacrifices in marriage to remain obedient toward her husband whether or not his demands are ethically or Islamically justified. In their attempt to come up to the expectations of their families, in-laws, and the society as a whole, many women do not object to the beating of their husbands even though Islam suggests them not to bear any abuse and provides them with the option of retreating from the marriage through “khula’”. Abused women are often abandoned by the friends and family. Part of the problem are the community leaders that advise women to try to work harder in their relationships in order to please their husband thus encouraging them to bear the abuse, and going against the teachings of Islam. Spousal abuse in the Nigerian culture Violent spousal abuse is one of the social evils of the Nigerian society. Nigerian women experience all kinds of abuse including verbal, physical, and sexual since adolescence. Linos et al. (2013) studied the impact of community social norms upon the spousal abuse among Nigerian women and examined the relationship between the social norms toward spousal violence with the exposure of the Nigerian women to sexual and physical spousal abuse. As a result of the research, Linos et al. (2013) emphasized upon the need to consider broader contextual and social violence determinants in the efforts to eradicate spousal abuse from the society. These determinants of violence should comprise the social norms prevalent in the society. Spousal violence in Bangladesh The prevalence of spousal abuse is comparable in the different South Asian countries including Pakistan, Indian, and Bangladesh because of the similarity of culture and social norms and values in these countries. Bangladesh presents the case of South Asian culture where spousal violence is high. In the year 2001, nearly 60 per cent of the women were reported to have experienced spousal abuse sexually or physically (Naved and Johnston, 2008). Spousal abuse in Bangladesh has many adverse consequences on the health of women as well as their children. Effect of participation of women in labor force in spousal abuse One of the main reasons of spousal abuse is illiteracy, poverty, and complete dependence of the women onto their spouses financially. All of these factors are interrelated. Because of illiteracy, women do not have adequate education and skills to be employed and earn money to become financially independent. The dependence of the entire family on only one family member is the cause of poverty as women cannot help their husbands with earning money. According to Chin (2011), participation of women in the labor force serves to reduce their tendency to be the victim of spousal abuse. Participation in labor force enhances women’s power to bargain or altogether terminate contact with the abusive spouses. The effect when male backlash is induced by female employment is predicted to be opposite. Chin (2011) studied the impact of employment of the women over spousal violence. Findings of the study indicated that the incidences of spousal abuse reduce significantly with female employment. The main driver of this result is effect of reduction of exposure that dominates the male backlash, though the research did not find any evidence for the bargaining effect. Role of immigration in spousal abuse in dating Spousal abuse is experienced not only in marriage but also in dating. Ramos et al. (2011) studied the relationship between language spoken at home, immigration status, and violence in dating experienced by the adolescent girls of Hispanic origin in New Mexico, and found equal likelihood of the immigrant and the non-immigrant Hispanic girls to experience dating violence. Immigrant Hispanic girls that were English-dominant were four times as likely as the non-English-dominant immigrant Hispanic girls to experience violence in dating which speaks of the role on English-dominance in exposing the immigrants to dating violence. Although for the US-born Hispanic girls, past sexual experience posed great risk of exposure to dating violence, yet it was not a risk factor for the immigrant Hispanic girls. Nevertheless, Ramos et al. (2011) did not find the immigrant status of the Hispanic girls to provide them with any protection against the violence in dating. The less acculturated Hispanic girls in terms of language spoken at home were four times lesser exposed to the risk of dating violence compared to the more acculturated girls. This suggests that when the immigrant Hispanic girls use heritage language, they may be more protected against violence in dating than when they use non-heritage language. Difference of reasons of spousal abuse across cultures Although spousal abuse is noticed to some extent in all the cultures ranging from the most economically deprived and technologically backward cultures to the most advanced and modernistic cultures, yet the causes of spousal abuse often vary from one culture to another. In more conservative societies particularly toward the east like in Bangladesh, one of the main factors that become the cause of spousal abuse is dowry (Naved and Persson, 2010). Since there is a lot of poverty and dearth of employment opportunities, men see marriage as a means to gain materialistic objectives and things of interest in addition to the bride from the bride’s family. Since this unethical desire and behavior originates in greed, such men are never satisfied even if the bride’s family does their best and this becomes the cause of conflict between the husband and the wife. In modernistic societies, spousal abuse happens because of a variety of reasons some of which are dishonesty in relationships, extramarital affairs, and substance abuse. Crisis Counseling Many cross-cultural couples need counseling in order to deter spousal abuse. Religious and racial identities have a great impact on the process of counseling in cases of spousal abuse. Kiely-Froude and Abdul-Karim (2009) have addressed the relationship between religion and racial influence of spousal abuse by describing the transtheoretical model’s revised version that incorporates factors of religious and racial identity. Use of this transtheoretical model can help cross-cultural spouses with racial and religious factors in the counseling process. Treatment of the victims of spousal abuse requires specialized training. While the importance of short-term advocacy and counseling in the treatment of victims of spousal abuse cannot be denied, many victims are in need of a long-term approach to be able to deal with the abuse and avoid getting into abusive relationships in the future. Crisis intervention is required to work with the clients of domestic violence. Victims of spousal abuse need information. The counselor needs to discuss the options with the victims so as to help them find a safe way. In the start of the sessions of crisis counseling, the counselor should prepare a safety plan for the victim to instantly get the client out of the dangerous situation. The counselor advises the client on spousal abuse’s dynamics. Educating clients on this matter helps reduce their feelings of isolation and helps them overcome their guilty. The extent to which the counselor is aware of the individualistic and collective traits and characteristic features of different cultures in a multicultural society plays a decisive role in his/her ability to successfully solve the problems of victims of spousal abuse. Culture has both the power to make a family strong and to create obstacles with its influences particularly while dealing with the parties in the situation of spousal abuse. Knowledge about different cultures and belief systems helps a lot in providing counseling in such cases. There are different sorts of cultural considerations that occur when the situations of spousal abuse have to be identified and responded to. It is very important for the counselor to deal with people’s beliefs and actions sensitively and sensibly. It is advisable for the counselors to take the guidance and services of a cultural specialist. References: Badawi, J. (n.d.). Wife beating? Retrieved from http://islamic-world.net/sister/wife_beating.htm. Chin, Y. (2011). Male backlash, bargaining, or exposure reduction? Women's working status and Physical spousal violence in India. Journal of Population Economics, 25(1), 175-200. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00148-011-0382-8. Cho, H. (2012). Intimate partner violence among Asian Americans: Risk factor differences across ethnic subgroups. Journal of Family Violence, 27(3), 215-224. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10896-012-9413-9. Friedman, S. (2012). Adjudicating the intersection of marital immigration, domestic violence, and spousal murder: China-Taiwan marriage and competing legal domains. Indiana Journal of Global Legal studies, 19(1), 221. Retrieved from http://www.iupress.indiana.edu. Kataoka, Y. (2010). Self-administed questionnaire versus interview as a screening method for Intimate partner violence in the prenatal setting in Japan: a randomized controlled trail. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 10. doi:10.1186/1471-2393-10-84. Kiely-Froude, C., & Abdul-Karim, S. (2009). Providing culturally conscious mental health treatment for African American Muslim women living with spousal abuse. Journal of Muslim Mental Health, 4(2). 175-186. doi:10.1080/15564900903245824. Linos, N., Slopen, N., Subramanian, S. V. P., Berkman, L., and Kawachi, I. (2013). Influence of community social norms on spousal violence: A population-based multilevel study of Nigerian women. American Journal of Public Health. 103(1), 148-155. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1312689018?accountid=12085. Maeder, E. (2013). Canadian mock juror attitudes and decisions in domestic violence cases involving Asian and white interracial and interracial couples. Journal of Interpersonal violence. 28(4), 667-684. doi:10.1177/0886260512455871. Naved, R. T., and Johnston, H. B. (2008). Spousal Violence in Bangladesh: A Call for a Public- health Response. Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition. 26(3), 366–377. Naved, R. T., and Persson, L. A. (2010). Dowry and Spousal Physical Violence Against Women in Bangladesh. Journal of Family Issues. 31(6), 830-856. Ramos, M. M., Green, D., Booker, J., and Nelson, A. (2011). Immigration status, acculturation, and dating violence risk for Hispanic adolescent girls in new mexico. Maternal and Child Health Journal. 15(7), 1076-80. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10995-010-0653-0. Read More