Key Issues of Domestic Violence - Report Example

Key Issues of Domestic Violence Inserts His/Her Inserts Grade Inserts (16, January, Introduction Domestic violence is one of those issues that persist in our society even after the progress the world has made in many fields. Social scientists are always interested in finding out the reasons and consequences of domestic violence. In this paper we will attempt to explain the issues that are contributed by domestic violence. Also some discussion will be based on the explanation of reasons behind domestic violence. Usually women are victims of domestic violence therefore we will also discuss why men feel empowering from domestic violence. In the end suggestions will be given regarding how to curb the evil of domestic violence. Key Issues in Relation to Domestic Violence The key issues in relation to domestic violence are negative effect on children, negative effect on health, and exclusion of females from the mainstream. These will be discussed in detail below. Negative Effect on Children Domestic violence can have an extremely negative effect on children. When parents are fighting even that impacts a young mind let alone when a parent abuses his partner. Children have a premature mind therefore they cannot understand the complexity of the situation. They get confused and their development is hindered as a result. When children are confused their education and social life gets disturbed, this has a long term impact on the personality of a child. By abusing his partner men also set a bad example for children because home is the first school of every child. All the social norms are enrooted in minds of children from their surroundings at an early age. Children spend most of their time at home and if their parents are fighting all the time then children get very wrong perception of the social norms. A male child may understand that abusing females is not something wrong and therefore he may do so in future as well. A female child may also get a bad impression after seeing her mother verbally or physically abused. Female children may start to believe that this is how women are treated generally which can distort their perception about the world. It is also important for children to live in a peaceful environment but domestic abuse destroys peace in the life of children. It is not uncommon for children of a home in which domestic violence occur to prefer spending time outside. This can in turn inculcate other bad habits like smoking or drug abuse in children. Negative Effect on Health Domestic violence can have long term negative effects on the health of the victim even after the abuse has ended (Campbell et al. 2002). This is mainly because of the mental trauma that is caused by the abuse. Women tend to endure the abuse because they are weak and they have no way of defending themselves. This learned helplessness makes their health wise problem even worse due to depression and other stress related disorders. Physical abuse is also hurtful in nature and may result in bruises and scars. This also negatively impacts the health of females. Women are weaker physically than men therefore as a result of domestic abuse women are usually physically hurt. This may shorten their life span (Campbell et al. 2002) and may also cause other problems. Suppression of Females Domestic violence ends up suppressing females because they are not in a position to defend them, it makes them feel that they are weak and they might not be successful in anything. The abuse itself is traumatizing but the idea of getting beating is worse because it destroys self esteem, self efficacy, and self confidence. A woman might easily learn that she is helpless and this can make her believe that she can do nothing in life. This may be another reason why episodes of domestic violence are not reported often by victims. Victims don’t feel confident enough to take such an audacious step because all their confidence is beating out of them. Victims of domestic violence can also not excel in their normal professions because of the resultant stress. They cannot concentrate on their profession and live under constant fear. They usually resort to drinking and other abusive substances to forget their problems. This again impacts their life and career. Women feel that they can do nothing and this suppresses their personality. This effect of domestic violence is usually ignored but it remains a potent consequence of domestic abuse. Personality of women cannot develop as a result of abuse and this suppression affects their whole life. Their judgment is impaired and they cannot make decisions, even small ones. Why Does Domestic Violence Occur? Domestic violence occurs for the same reasons why gender and sexual discrimination occurs in the society. The perception of women as weak and emotionally feeble creatures contributes to domestic abuse. It is believed by men that women are weak and therefore don’t deserve equal rights like men. Men believe that they are stronger than women and therefore are superior to women too. This belief in superiority becomes the corner stone of domestic violence in the society. In many countries violence in the home is commonplace and women are the usual victims (Dobash, 1992). There is also an implicit acceptance for domestic violence. People generally don’t understand the importance of the issue. This is because of the stereotypes that exist in the society. Our society has defined roles and wants to see everyone in their respective roles. This mindset has made domestic violence commonplace in many countries. It is considered a woman’s job to stay at home and cook, and a man’s job to work. And because man works he reserves the right to abuse his partner. A study concluded that killers of intimate partners have a difficult childhood compared to normal population (Dobash, et al. 2004). This means that childhood can also be a cause of domestic violence. When a person lacks control in his early life the he is inclined to abuse any sort of control he is given in later life. This may explain the correlation between bad childhood and domestic violence. Patriarchal believes also have a historical background because many traditions and religions treated men as superior to women (Dobash & Dobash, 1979). This also becomes a reason why men believe that they have more rights than their partners. Why Men feel empowering by this? Men, who perpetuate domestic violence, are craving for control in their lives. Family is the only place where they can throw their weight around and therefore they tend to do so. They feel powerful at their house because they bring the money. This makes them feel empowered. Also when they hit or verbally abuse their partner that establishes their superiority over their partner. The role of police is also criticized by feminist because they are not able to stop domestic violence (Stanko, 1990). This is because of the stigma that is attached with domestic violence. Men feel that they cannot be caught and therefore they indulge in domestic violence without the fear of getting caught. Putting an end to Domestic Violence It is important to increase awareness about the subject of domestic violence. Women are usually not aware of their rights and therefore they take violence against them as for granted. Also men should be informed that it is not their birth right to abuse their partners and they are equal to women in all respects. Education and awareness can play a great role in curbing the evil of domestic violence. Also police efforts should be more directed against domestic violence. Policemen should not ignore if they have suspicion of domestic violence. Family matters are usually considered personal therefore police is hesitant in acting. This should not be the case and police should be vigilant. Conclusion Domestic violence is a serious issue in our society. It is important to understand the negative effects of domestic abuse on women health and on children. The suppression of women through domestic violence is mainly because of the perceived superiority to men over women. Awareness should be created regarding the issue so that domestic violence can be ended. Bibliography Campbell, J., Jones, A. S., Dienemann, J., Kub, J., Schollenberger, J., O’Campo, P., Gielen, A. C. & Wynne, C. 2002, Intimate partner violence and physical health consequences, Archives of Internal Medicine, 162(10):1157-1163 Dobash, Dobash, Cavanagh, & Lewis. 2004, Not an Ordinary Killer--Just an Ordinary Guy: When Men Murder an Intimate Woman Partner, Violence against Women, 10(6): 577-605 Dobash & Dobash. (1979), Violence against wives – A case against the patriarchy, Free Press Dobash, R. 1992, Women, violence, and social change, Routledge, London   Stanko, E. 1990, Everyday violence: how women and men experience sexual and physical danger, Pandora, New Jersey Read More