Module 1: Introduction to VAWC

INTRODUCTION

For the past years, women and children have been subjected to violence due
to their vulnerabilities. In cases of violent crimes, men are more likely than women to
be victims of crimes but in Intimate Partner Violence, women are far more likely than
men to be victimized. On the other hand, children are among the most vulnerable
members of our society and need our nurture, care and protection. Millions of
children around the world are the victims of violence, sexual, physical, and emotional
abuse and exploitation daily. Victimization and vulnerability of children on account of
various factors is a truly global phenomenon.

CRIME AND VICTIMOLOGY

INTRODUCTION

The disturbing reality about crimes in the Philippines today is that it is

widespread. Crimes happen anywhere and anybody can be subjected to victimization
especially those vulnerable sectors in the community. Among these are women and
children. There is no home, no community and no region that is exempted from this
reality. Unprecedented numbers of victims are turning to victim assistance programs,
mental health centers, domestic violence shelters, and victim’s compensation
programs.

DEFINITION

1. CRIMINOLOGY – This is the study of crime as a social phenomenon. Edwin

Sutherland (1947) defined the objectives of criminology as the development
of general and verified principles and knowledge regarding the process of
law, crime, and treatment of prevention (Burgess, Regehr & Roberts, 2010).

2. VICTIMOLOGY – This is the study of the victim, including the offender and
society. Also, this is a study of the etiology (or causes) of victimization,
consequences, how the criminal justice system accommodates and assists
the victims, and how the other elements of the society, such as media, deal
 with crime victims (Mendelsohn, 1976). The word victimology was coined in
the mid-1900s.

3. VICTIM – The word victim is derived from the Latin word “victima” and
originally contained the concept of sacrifice. It is also operationally defined
as an individual who has been confronted, attacked, assaulted, or violated
by a perceived predator, and the result is serious short-term as well as long
term physical and/or mental injuries to the crime victims (Burgess, Regehr &
Roberts, 2010).

THE ROLE OF THE VICTIM IN CRIME: VICTIM PRECIPITATION, VICTIM FACILITATION

AND VICTIM PROVOCATION

First studies of crime victims did not portray victims as innocents who were
wronged at the hands of the offender.

• VICTIM PRECIPITATION is defined as the extent to which a victim is

responsible for his or her own victimization. The concept of victim
precipitation is rooted in the notion that, although some victims are not at
all responsible for their victimization, other victims are. Crime victimization
involves at least two people-an offender and a victim- and that both parties
are acting and often reacting before, during and after the incident.

• VICTIM FACILITATION occurs when a victim unintentionally makes it easier

for an offender to commit a crime. A victim may, in this way, be a catalyst
for victimization.

• VICTIM PROVOCATION occurs when a person does something that incites

another person to commit an illegal act. Provocation suggests that without
the victim’s behavior, the crime would not have occurred.
TYPOLOGIES OF CRIME VICTIMS ACCORDING TO BENJAMIN MENDELSOHN
(Mendelsohn, 1976)

TYPOLOGY DEFINITION

1. INNOCENT VICTIM Someone who did not contribute to the

victimization and is in the wrong place at the
wrong time. This is the victim we most often
envision when thinking about enhancing victim
rights.

2. THE VICTIM WITH MINOR Does not actively participate in their

GUILT victimization but contributes to it in some
minor degree, such as frequenting high-crime
areas. This would be a person that continues to
go to a bar that is known for nightly assault.

3. THE GUILTY VICTIM, GUILTY Victim and offender may have engaged in
OFFENDER criminal activity together. This would be two
people attempting to steal a car, rob a store,
sell drugs, etc.

4. THE GUILTY OFFENDER, The victim may have been the primary
GUILTIER VICTIM attacker, but the offender won the fight.

5. GUILTY VICTIM The victim instigated a conflict but is killed in

self-defense. An example would be an abused
woman killing her partner while he is abusing
her.

6. IMAGINARY VICTIM Some people pretend to be victims and are not.

This would be someone falsifying reports.
TYPOLOGIES OF CRIME VICTIMS ACCORDING TO HANS VON HENTIG
(Burgess, 2013; Von Hentig, 1948)

TYPOLOGY DEFINITION

1. YOUNG PEOPLE Immature, under adult supervision, lack

physical strength and lack the mental and
emotional maturity to recognize
victimization

2. FEMALES/ELDERLY Lack of physical strength

3. MENTALLY Can be taken advantage of easily

ILL/INTELLECTUALLY DISABLED

4. IMMIGRANTS Cannot understand language or threat of

deportation makes them vulnerable

5. MINORITIES Marginalized in society, so vulnerable to

victimization.

6. DULL NORMALS Reasonably intelligent people who are naive or

vulnerable in some way. These people are
easily deceived.

7. THE DEPRESSED Gullible, easily swayed, and not vigilant.

8. THE ACQUISITIVE Greedy and can be targeted for scammers who

would take advantage of their desire for
financial gain.

9. THE LONESOME AND Often prone to victimization by intimate

BROKEN-HEARTED partners. They desire to be with someone at
any cost. They are susceptible to manipulation.

10. TORMENTORS Primary abusers in relationships and become

victims when the one being abused turns on
them.

11. BLOCKED, EXEMPTED, AND Enter situations in which they are taken
FIGHTING VICTIMS advantage such as blackmail.
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN – is any act of gender-based violence that results or is
likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women
including threats or such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty whether
occurring in public or private life (DOH, n.d.).

Gender-based violence is any violence inflicted on women because of their sex (DOH,
n.d.).

Domestic Violence/VAW in the family refers to “violence that occurs within the
private sphere, generally between individuals who are related through intimacy,
blood or law” (DOH, n.d.).

VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN – Violence against children includes all forms of

violence against people under 18 years old (WHO, n.d.).

HISTORY OF VIOLENCE AMONG WOMEN AND CHILDREN

1. PRE-COLONIAL PERIOD

• Offered women the greatest opportunities in relation to their social

positions

• Filipino women could hold high positions in their communities (as healers
and priestesses (e.g. Babaylan))

• Men have to respect women. If caught disrespecting, he will be labeled by

the society

RIGHTS OF WOMEN DURING PRE-COLONIALISM

• To be treated as an equal by her husband and to share his honors

• To retain her maiden name

• To freely dispose of the property she had bought into marriage

• To be consulted or informed by her husband about he’s business affairs and

contracts

• To divorce her husband in case of non-support or maltreatment

• To assume leadership in the barangay

• To have a baby or not, whether she is married or not

• To name her children

2. COLONIAL PERIOD (SPANISH OCCUPATION)

• 333 YEARS

• Spanish treated both men and women poorly (‘indios’)

• Spaniards committed acts of violence against Filipino women (e.g.

exploitation, restriction of rights, discrimination, etc.)

3. COLONIAL PERIOD (AMERICAN OCCUPATION)

• Filipino women were still discriminated

• Even though women could vote, the society still preferred male candidates,
and did not let women run for public office.

• Filipino parents were also led to believe that sending their daughters to
secondary and tertiary levels of education was a waste.

• This was because the Filipino women during the American occupation was
largely dependent on her husband

4. COLONIAL PERIOD (JAPANESE OCCUPTION)

• Filipino women were greatly abused and violated

• “Comfort women”

• From 1941-1942 when the Japanese soldiers were just starting to invade the
Philippines- thousands of Filipino women were taken from their homes and
forced to provide the Imperial Japanese Army all kinds of sexual services
 5. POST COLONIAL PERIOD (AFTER WWII)

• More and more women had become politicized

• In the beginning, not too many women were present in mainstream politics

• Eventually, many Filipino women “joined ideological groups while others

became combatants of the rebel movements”

• Various pro-women groups flourished such as MAKABAKA (Malayang

Kilusan ng Bagong Kababaihan), KABAPA (Katipunan ng Bagong Pilipinas),
and GABRIELA (General Assembly Binding Women for Reforms, Integrity,
Equality, Leadership and Action)

WOMEN AND CHILDREN’S RIGHTS

WOMEN’S RIGHTS

1. NATURAL RIGHTS

• There are rights that are not dependent on the laws or customs of any
particular culture or gov’t, and so universal and inalienable.

2. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT

• Employment rights for women include non-discriminatory access of women

to jobs and equal pay. E.g. Maternity rights

3. RIGHT TO SUFFRAGE

• The ideals of women’s suffrage developed alongside that of universal

suffrage and today’s women’s suffrage is considered a right (under the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women)

4. PROPERTY RIGHTS

• Women have this right severely restricted, in law or in practice. For

instance, in some countries women may not leave the home without a male
guardian, or without the consent of the husband

5. INFORMING WOMEN ABOUT THEIR LEGAL RIGHTS

 • The lack of legal knowledge among many women, especially in developing
countries, is a major obstacle in the improvement of women’s situation.
International bodies, such as the United Nations, have stated that the
obligation of states does not only consist in passing relevant laws, but also in
informing women about the existence of such laws, in order to enable them
to seek justice and realize in practice their rights.

6. RIGHT TO HEALTH

• Health is defined by the World Health Organization as “a state of complete

physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of
disease or infirmity”.

• Worldwide young women and adolescent girls are the most affected by
HIV/AIDS

• Against traditional practices (e.g. female genital mutilation)

7. RIGHT TO EDUCATION

• The right to education is a universal entitlement to education. The

Convention against Discrimination in Education prohibits discrimination in
Education.

8. REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

• Reproductive rights rest on the recognition of the basic right of all couples
and individuals to decide freely and responsibly the number, spacing and
timing of their children and to have the information and means to do so,
and the right to attain the highest standard of sexual and reproductive
health.

RIGHTS OF CHILDREN

The full list of rights for children and young people under the age of 18 is set out in
the UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD.

• Children’s rights include the right to health, education, family life, play and
recreation, an adequate standard of living and to be protected from abuse
and harm.
 • Children’s rights cover their developmental and age-appropriate needs that
change over time as a child grows up

FOUR PRINCIPLES UNDER CHILDREN’S RIGHTS

• NON-DISCRIMINATION

o Means that all children always have the same right to develop their
potential in all situations

• BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILD

o Must be “a primary consideration” in all actions and decisions

concerning a child and must be used to resolve conflicts between
different rights.

• RIGHT TO SURVIVAL AND DEVELOPMENT

o Underscores the vital importance of ensuring access to basic

services and to equality of opportunity for children to achieve their
full development

• THE VIEWS OF THE CHILD

o Means that the voice of the child must be heard and respected in
all matters concerning his or her rights.
Module 2: Family

FAMILY

• The family is the basic social group that is united by blood (consanguinity)
and marriage (affinity); one that generally lives together and participates in
economic cooperation; provides security, socialization and companionship;
and aids in reproduction and preservation of the human race.

• It is the most universal social institution.

• The state recognizes the sanctity of the family life and shall protect and
strengthen family as a basic autonomous social institution. It shall equally
protect the life of the unborn from conception.

• The state recognizes the vital role of the youth in nation-building and shall
promote and protect their physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual and social
well-being.

• Consequently, family relations are governed by law and no custom, practice

or agreement destructive of the family shall be recognized or given effect.

• Family relations include those between husband and wife; between parent
and children; and among brothers and sisters, whether full or half-blood.

Functions of the Family

1. Responsible for the addition of new members through reproduction. Society

must maintain a stable population in order to survive. Population growth
provides a competitive advantage that usually enables a society to become
wealthier.

2. Provide physical care for their members, including adults, children, and
dependent elderly. When families are unable to care for their members,
hardship results unless the society is organized to replace the family in this
function. (Eg: Retirement homes)
 3. Socialize children by teaching skills, knowledge, values, and attitudes of the
society. Children who learn these can work and relate to others within
appropriate adult roles.

4. Controlling the behavior of members to maintain order within the family

and the society in which they live. Families monitor and evaluate the
behavior of individuals and provide feedback. This control contributes to the
socialization process and protects the reputation of individuals identified
with a family group within society.

5. Maintain morale and motivate individuals to participate in society.

Commitment to the family may be based on a spiritual sense of duty or
economic necessity. People assume that affective nurturance, meeting the
emotional needs of individuals, is the foundation of our commitment to
each other. Participation in appropriate social roles contributes to the
health of the society as well as providing the means with which families care
for their members.

6. Economic function of producing and consuming goods and services. At one

time, each family produced all the goods and services it consumed and used
only what it could produce. Now individuals sell their time and skills by
producing goods and services within a specialized economy.

Family Model

1. The Corporate Model

• The father is the chief executive officer.

• The mother is the operating officer, and implements the father’s policy and
managing the staff (children) that in turn have privileges and responsibilities
based on their seniority.

• The father makes the most; he is the final word in the corporate family,
intimacy runs to the profit motive.

2. The Team Model

• The father is the head; the mother is the chief of the training table and
cheerleader.

• The children, suffering frequent performance anxiety, play by the rules and
stay in shape with conformity calisthenics.

• In the team family, competition exists – winning is everything.

3. The Military Model

• The father is the general.

• The mother is the guard duty with a special assignment to the nurse corps
when needed. The kinds are the grunts.

• Unruly children are sent to stockade (prison), insubordinate wives risk

discharge.

• Punishment is swift and sadism is called character building.

4. The Boarding School Model

• The father is the rector or headmaster and is in charge of training school

mind and bodies.

• The mother is the dorm counselor who oversees the realm of emotion,
illness, good works, and bedwetting.

• The children are dutiful students.

• The parents have nothing left to learn; there is but teaching and testing.

5. The Theatrical Model

• The father is the producer and also plays the role of the father.

• The mother, the stage manager, doubles in the part of mother.

• The children are the stagehands and also act the roles of girls and boys.
 • No writer is necessary because the lines are scripted, the roles are sex
stereotypes, and the plot is predictable.

Parenting Skills – the natural, accurate and specific ability, experience, knowledge,
intuition, qualities and skills to be an effective and loving parent to a baby, child or
children

Parenting Styles

Parental Responsiveness/Warmth & Parental Demandingness

(Johnson, 2016; Wittenborn, 2002)

• Parental demandingness is the degree to which parents set guidelines for

their children, and how they discipline based on these guidelines. It is also
described as the degree of control the parent exerts over their child, (setting
standards and expectations of conduct).

• Parental responsiveness/warmth is the emotional aspect of parenting.

Responsiveness refers to the degree to which parents attend to their
children's needs and support their children.

1. Authoritative Parenting – The parent demonstrates a responsiveness to the

child’s needs, demandingness (setting expectations of behavior and
consequences for noncompliance), monitoring of the child’s behavior,
providing clear standards of conduct, and discipline based on reasoning
rather than based on power assertion or withdrawal of love. Authoritative
parents provide home environments rich with strict behavioral supervision
with high degrees of emotional support. Within this style of parenting,
children are encouraged to behave with pro-social behavior and to reason
autonomously about moral problems, to respect adults, and to learn to
think independently.

2. Authoritarian Parenting – The parents demonstrates demandingness

(setting expectations of behavior and consequences for noncompliance), are
less responsive to the child’s needs, are more likely to use power assertive
discipline, and may utilize love withdrawal to gain compliance. The parent
 operates with a “do as you are told” style of discipline and does not often
discuss why something was wrong nor does the parent invite moral
discussion with the child. The parent may demonstrate some degree of
warmth but mostly demands respect from the child.

3. Permissive Indulgent Parenting – The parent demonstrates high degrees of

responsiveness, a lack of demandingness (failing to set expectations of
behavior and consequences for noncompliance), uninvolved parenting, and
negative emotionality. The parent demonstrates little control over the child,
sets minimal expectations, and rarely disciplines. The parent basically
befriends their child, treating the child as though they are equals. It is more
important to this type of parent to be liked by their child than to provide
structure and/or discipline. The parent allows the child to make their own
decisions, set their own rules (e.g., curfew, who they date or see socially,
what they eat) rather than provide guidance and education for the child.
The parent’s own self-esteem and emotional needs are met through
interaction with their child as well as through the adult-to-adult relationship
with their child.

4. Permissive Neglectful or Uninvolved Parenting – The parent demonstrates

minimal warmth and minimal control over the child. The parent is often
rejecting of the child and gives the child minimal if any attention or
nurturance. This parent is neglectful in their parenting responsibilities.
Basically the parent provides some or most of the physical necessities for
the child, but has little if any relationship with their child. The motto
“children should be seen but not heard” may apply here. Parents are
consumed with their own life and have little time or concern for their
children. The child is left fending for themselves with little if any structure in
the household. Most of the time the child is basically rejected and ignored
by the parent.

FAMILY VIOLENCE

• Also known as Domestic Violence, Domestic Abuse and Intimate Partner

Violence.

• Any violent act inflicted by one family member on another.

 • A pattern of behavior in any relationship that is used to gain or maintain
power and control over an intimate partner (UN).

• Abuse is physical, sexual, emotional, economic or psychological actions or

threats of actions that influence another person. This includes any behaviors
that frighten, intimidate, terrorize, manipulate, hurt, humiliate, blame,
injure, or wound someone.

Types of Family Violence (RA 9262)

1. Physical Violence

• Acts that include bodily or physical harm.

• Intentionally using force against someone.

2. Sexual Violence

• When someone forces someone else to engage in unwanted sexual

activities, or make them watch or look at inappropriate videos and images.

• An act which is sexual in nature, committed against a woman or her child. It

includes, but is not limited to:

o rape, sexual harassment, acts of lasciviousness, treating a woman

or her child as a sex object, making demeaning and sexually
suggestive remarks, physically attacking the sexual parts of the
victim’s body, forcing her/him to watch obscene publications and
indecent shows or forcing the woman or her child to do indecent
acts and/or make films thereof, forcing the wife and mistress/lover
to live in the conjugal home or sleep together in the same room
with the abuser;

o acts causing or attempting to cause the victim to engage in any

sexual activity by force, threat of force, physical or other harm or
threat of physical or other harm or coercion;

o Prostituting the woman or child.

3. Psychological Violence

• Emotional Abuse

• When someone uses actions or words to control, frighten or isolate another

person or take away their self-respect.

• Acts or omissions causing or likely to cause mental or emotional suffering of

the victim such as but not limited to intimidation, harassment, stalking,
damage to property, public ridicule or humiliation, repeated verbal abuse
and marital infidelity.

• It includes causing or allowing the victim to witness the physical, sexual or

psychological abuse of a member of the family to which the victim belongs,
or to witness pornography in any form or to witness abusive injury to pets
or to unlawful or unwanted deprivation of the right to custody and/or
visitation of common children.

4. Economic Abuse

• Refers to acts that make or attempt to make a woman financially dependent

which includes, but is not limited to the following:

o withdrawal of financial support or preventing the victim from

engaging in any legitimate profession, occupation, business or
activity, except in cases wherein the other spouse/partner objects
on valid, serious and moral grounds as defined in Article 73 of the
Family Code;

o deprivation or threat of deprivation of financial resources and the

right to the use and enjoyment of the conjugal, community or
property owned in common;

o destroying household property;

 o controlling the victims’ own money or properties or solely
controlling the conjugal money or properties.

5. Neglect

• When someone is supposed to care for another but fails to provide them
with their needs.

• The failure of a parent to provide for the development of the child – where
the parent is in a position to do so – in one or more of the following areas:
health, education, emotional development, nutrition, shelter and safe living
conditions.

*Neglect vs. Circumstances of Poverty – neglect can occur only in cases where
reasonable resources are available to the family or caregiver.

6. Elder Abuse

• "a single, or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any
relationship where there is an expectation of trust which causes harm or
distress to an older person" (WHO).

• Elder abuse can take various forms such as financial, physical, psychological
and sexual. It can also be the result of intentional or unintentional neglect.

7. Honor-based Violence

• Term used to describe violence committed within the context of the

extended family which are motivated by a perceived need to restore
standing within the community, which is presumed to have been lost
through the behaviour of the victim.

• A type of intimate partner and family violence that rests on patriarchal

norms which fall under the parameters of coercive control.
 8. Forced Marriages

• A marriage that takes place without the consent of one or both people in
the marriage (USCIS).

*Consent means that you have given your full, free, and informed agreement to
marry your intended spouse and to the timing of the marriage.

• Forced marriage may occur when family members or others use physical or
emotional abuse, threats, or deception to force you to marry without your
consent.

*Forced Marriage vs. Arranged Marriage

• Arranged marriage is a common tradition in many cultures and is not the

same as forced marriage. In an arranged marriage, families may play a role
in choosing the marriage partner, but both individuals are free to choose
whether or not to marry and when to get married. A forced marriage
happens when families or others both arrange the marriage and deny the
individuals to be married the ultimate choice of whether, when, and whom
to marry.
Module 3: Intimate Partner Violence
Definition

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is any behavior within an intimate relationship

that causes physical, psychological, or sexual harm to those in a relationship. It
includes acts of physical aggression (slapping, hitting, kicking, or beating),
psychological abuse (intimidation, constant belittling, or intimidation), forced sexual
intercourse, or any other controlling behavior (isolating a person from family and
friends, monitoring a person’s movements, and restricting access to information or
assistance). This definition includes current and former spouses and dating partners;
it also includes people in both heterosexual and same-sex relationships.

Scope of the Problem

According to the preliminary findings of the 2017 National Demographic and

Health Survey released by the Philippine Statistics Authority, one in four or 26
percent of ever-married women aged 15 to 49 have experienced physical, sexual or
emotional violence by their husband or partner.

Ever married refers to people who have been married at least once in their lives
although their current marital status may not be married.

Legal Responses to IPV

UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women

(CEDAW)

Known as the International Bill of Rights of Women, the Convention on the

Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women is the only human rights
treaty which affirms the reproductive rights of women and targets culture and
tradition as influential forces shaping gender roles and family relations. It affirms
women's rights to acquire, change or retain their nationality and the nationality of
their children.
CEDAW was adopted by the United Nations in 1979 and took effect on September 3,
1981. As of February 2015, it has 188 State Parties that agreed to implement the
provisions of the treaty most importantly taking appropriate measures against all
forms of discrimination and exploitation of women. Consisting of a preamble and 30
articles, it defines what constitutes discrimination against women and sets up an
agenda for national action to end such discrimination.

The Convention defines discrimination against women as "any distinction, exclusion

or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing
or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their
marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and
fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil, or any other
field.

CEDAW also establishes a framework that draws on three over-arching principles:

equality in opportunity, equality in access and equality in results. The Convention
advocates the “substantive” kind of equality both in law (de jure) and in practice (de
facto).

Before CEDAW came into effect on September 3, 1981, the Philippines has signed it
on July 15, 1980 and ratified it on August 5, 1981, the first ASEAN country to do so.
The Philippines also ratified the Optional Protocol to the CEDAW on November 12,
2003.

In co-sponsorship with Russian delegate Tatiana Nikolaeva, Philippines’ Leticia

Ramos-Shahani prepared the first draft of CEDAW adopted by the United Nations as
a basic working paper.

1987 Philippine Constitution

Art II, Sec. 14, Philippine Constitution:

“The State recognizes the role of women in nation-building, and shall ensure the
fundamental equality before the law of women and men.”
Domestic Laws and Instruments

• RA 6955 - Anti-Mail Order Bride Act

• RA 7192 - Women in Nation Building Act

• RA 7322 - Increasing maternity benefits of women in private sector

• RA 7600 - Provides incentives to all government & health institutions with

rooming-in and breast-feeding practices

• RA 7610 - Special Protection of Children from all forms of Child Abuse,

Exploitation & Discrimination

• RA 7655 - Increases the minimum wage of domestic helpers

• RA 7658 - Amending RA 7610 on anti-child labor practices

• RA 7877 - Anti-Sexual Harassment Act

• RA 8042 - Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act

• RA 8353 - Anti–Rape Law of 1997

• RA 8505 - Rape Victim Assistance and Protection Act

• RA 8369 - Family Courts Act

• RA 8972 - Solo Parent’s Welfare Act of 2000

• RA 9208 - Anti-Trafficking Act of 2003

• RA 9262 - Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Law of 2004

• RA 9344 - Juvenile Justice Law

• RA 9710 - Magna Carta of Women

• RA 10361 - The Kasambahay Law

• RA 10354 – Reproductive Health Law

Effects of IPV on victims

Battered Woman Syndrome

Leonore Walker first proposed the term battered woman syndrome in 1979
as a means of describing the effects of IPV on victims. According to Walker (1979),
any woman may find herself in an abusive relationship once. If it occurs a second
time and she remains in that situation, she is described as a battered woman. In her
studies, she found out that battering relationships have a clearly discernible cycle,
and she concluded that battered women respond to events in this cycle in a
predictable pattern. In order to qualify for battered woman syndrome, according to
Walker’s criteria, a woman must have gone through the cycle twice. The battering
cycle has three phases:

1. Tension Reduction- A batterer, in an attempt to reduce his own anxiety and

tension, will begin to inflict to his mate with verbal or minor physical abuse.
The woman responds with anger reduction techniques, aimed at placating
the batterer to avoid a severely abusive episode.

2. Acute Battering Episode- At this time, the victim is subject to severe

physical and verbal abuse, which may include significant injury and threats
of death. At the end of the incident, there is a sharp, predictable reduction
in tension.

3. Loving Attrition- The batterer becomes remorseful, apologetic, and loving.

At this time he also assures the victim that the battering incident will not
happen again. This loving attrition reinforces the woman’s commitment to
the relationship by making her feel loved and protective of her partner’s
evident vulnerability. This phase may last for an extended period of time,
but invariably it fades as the tension mounts and the cycle begins again.
Power and Control Wheel (Mills, 2008)

State of Learned Helplessness

The pattern of control and abuse can lead to a state of learned helplessness.
That is the victim has learned to accept abuse as a way of life and does not believe
that she has any influence on its occurrence. Thus, with repeated battering and
repeated threats of future violence, a victim becomes passive. Furthermore, the
victim’s cognitive ability to perceive success is altered. The victim does not believe
that any response will result in a positive outcome. Finally, the victim’s sense of
emotional well-being becomes precarious, rendering the victim vulnerable to
depression and anxiety (Walker, 1979).
Factors that inhibit the ability of the victims to leave abusive relationships

Ending an intimate relationship is very difficult, even more so when has been
destroyed by the batterer. Understanding why battered women do not “just leave” is
key to the delivery of compassionate and effective care. While the majority of
women do leave or manage to make the violence end (Campbell et al., 1994 ), there
are numerous barriers to leaving an abusive relationship.

• Gender Roles and Lack of Family Support - Traditional gender roles often
contribute to women feeling obligated to stay in a relationship, even if it is
abusive. Women are often expected to stay in a marriage, and they may
consider themselves a failure if they leave their husband. Furthermore, if
they have seen a model of a violent relationship in their own homes when
they were children, they may assume that violence is just part of life and
marriage. Assuring women that violence is unacceptable can help them
overcome the sense of guilt that victims of violence often feel.

• Concern for Her Own Safety - Studies have shown that deciding to leave a
violent relationship can be more dangerous for the woman than staying in
that relationship. Evidence suggests that right after leaving a relationship,
women are more at risk of stalking, murder and attempted murder
(Campbell et al., 2003). This is one reason why women in situations of
violence are probably the best judge of whether and when it is safe for them
to leave.

• Financial Concerns – As a result of traditional gender roles, men are often

the primary earner in their families, and women may not have developed
the skills or the opportunities to support themselves financially. In other
cases, women earn an income, but their husbands control the couple’s
finances and assets. In some settings, legislation ensure child support
following divorce; in other settings, such laws don’t exist or simply are not
enforced. Without access to income, women’s options for leaving a
relationship are often limited, particularly when there are few services to
help women make the transition to economic independence.

• Concern for Her Children’s Well Being - In many cases, women may fear for
their children’s safety in the event that they decide to leave a relationship.
Furthermore, as noted above, men are often the financial providers for their
 families, and women may feel that they simply cannot support their children
on their own.

• Lack of Assistance or Services - Even if a woman feels ready to leave a

violent relationship, she may not find support or services to help implement
this decision. For example, if she does not have family members or friends
who will provide housing for her and her children, the woman may need to
find a shelter that can guarantee her safety and well being, as well as that of
her children.

• Contradictory feelings - Often women have loved their abusive partner, and
they may want to be with him, holding out hope that he will change.
Providers should be careful not to judge the woman for this decision.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Symptoms of this disorder include a re-experiencing of the assault through

dreams, flashbacks and intrusive thoughts, a numbing of responsiveness, and
persistent anxiety and arousal. However, in some situations PTSD is inadequate to
explain the significant impacts of repeated abuse over long periods of time. Judith
Lewis Herman (1992) proposed a new diagnosis to explain cluster of symptoms
experienced by someone who endured the situation of abuse and totalitarian control
over long period of time. According to Herman (1992), survivors of prolonged abuse
develop characteristic personality changes that affect both their sense of identity
and their ability to form and sustain interpersonal relationships. Elements of this
disorder includes the following:

• Alterations in self-perception, including shame, guilt, self-blame, and sense

of being completely different from others;

• Alterations in perceptions of the perpetrator, such as ascribing unrealistic

power to the perpetrator, idealizing the perpetrator, or rationalizing the
abusive behavior;

• Alterations in relations with others, including isolation and withdrawal,

distrust or over trusting behavior, and disruption in relationships;
 • Alterations in systems of meaning, such as loss of faith, hopelessness, and
despair.

"Domestic" Stockholm Syndrome is a coping mechanism to endure continual

intimate violence. Victims are always thinking about their survival and how they can
control their non-controllable environment. Victims are in a constant sensation of
numbness separating from a part of themselves yet holding on to the piece of reality
so they don't completely disconnect. They are continually strategizing to emotionally
survive and in order to do this, victims focus on their abuser's kindness rather than
his brutality.

Intimate Partner Violence in Same-Sex Couples

IPV in same sex couples has been relatively unexplored in both professional
and research literature.

• Women in lesbian relationships are reported to have higher levels of

violence.

• In one study, 50% of participants indicated that violence in their same-sex

relationship was bidirectional, that is, both partners were physically violent
at some point.

• In many ways, violence in same-sex relationships is similar to that in

heterosexual relationships. For example, there is often a cycle of violence,
and then followed by a period of reconciliation and remorse.

• In addition, the level of violence tends to build over time. Social isolation,
minimizing the abuse, victim blame, and a belief that the offender will
change are also common features.

• In other ways, issues are intensified for people in a same-sex relationship

who are battered. That is, there is a fear of exposure and possible rejection
from family and friends upon reporting based on the victim’s sexual
orientation. In lesbian relationships, victims also confront a political agenda
that has identified violence as a male issue.
 • Legal issues can also form an additional barrier for same-sex couples
because advances in laws that protect victims from violence in intimate
relationship have been primarily directed at heterosexual relationships.

Child Witnesses of IPV

Even when children in homes where IPV is present are not victims of direct
abuse themselves, there is considerable evidence that these children suffer the
aftereffects of violence.

• Mothers who experience more severe forms of physical abuse against

themselves are more likely to report that their children are forced to watch
the abuse, suggesting that this is part of strategy for control and
intimidation (Mbilinyi, Edleson, Hagemeister & Beeman, 2007).

• Children who are exposed to IPV demonstrate:

o increased internalizing behaviors, including depression, anxiety,

and social withdrawal;

o increased externalizing behaviors, including hyperactivity and

aggression;

o more social integration problems;

o lower self-esteem;

o lower school performance.

• Another outcome of child abuse and children witnessing abuse is the

possibility of becoming an abuser later in life. Straus and Gelles (1980) found
that men who were exposed to domestic violence as children were three
times more likely to grow up to become perpetrators of IPV. When child
abuse and witnessing abuse are combines, the contributions to IPV are
intensified.
CONTINUUM OF IPV ( Roberts & Roberts, 2005)

Level 3
Level 1 Level 2 Level 4 Level 5
Intermittent
Short-Term Intermediate Chronic/Predictable Homicidal
long-term
Less than 1
year Long-term Long-term
duration; Several months committed relationship; maybe Variable but
Usually to 2 years; relationship; a religious or often long
College of cohabitating maybe has cultural element to term
High School children commitment
Students
Numerous
Several hundred
1-3 incidents 3-15 incidents 4-30 incidents violent
incidents
incidents
Severe and
Violence
Pushing, intense
Frequent, escalates to
Shoving episode with
Moderate to predictable pattern homicide and
sometimes no warning;
severe injuries of abuse often life-
hit with long periods
involving substances threatening
objects between
injuries
episodes
Victim leaves Victim leaves
Stays until Victim has
after first, due to bruises
children grow Abuse continues limited
second or or injury;
up; Stays for until abuser is education or
third Caring support
status or arrested, dies, resources;
incident; system,
prestige; No hospitalized; Few Victim suffers
Caring parents,
other support financial resources from PTSD or
Support friends, new
systems complex PTSD
System partner.
Batterer Typologies

These typologies are useful for two (2) reasons: (1) predicting risk of future
violence and (2) predicting treatment success.

According to Elbow (1977)

1. The Controller, who sees his partner as an object to be controlled.

2. The Defender, who expects his partner to love and forgive him no matter
how much he abuses her.

3. The Approval Seeker, who is so insecure that he cannot tolerate the

rejection implicit in his partner’s leaving and often threatens her with death.

4. The Incorporator, who sees his partner as an extension of himself and often
threatens violence because her leaving is such a threat to his ego.

According to Gondolf (1988)

1. Sociopathic Batterer engages in high levels of physical abuse and emotional

abuse, is likely to be violent outside the home, and is likely to have been
arrested for violent and non-violent crimes.

2. Anti-Social Batterer is less likely to have been arrested than sociopathic

because this batterer is generally violent and verbally and physically abusive
within intimate relationship.

3. Typical Batterer commits less severe verbal and physical abuse than either
of the preceding types, is less likely to use a weapon, and is generally less
violent outside the home.
According to Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994)

1. Family Only

• Least Marital Violence

• Lowest levels of psychological and sexual abuse

• Least violence outside the home

• Little of no psychopathology

• Violence resulting from a combination of stress and risk factors

(childhood witnessing IPV)

• Lack of generalized hostility to women

• Remorse leading to lower risk of escalating violence

2. Dysphoric-Borderline

• Moderate to severe wife abuse

• Not much violence outside the home

• Most psychologically distressed

• Background of parental abuse and rejection

• Most likely to evidence borderline characteristics (e.g. emotional

liability, intense unstable personal relationships, fear of rejection,
jealousy)

3. Generally Violent-Antisocial

• Moderate to Severe levels of marital violence

• Highest levels of extrafamilial violence

 • Most likely to have antisocial personality disorder (criminal behavior,
arrests, substance abuse)

• High levels of family of origin violence

• Associates with deviant peers

• Marital violence is part of general use of aggression.

HOMICIDE IN THE CONTEXT OF IPV

Risk Factors Associated with Homicide in IPV (Campbell, et. al, 2003)

• Abusers with lower level of education

• Abusers with access to firearms

• Use of illicit drugs by abuser

• Abuser separated from victim

• Highly controlling abuser

• No previous abuser arrests for IPV

• Having a stepchild in the home

• Abuser previously threatened victim with a weapon.

INTERVENTION PROGRAMS IN IPV

Intervention Programs related to Intimate Partner Violence fall into three (3)
broad categories: programs for child witnesses of violence, which are aimed at
preventing future harm; programs for victims of violence, which are aimed at
providing emergency assistance and increasing available choices; and programs for
batterers, which are aimed at stopping violent behavior.
Interventions for Victims of Intimate Partner Violence

• Shelters for victims of domestic violence

o The first line of intervention for victims of intimate partner violence

is ensuring safety. Shelters have security measures that often
involve secret locations, electronic security, and arrangements with
local police offices.

• Hotlines or Providing counselor

o Other safety programs involve hotlines or provide counselors who

work with victims to develop a safety plan.

• Group Work Model

o Even when couples chose to remain together, current clinical

wisdom suggests that both victim and offender fare better in
gender-specific programs aimed at enhancing self-esteem,
recognizing the violence, and changing attitudes and behaviors.
Groups reduce isolation, normalize the woman’s experience, allow
for an environment where victims can challenge one another for
self-blaming statements or for beliefs that minimize the abuse, and
allow victims to support one another in the difficult transition to
change.

Interventions for Child Witness

• Crisis Intervention

o This may be necessary at times of acute distress, such as when

children enter a shelter. The focus of this intervention is to make
the children feel safe, normalize the child’s feelings, and develop a
plan for when the children feel that either they or their parent are
at risk.

• Group Therapy
 o This can provide support, education, problem-solving skills, and
coping skills. Many children benefit from the positive, fin
atmosphere where they feel validated and appreciated. However,
group treatment may be contraindicated for children with
particularly poor social skills who are at risk of further rejection
(Vickerman & Margolin, 2007).

o Group Treatments are designed to be specific to different

developmental stages. Interventions for younger children often
incorporate play. Interventions for adolescents draw on adult-
oriented treatment models but attend to unique challenges of
adolescents, including peer group pressures and risk-taking.

o Parents’ and children’s groups are a newer model of intervention

that teaches improved parenting skills and emphasizes discipline
techniques that do not involve violence or psychological abuse. The
goal is to increase positive and supportive parenting techniques
and reduce coercive interactions. These groups also work to
improve relationship between the parent and child. Essentially, the
abused parent is encouraged to move beyond his or her own
distress to be available to and support the child.

Interventions for Offenders

• Reducing anger and aggressive behavior

o Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

o Psychoeducational approaches were also effective in reducing

aggressive acts of violence in intimate relationships.