Why Women Stay in Abusive Relationships

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction4

Background of the Study4

Purpose of the Study5

Problem Statement5

Significance of the Study6

Theoretical Framework7

Chapter 2: Literature Review10

Intimate Partner Abuse14

Explanations for Intimate Partner Violence16

Counseling Concerns20

Sexual Assault and Intimate Partner Rape24

Counseling Concerns25

Economic Abuse as a Dynamic of Battering28

Poverty, Homelessness, and Welfare30

Employment32

Culture-Specific Factors That Influence Service Utilization34

African Americans34

Hispanic Americans35

Asian Americans36

Native Americans36

Culturally Sensitive Interventions For Sexual Abuse37

Chapter 3: Methodology42

Femicide Cases42

Abused Control Women44

Risk Factor Survey Instrument45

Data Analysis45

Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion47

Chapter 5: Conclusion59

Implications for Practice61

Limitations62

References66

Appendix75

Why Women Stay in Abusive Relationships

Chapter 1: Introduction

Background of the Study

The literature from the shelter movement of the early 1970s tended to focus on explanations for why a woman might be vulnerable to such victimization and why she might choose to stay in a relationship characterized by abuse. Much of the initial research and discussion attempted to answer questions about which personality needs might predispose a woman to become the victim of her mate's violence.

Caplan (1984) found that masochism was commonly attributed to battered women. The belief that a woman could not possibly tolerate the abuse unless she had a pathological trait of masochism is often still conveyed to a woman by those in whom she confides about the violence directed toward her (MacLeod, 1987), even though several studies have directly refuted this thesis. Kuhl (1984) examined the relationship between abuse and the need profiles of abused women and found no positive associations for scales consistent with masochistic attitudes (e.g., Abatement and Nurturance).

In a comprehensive study of women battered by their spouse, Walker (1984) found no evidence for the once commonly held belief that women who leave one abusive relationship typically enter another one. On the contrary, her results showed that when a woman who had been battered by a spouse entered another relationship, it was rarely with someone who was violent.

The notion that the victim is somehow to blame for her plight nevertheless persists in many of society's attitudes. Dutton (1988) has attempted to explain this in the context of two typical responses to complex problems: Behavior that cannot be understood by an outside observer must be attributable to some trait indigenous to the person; and the failure of the system to prevent spouse abuse must be indicative of an impediment in the victim herself.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study is to address the issue regarding women's fears on staying with the abusive relationship.

Problem Statement

The question of why women stay in abusive relationships has been studied from different perspectives, including the impact of the abuse on women and their decision to leave, and the types of coping strategies used by abused women. It is important to understand why women stay in abusive relationships and why they do not simply leave the abuser and free themselves of fear and violence. Women's decision to leave or stay in abusive relationships is affected by a myriad of psychosocial, economic, and cultural factors.

Significance of the Study

People often wonder why women stay in violent relationships. Physically violent relationships are often accompanied by sexual and psychological ...