Gender Based Violence

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Gender Based Violence

• Sadia Zafar

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Definitions

• United Nations
• Gender-based violence which involves acts or
  threats of physical, sexual or psychological
  harm/suffering
• Health Canada has adopted the same definition
• Violence can occur within
• Family
• Community
• State

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Violence in community

• Community Physical, sexual and psychological
  violence that occurs within the general community
• Rape
• Sexual harassment
• intimidation at work
• Trafficking
• forced prostitution

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Violence in State

• Physical, sexual and psychological violence
  perpetrated or condoned by the State, wherever it
  occurs.
• Discriminatory laws
• Violence in state custody
• Rape and sexual torture as weapons of war

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Violence Within Family

• Battering.
• Sexual violence including marital rape.
• Dowry-related violence.
• Female infanticide.
• Sexual abuse of female children in the household.
• Female genital mutilation.
• Early marriage/Forced marriage.
• Non-spousal violence/Violence perpetrated against
  domestic workers.

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Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)

• Any physical, sexual, psychological, or financial
  abuse attempted by ones current or former
  intimate partner.
• 1 in 3 women experiences intimate partner
  violence during her life (United Nations, 2006).
• 25 of all Canadian women experience violence by
  their marital partners (Health Canada, 1993).

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Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)

• 7 of women reported being physically or
  sexually victimized by their spouse in the last 5
  years
• About 17 Canadians reported experiencing
  emotional or financial abuse from intimate
  partners
• Intimate partner violence, including both spousal
  and dating violence, accounts for one in every
  four violent crimes reported to police.
• (2009 General Social Survey)

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IPV

• 35 of female college and university students
  reported that they had been physically abused
  (Health Canada, 1999).
• Majority of studies note that 1 in 3 college
  women are physically abused by a male partner
  (Anderson Danis, 2007).
• Many male university students, indirectly and/or
  directly, support their peers abusive conduct
  (DeKesserdy Schwartz, 2000).

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Gender in IPV

• Distinct victimization experiences for men and
  women (Johnson Dawson,2011)
• Frequency and severity greater for female victims
  (AuCoin 2005 Tjaden Thoennes 2000).
• In 2009, 46,918 spousal violence incidents
  reported in Canada, 81.2 of these incidents were
  committed against women
• Women continue to outnumber men nine to one as
  victims of assault by a spouse or partner (Health
  Canada)

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Predictors of IPV

• Young age of the couple (18-24 years)
• Chronic unemployment of male partner
• Men and women who witness abuse as a child
• Presence of emotional abuse in relationship
• (Statistics Canada, 1998)

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Types of Abuse

• Physical abuse
• Sexual abuse
• Psychological abuse
• Emotional abuse
• Economic abuse

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Theoretical Approaches

• ONeil (1998) categorizes theories of IPV in five
  discourses as follows.
• Pathology
• Learned behavior
• Normative social system
• Expressive violence
• Instrumental power

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Feminist Sociopolitical Approach

• IPV is a controlling behaviour.
• IPV creates and maintains male dominance and
  imbalance of power between partners.
• Wife abuse is an instrumental power strategy
  approved by the socio-cultural context of
  patriarchal institutions.
• Types of Patriarchy
• Structure
• Ideological

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Patriarchy

• The United Nations Secretary Generals report
  (2006) All forms of violence against women
  notes
• Violence is used to maintain the hierarchical
  gender roles fashioned by patriarchy
• Systemic gender inequality and womens
  subordination are institutionalized by
  patriarchal ideology.

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Myths about IPV (1)

• Myth 1 Abuse is not a widespread problem
• 20 of all homicides in Canada are domestic
• 25 of women attempting suicide are abused
• Myth 2 An abusive act is usually a one time
  event
• Multiple episodes before disclosure
• Myth 3 Injuries resulting from abuse are not
  serious
• Health costs estimated to be 1.5 billion (Health
  Canada)

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Myths about IPV (2)

• Myth 4 Abuse happens in only certain
  communities.
• IPV transcends the boundaries of nation, culture,
  race, class, and religion.
• Myth 5 Some women like being abused.
• No one likes being abused.
• Myth 6 Men who abuse are mentally ill/ are
  alcoholics.
• Too widespread to be attributed to mental
  illness.
• Myth 7 It is easy for a woman to leave the
  abuser.
• Discuss it a little later

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Psychological Consequences of Violence (1)

• Problems
• Fear, hypervigilance, low self-esteem,
  self-blame, safety issues, difficulty
  sleeping,uncomfortable with sexuality, body
  image, and nightmares.
• Psychiatric IllnessesAnxiety disorders, eating
  disorders, depression, substance abuse, suicide
  attempts, and self-harm, 74 more likely to use
  sedatives and 40 more likely to take sleeping
  pills than women not assaulted. (ARFGroeneveld
  Shane, 1989)

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Psychological Consequences of Violence (2)

• Meta-analysis (Golding ,1999) suggests following
  prevalence rates among female IPV victims.
• 48 for depression
• 64 for PTSD
• 18 for suicide
• suicide 12 times more likely to have been
  attempted by a woman who had been abused by a
  spouse than by a woman who had not been abused
  (United Nations 1989)

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Psychological Consequences for Children (1)

• social disorders (hyperactivity aggressiveness)
  
• emotional disorders (mental health issues)
• delinquency issues (Dauvergne Johnson 2001)
• The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study(1998)
• Childhood exposure to spousal violence adverse
• health, social, and economic effects

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Physical Consequences of Violence

• Bleeding and/or bleeding or internal organs
• Bruising pattern bruises, symmetrical bruises,
  bruises in varying stages of healing
• Injuries to face head, dental damage
• Perforated eardrums
• Broken bones
• Burns (stoves, appliances, acids)

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Cost of Abuse

• Justice Canada Spousal violence in Canada costs
  over 7.4 billion in 2009
• Major proportion intangible costs, pain and
  suffering for victim and family members
• Tangible costs Health care, Criminal justice
  system, Social services , lost income

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Spousal Violence Attrition Pyramid
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Why lack of reporting ?

• Incident had been dealt with another way (58)
• Personal matter" (49)
• Didn't want to involve the police (45)
• considered the incident to be minor (38)
• felt the police couldn't do anything about it
  (33)
• feared revenge from the perpetrator (24)
• (VAWS, 1993).

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Responding to Abuse

• Therapy
• Leave the Relationship
• Go to a shelter

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Therapy (1)

• Abuser
• Feminist psychoeducational model
• Cognitive-behavioral group model
• Marital/Couple
• Only helpful when the relationship between the
  partners alternates as perpetrator and victim
• In cases of classic intimate partner violence,
  marital therapy will not work

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Leaving the Relationship

• Does not stop the abuse.
• Harass, stalk, and harm the woman even resulting
  in femicide (Browne, 1987 Walker, 1989 Walker
  Meloy,1998).
• 70 of the reported injuries from domestic
  violence occurred after the separation of the
  couple (Liss Stahly, 1993).

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Barriers to Leaving (1)

• Economic necessity
• Isolation from friends, family, community
  support, resources
• Fear of retaliation of being alone
• Threats will commit suicide
• hurt their partner/children, other loved ones
  and/or pets, take the children away
• Lack or resources or information about available
  resources

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Barriers to Leaving (2)

• Love and concern for partners well-being Lo
• Hope/belief that partner will changep
• Culture/ religion/ family pressure
• Shame and guilt
• Depression

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Barriers to Leaving (3)

• Belief that the abuse is their fault fault.
• Immigration fear of deportation without
  partners support, fear of separation from
  children, law enforcement
• Children desire to provide them with a
  two-parent home, custody concerns

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Shelters (1)

• Provide for basic living needs, including food
  and childcare for mother and children
• Limited time stay
• Helps to start a new life

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Shelters (2)

• Connect to various services and resources such as
• Legal help
• Counseling
• Support groups
• Services for children
• Employment programs
• Health-related services
• Educational opportunities
• Financial assistance

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Conclusion

• Leaving only a first step.
• Many factors determine if a woman and her
  children can make a new life or will return to
  the abusive relationship.
• Emotional and practical support appears to have
  the greatest effect on psychological and physical
  well-being.
• Need still is far greater than available
  services.