Domestic Abuse : Why Victims Stay

Although we lost Ellen Pence, a woman who changed how domestic violence is addressed, in 2012, there are many lives that are being saved to this day because of her work. Ellen Pence found her calling in 1977 when she began working for the Minneapolis Housing Authority that helped individuals relocate with housing complications (StarTribune, 2010). It was then that she immersed herself through domestic violence cases and set the standard for addressing these cases. Ellen Pence is especially known for establishing the Duluth Program, a program that address batterers in the court systems, and Praxis Training, which are training on addressing domestic violence for law enforcement, advocates, community agencies, and institutions. Pence’s 35 years of service change the way domestic violence cases were handled, educated key players in domestic violence cases, and showed the world what it was like to be a victim of domestic abuse. Without her efforts, many individuals in power addressing these cases would be lost and those to who are victims would not be understood as they are today.

Domestic violence is the most overlooked, misunderstood offense. Anyone can go through it, but many can’t endure the pain it brings. According to (www.helpguide.org), people whose partners abuse them physically and sexually are at a higher risk of being seriously injured or killed. Most people wonder why doesn’t the victim leave the relationship, well it is not that easy. “The question, ‘Why does she stay?’ is code for some people for, it’s her fault for staying,’ as if domestic violence victims intentionally choose to fall in love with men intent upon destroying us” -Leslie Morgan Steiner (www.azquotes.com).

Domestic abuse is a startling issue in today’s society, and there are many different forms of it. Domestic abuse is defined as “the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another” [1]. There are numerous forms of domestic abuse, including both physical and emotional violence. Many people who are trapped in these toxic relationships often feel helpless and worthless, and may think they have no way to escape their situation. However, with the right guidance and support, they can free themselves and emerge as a stronger person.

Leslie Morgan Steiner, TED talk “Why Domestic Violence Victims Don’t leave”, analyze how the violence victims interact with their situation. In her talk, Steiner discusses, why victims don 't leave their abusers, if they know that they are victims of violence and why did not break the silence. Also, Steiner says that the domestic violence can happen to everyone all races, all religion, all income and education levels. However, domestic violence is either a man hitting or abusing of a woman or a woman of a man. In addition, she says that she was able to end her own “Crazy Love” by breaking the silence then, and also in her talk. Steiner, creates a credible argument based on the right amount of emotional appeal. Even Though, her credibility, and statistics were lacking, it helped just to support her position.

Signs of abuse include, but are not limited to, controlling nature, resistant to chance, dismissive, and manipulative behavior. Melinda Smith and Jeanne Segal state that the most telling sign of abuse in the relationship is fearing the other partner (Smith and Segal, 2006). If a woman is afraid of her partner then she may be in an abusive relationship. Men that are abusing women will tear her down and make her feel like she is worth nothing and that she does not deserve any better than an abusive man. An abuser will take away control from her and make her feel worthless. Segal and Smith also state that “abusive behavior and violence is a deliberate choice made by the abuser in order to control you” (Smith and Segal, 2006). An abuser wants to make their victim afraid and they will do certain things to make sure that the victim does not leave. It is also noted that just because there are not any physical signs of abuse, such

On 03/18/2017 at approximately 2132 hours, I was dispatched to 8340 Rd. 46 in the County of Montezuma, and State of Colorado for reports of a domestic disturbance.

The following report will analyse the patterns and trends of domestic abuse across 2011/12, 2012/13, and 2013/14 and two main explanations for its occurrence within society. The addressed explanations are; feminism, which can arguably be theoretically underpinned by conflict theory and Social Learning Theory - devised by Bandura’s in 1977 as cited by Ray (2011) – underpinned by psychological positivism (Burke, 2011).

Each domestic abuse relationship is unique, and has a pattern that holds certain signs, clues, and characteristics that could have helped decide if one were in an unhealthy or abusive relationship. There are significant indicators that are common to all virtual cases of domestic abuse, mainly because people have heard much about domestic abuse, but did not think it applied to their situation. What is domestic abuse, how is it defined for someone to recognize and seek help; coming from someone that has a

The one word that best characterizes the experience of domestic violence victims within the criminal justice system is, "complicated." Victims suffer from a two-fold problem when dealing with the criminal justice system. When dealing with law enforcement and courts, many victims might be not taken seriously or their wishes not respected. This poses a significant problem, as if victims feel they cannot trust the system to help them, they will not seek help in the future when they need it. This, in turn, creates the opposite of the deterrent effect the criminal justice system wants, as abusers learn that their victims will not seek help, allowing them full control over them.

Any kind of abuse can lead to serious physical or mental health problems, including depression, anxiety, pain into private area and changes gastrointestinal disorder. Domestic violence had an impact not just on mood but on other mental health aspects as well. abuse is related to health via a complex matrix of behavioral, emotional, social, and cognitive factors. Abuse can cause suicide or death. Because abuse person faces every day too much stress or depression. So the nurses first responsibility to reduce the abuse person stress and make a safe environment around him or her. Try to help abuse person make her or his self-busy with reading books, talk with their close friends and watch television. Also providing references for psychologists

Among some institutions, there is a tendency to view domestic violence victims as living a “risky life” (Johnson 2014). People who are domestic violence victims experience discrimination, extreme hardships, and poverty; however, victims still attempt to seek help and separation from domestic abuse by using law enforcement and programs offered to shelter domestic violence victims from harm (Currul-Dykeman 2014). Research suggests domestic violence is the primary cause of homelessness because of the laws concept of short-term safety by separation (Johnson 2014). Although the law is faulty, it has raised awareness on the issue of domestic violence and the suggestion of having laws redefined. Because the law in not clear on how to provide long-term safety for domestic violence victims, they are often unattended to and marginalized. They manage to gain a sense of empowerment through the availability of programs such as shelters and counseling. This article would examine the empowerment of domestic violence victims and the ways in which they seek to gain support through programs, participate in law, and improve their circumstances. The analysis that follows includes the attitudes and behaviors of domestic violence victims who experience undergoing the process of separating from their abuser.

Domestic abuse survivors are people that go through the worst and overcome. They find it hard to trust again because the one that was supposed to love them hurt them. They live in fear thinking to their self like did I really get away? Like is it really over? Most people stay an abusive relationships because they believe the person loves them and that’s how you show love.

The most profound assistance we can give to someone in any situation is education. As stated previously those who are uneducated on what exactly domestic abuse is and how it will affect them are more likely to stay in the abusive relationship than those who are educated beforehand. Many schools; and even outside of school programs offer sex education classes. These programs teach our teens about protecting themselves and making smart decisions when where their sexuality is concerned. If our schools teach young adults about protecting themselves sexually why not teach them to protect themselves physically

Recognizing you are in an abusive relationship is sometimes tricky. If your partner makes you afraid, hurt or feel put down, those are signs of abuse. While being in an abusive relationship can be very difficult, there are many ways to cope with it. Other than national call centers willing to help 24/7, there are therapists and friends always ready to listen and help. At the end of the day, your health is what should come first, and if either your mental, physically, or emotionally health is being diminished, changes should be

Domestic violence is a pattern of abusive behavior or coercive control in any relationship that is used by one person to gain or maintain power and control over another. (Violence). Most of society’s think domestic violence is when one of the spouses is abusing the other spouse. Domestic violence can occur between anyone who has lived together at one point of time; couples who have never lived together, but have a child together and family member who has live together in the same household. Domestic violence can happen to anyone, regardless of their class, religion, ethnic background, education, age, gender, disability status, sexual orientation, gender presentation, or immigration status. The domestic violence can place in different categories, such as; emotional abuse, physical abuse, psychological abuse, sexual abuse and financial abuse. Researcher had discovered tactics that the abusers use to control their victims such as; dominance, humiliation, isolation, threats, intimidation, denial and shifting blame. (Helpguide.org).