Although an anecdotal association between communication and family violence was noted early in the family violence literature, a communication approach to family violence has been underrepresented in the literature. This book is a welcome contribution to the literature because it demonstrates that the connection between communication and family violence is much more complex than a skills deficit of one or more members of a violent relationship. --Gail Whitchurch, Department of Communication Studies, Indiana University Adding an innovative perspective to traditional psychological and sociological approaches, Family Violence from a Communication Perspective lays out a new theoretical framework for understanding and resolving abusive family interactions. This exceptional volume features contributions from a variety of disciplines that examine the interactional processes at the core of domestic abuse, aggression, and violence. The contributors explore the development of violence in the family, beginning with courtship violence, proceeding through marital violence, and perpetuated through parent-child violence. Providing keen insight, the chapters examine the commonalities and differences inherent in emotional, psychological, verbal, and sexual abuse and how they all stem from basic communication problems. An essential resource for students and scholars in communication, family studies, relationship studies, psychology, sociology, and women's studies, Family Violence from a Communication Perspective also offers a refreshing viewpoint for professionals in the human services.

Ronald T. Potter-Efron consciously connects anger management and domestic violence, two long separated fields, and addresses treatment options and intervention methods that meet the needs of individual clients, couples, families, and groups. Therapists, counselors, social workers, and other treatment specialists will find this book a useful overview and reference for anger and anger management techniques as well as domestic violence approaches. This new edition is split into four distinct sections: * A description of anger and domestic violence focused upon helping clients use the principles of neuroplasticity to dramatically alter their behavior * Assessment for anger problems and/or domestic violence * Group treatment for individuals with anger problems and/or domestic violence * Individual, couples, and family treatment of these concerns. Woven through this book is a fair and balanced treatment of gender issues, reflected in the diversity of case examples that address jealousy, chronic anger, behavioral problems, group and individual counseling, and more. Readers are also shown how anger develops and can lead to verbal and physical outbursts, the five types of rage reactions, and how to treat anger turned inward. Potter-Efron also details four different approaches to treating anger: behavioral, cognitive, affective, and existential/spiritual. Mental health professionals are provided numerous questionnaires and worksheets to utilize with their clients. Handbook of Anger Management and Domestic Violence Offender Treatment is an essential guidebook that illustrates effective theory and practice.

Arguing that law must be looked at holistically, this book investigates the 'hidden gender' of the so-called neutral or objective legal principles that structure the law addressing violence against women. Adopting an explicitly feminist perspective, it investigates how legal responses to violence against women presuppose, maintain and perpetuate a certain context that may not in fact reflect women's experiences. Carline and Easteal draw upon relevant legislation, case law and secondary studies from a range of territories, including Australia, England and Wales, the United States, Canada and Europe, to contextualize and critique different policy responses. They go on to examine the potential and limits of law, making recommendations for best practice models of policymaking and law reform. Aiming to help improve government, community and legal responses to women who experience violence, Shades of Grey - Domestic and Sexual Violence Against Women: Law Reform and Society will assist law-makers, academics, policymakers and a wider audience in understanding the complexities of violence against women.

Overwhelmingly, it is women who are the victims of domestic violence and this book puts women s experiences of domestic violence at its centre, whilst acknowledging their many diverse and complex identities.

Concentrating on the various forms of domestic abuse and its occurrence and manifestations within different contexts, it argues that gender is centrally implicated in the unique factors that shape violence across all these areas. Individual chapters outline the experiences of:

• Mothers
• Older women
• Women with religious affiliations
• Refugee women
• Rural women
• Aboriginal women
• Women in same-sex relationships
• Women with intellectual disabilities.

Exploring how domestic violence across varying contexts impacts on different women s experiences and understandings of abuse, this innovative work draws on post-structural feminist theory and how these ideas view, and potentially allow, gendered explanations of domestic violence. "Domestic Violence in Diverse Contexts" is suitable for academics and researchers interested in issues around violence and gender. "

Over the past 25 years, developing coordinated responses to intimate partner violence and sexual violence has improved both perpetrator accountability, and victim safety and self-determination. However, preventing intimate partner violence and sexual violence from occurring is beyond the ability of any one type of organization. Preventing this violence requires a network of individuals, groups and organizations who coordinate and assess their efforts on an ongoing basis. This volume provides theoretical and practical guidance for the development of state and local prevention systems that hold the potential to eliminate persistent social problems. The development of prevention systems was informed by the data-driven public health model, systems theory and the ecological systems perspective. Strengthening Systems to Prevent Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Violence offers guidance on how to gain participation of the right partners in developing a prevention system, and how to focus the work of that system on the critical areas of planning, implementation and capacity building. The guidance, resources and experience shared in this important collection will be invaluable to all those working towards the prevention of intimate partner violence and sexual violence. This book is based on a special issue of the Journal of Family Social Work.

I found this book to be penetrating, easy to read, and very thought provoking. . . . It really is an excellent treatment of a sensitive subject. I highly recommend it. --Nicolette Jackson, Re-Entry Center of Orange County Community College, Costa Mesa, California "Mollie Whalen's book Counseling to End Violence Against Women is subversive in the best sense of the word. She has tackled head-on the challenge of a social action approach to working with abused women. The book is provocative, challenging the reader to pursue fundamental social change in the practice of counseling victims of domestic violence." --Ruth A. Brandwein, The University of Utah "After years of heavy psychologizing discourse, a book has finally come along that places initiation into the women's movement at the core of counseling violated women. Mollie Whalen cuts through professionalization and brings the political back into the process of counseling women. A wonderfully subversive work." --Bonnie Burstow, Private Practice, Toronto Feminist theory has viewed violence against women as a result of a male-dominated society, but traditional counseling models for battered women have largely failed to encourage social change as a solution to this disturbing epidemic. Offering challenging arguments on the power of the counseling relationship to initiate change, Counseling to End Violence Against Women unites feminist and radical feminist theory and counseling practice to promote women's liberation from violence and sexual oppression. In her comprehensive model, author Mollie Whalen examines the historical roles of the women's movement and the battered women's movement in relation to the development of a politically subversive approach to counseling. Whalen's model focuses not only on empowering individual women but on seizing the collective power of women to end their victimization. Grounded in theory, this practical model also addresses professional issues that confront counselors in their work with battered women. In Counseling to End Violence Against Women, Whalen reconstructs the role of counseling with victimized women and promotes a valuable model for use in treatment and training. Counselors and counseling students will find her perspective challenging and invaluable.

Domestic violence is a major public health concern, affecting millions worldwide. It is underreported, often devastating and sometimes ends in murder. In Toxic Couples: The Psychology of Domestic Violence, Anna Motz integrates psychological and criminological data with clinical illustrations and discussion of current high-profile cases. She examines the complex manifestations and multiple causes of intimate partner violence. Motz disentangles the roles played by those involved and examines the addictive nature of these damaging partnerships. The book describes various forms of abuse, including physical, sexual and emotional, and analyses how intimate partner violence can escalate to murder. She explores important factors including: the role of addiction; homelessness and vulnerability; the intergenerational transmission of abuse; sadomasochistic relationships; honour-based violence. The book emphasizes the significance of female- as well as male-perpetrated violence and outlines the powerful impact on the children of abusive parents, extending the clinical awareness of professionals working with those affected. Toxic Couples: The Psychology of Domestic Violence is ideal for clinicians working with the victims and perpetrators of intimate partner violence, for students of psychology, gender studies and social care courses and for anyone interested in the psychological forces behind violence in relationships. ]

As mental-health professionals see increasing numbers of women arrested for domestic violence, the need for effective resources also increases. Choosing Nonviolence fills this void, providing an interactive and comprehensive treatment tool.

If you are a group leader, Choosing Nonviolence will provide materials to deepen your current group curriculum. Interactive lessons and exercises cover important topics such as trust, respect, parenting, substance abuse, safety planning, and achieving nonviolence. Each chapter contains stories from actual group members to illuminate important dynamics as well as "tool" exercises designed to provide an opportunity for your group members to learn vital skills.

If you are a group member, you will find this book to be an important supplement to the work you are doing in group. The personal stories from women who have been in group will show you how they have stumbled and succeeded on their path to change. You will get to learn from these experiences and will see how you can integrate the lessons into your own life. The exercises will enhance your participation in group, and the homework assignments will deepen your growth outside your counseling time.

Featuring cutting-edge information from the international arena, Out of the Darkness pulls together into one seminal volume the work of emerging scholars and key figures in the field. Edited by Glenda Kaufman Kantor and Jana Jasinski, this book provides a comprehensive and interdisciplinary package of the newest generation of investigation and theory. Professionals and researchers in child welfare, mental health, and criminal justice fields will want to read this book to keep up with the latest controversial topics; international studies; theory, methods, assessment, and interventions; and ethical and cultural issues related to both child and partner abuse. Chapters address pressing questions such as: Is wife abuse declining? Are child homicides increasing? Does couple treatment work in violent marriages? From this volume several noteworthy findings emerge, including the wide variations in the forms, types, and consequences of abuse; the need for support and change in both victim and batterer behaviors; the overdue move toward expertise and sensitivity when dealing with affected populations; and much more. Out of the Darkness makes a contribution to the field on a par with other classics. It is a must read for advanced students, researchers, practitioners, activists, and policymakers concerned with any or all aspects of family violence.

Feminist Advocacy: Gendered Organizations in Community-based Responses to Domestic Violence examines victim advocacy through a gendered organizations perspective. This monograph draws from in-depth interviews with twenty-six domestic violence victim advocates to examine their experiences with gendered policies and practices in the justice system, child protective services, and shelters. Andrea J. Nichols explores justice system interventions related to pro-arrest, dual arrest, no-drop prosecution, protective orders, and the actions of police and judges. In addition, she examines policies and practices related to child protective services that negatively affect battered women, such as charges for failure to protect and lost custody. Nichols also explores the most contentiously debated shelter policies, including curfew, confidentiality, substance abuse, entrance requirements, admitting adolescent boys, and mandatory classes. Drawing from advocates' narratives of their experiences, Feminist Advocacy bears significant implications for policy and practice in community-based responses to domestic violence. This book will prove especially valuable to anyone who studies or works in the fields of social work, human services, criminal justice, or criminology, including advocates, practitioners, students, academic researchers, and those interested in intimate partner violence.

This book explores changing patterns of domestic violence in Asia. Based on extensive original research in the Maldives, it argues that forces of globalisation, consumerism, Islamism and democratisation are changing the nature of domestic relations, with shifting ideas surrounding gender and Islam being particularly significant. The book points out that domestic violence has been relatively low in the Maldives in comparison with other Asian countries, as a result of, the book argues, a history of relatively equal gender relations, an ideology of masculinity that is associated with calmness and rationality where violence is not considered an acceptable means of dealing with problems, and flexible marriage and divorce practices. The book shows how these factors are being undermined by new ideas which emphasise the need for wifely obedience, increasing gender inequality and the right of husbands to be coercive.

Rape in marriage is a global problem affecting millions of women - it is still legal in many countries and was only criminalized in all U.S. states in 1993. In much of the world, marital rape is too often understood as an oxymoron due to the fact that the ideology of permanent consent underlies the legal and cultural definitions of sex in marriage. From Vietnam to Guatemala to South Africa and beyond, this volume examines how cultural, legal, public health, and human rights policies and practices impact intimate partner violence. While legal and cultural conceptions of marital rape vary widely - from criminal assault to wifely duty - this volume offers evidence from different societies that forced sex undermines the physical and psychological well-being of the women who experience it, regardless of their cultural context. Globally, the nature of marriage is changing and so are notions of individual choice, love, intimacy, and rigid gender roles. Marital Rape documents wide ranging and fluid understandings of sex, consent, and rape in marriage; such an array of perspectives demands an international and interdisciplinary approach to the study of sex and gender-based violence. This text brings together an international group of scholars from the fields of anthropology, sociology, criminology, law, public health, and human rights; their work points to the importance of understanding the lived experience of sexual violence for the design of effective and culturally sensitive public policy and practice.

Intimate partner violence is now recognised as a serious human rights abuse and increasingly as an important public health problem with severe consequences for women's physical, mental and sexual health. Therefore, a comprehensive understanding of intimate partner violence is an essential aspect of good-quality social work practice. This is an accessible introduction to the complexities of social work practice with abused women, as well as men. Designed for those new to practice in this area, it outlines and explores some of the key issues from an international perspective, such as the role and responsibilities of a social worker, prevalence rates and research around causes and consequences. It includes chapters on working with women with additional vulnerabilities, working with perpetrators, impacts on physical and mental health, child protection issues, assessment and intervention strategies, and long-term approaches. Social Work and Intimate Partner Violence is an up-to-date book bringing together all the most important information in the area for social workers, and is essential reading for all students and newly qualified professionals.

About half of the women in the United States and Canada have been physically or sexually assaulted after the age of 16. The figures in other countries are similar. Written by an outsider (an anthropologist) and an insider (a spousal abuse survivor), this book offers a humanistic, rather than statistical, overview of the problem of spousal abuse. It is based on an extensive set of interviews with abused women and individuals who seek to help them -- shelter workers, police officers, marriage counselors. More particularly, it follows four women as they move through the steps they must follow to extricate themselves from an abusive relationship and then get on with their lives. The reader witnesses their success and failures as they face a task that is both necessary and daunting, and the effects that spousal abuse (and attempts to stop the abuse) have on an ever-widening circle of people.

This book illustrates how society in general, and individuals and organizations in particular, help and hinder the process of extrication -- often at the same time. By analyzing the solutions, and their implications, that have been offered to and by the abused women, the authors arrive at a set of alternative solutions that could significantly reduce the incidence of spousal abuse in the future.

Acclaimed activist and scholar Gill Hague recounts the inspiring story of the domestic violence movement in the UK and beyond from the 1960s onwards in this captivating book. Memories, poems and interviews with activists, practitioners and abuse survivors shed new light on a period of immense change, shaped by a generation of feminist pioneers. From the women's liberation movement until now, this book showcases the campaigning zeal with which policies, services and awareness-raising on gendered violence in the UK and across the world were built, including for Black and minority women. This fascinating history will inform and inspire new ways forward within the domestic violence movement.

When Zoe was taken into care at the age of 13, she thought she was finally going to escape from the cruel abuse she had suffered throughout her childhood. Then social services placed her in a residential unit known to be 'a target for prostitution', and suddenly Zoe's life was worse than it had ever been before. Abused and ostracized by her mother, humiliated by her father's sexual innuendos, physically assaulted and bullied by her eldest brother, even as a young child Zoe thought she deserved the desperately unhappy life she was living. 'I've sharpened a knife for you,' her mother told her the first time she noticed angry red wounds on her daughter's arms. And when Zoe didn't kill herself, her mother gave her whisky, which she drank in the hope that it would dull the miserable, aching loneliness of her life. One day at school Zoe showed her teacher the livid bruises that were the result of her mother's latest physical assault and within days she was taken into care. Zoe had been at Denver House for just three weeks when an older girl asked if she'd like to go to a party, then took her to a house where there were just three men. Zoe was a virgin until that night, when two of the men raped her. Having returned to the residential unit in the early hours of the morning, when she told a member of staff what had happened to her, her social worker made a joke about it, then took her to get the morning-after pill. For Zoe, the indifference of the staff at the residential unit seemed like further confirmation of what her mother had always told her - she was worthless. Before long, she realised that the only way to survive in the unit was to go to the 'parties' the older girls were paid to take her to, drink the drinks, smoke the cannabis and try to blank out what was done to her when she was abused, controlled and trafficked around the country. No action was taken by the unit's staff or social workers when Zoe asked for their help, and without anyone to support or protect her, the horrific abuse continued for the next few years, even after she left the unit. But in her heart Zoe was always a fighter. This is the harrowing, yet uplifting story, of how she finally broke free of the abuse and neglect that destroyed her childhood and obtained justice for her years of suffering.

ABC of Domestic and Sexual Violence is a practical guide for all health care professionals who are looking after abused individuals (whether knowingly or not) and who wish to learn more in order to help their patients. It employs a positive and hands on approach, emphasising simple history taking skills and clinical tips and pitfalls to help demystify what is often considered a sensitive or difficult subject area. This new ABC title covers background and epidemiology, including: international and cultural perspectives, common presentations, how to identify abuse, and guidance on subsequent acute and longer-term medical and psychosocial interventions. It provides guidance on legal perspectives including documentation and sources of help and advice. While focusing mainly on women, it will also cover aspects relating to children and men. It also incorporates victim testimonies and case scenarios throughout. From a multidisciplinary team of contributors ABC of Domestic and Sexual Violence is ideal for all general practitioners, accident and emergency, practice nurses, health visitors, midwives, social workers, and other primary and secondary care health care professionals.

One would expect a welfare state such as Sweden to compare favorably with the United States regarding implementation of public policies and programs. Surprisingly, the author comes to quite different conclusions: in studying the treatment of battered, raped and sexually-harassed women in the two countries, she has found that, contrary to conventional expectation, the ability of the decentralized American state to innovate effectively has been consistently underestimated, whereas Sweden's ability to do the same has often been exaggerated.

Domestic violence has emerged as a significant public policy issue of transnational character and mobilization in the postcommunist era in Europe and Eurasia, as global forces have interacted with the agendas of governments, local and international women s groups, and human rights activists. The result of extensive collaboration among scholars and activist-practitioners many from postcommunist countries this volume examines the development of state policies, changes in public perceptions, and the interaction of national and international politics."

Caught between violent partners and the bureaucratic complications of the US Immigration system, many immigrant women are particularly vulnerable to abuse. For two years, Roberta Villalon volunteered at a nonprofit group that offers free legal services to mostly undocumented immigrants who had been victims of abuse. Her innovative study of Latina survivors of domestic violence explores the complexities at the intersection of immigration, citizenship, and violence, and shows how inequality is perpetuated even through the well-intentioned delivery of vital services. Through archival research, participant observation, and personal interviews, Violence Against Latina Immigrants provides insight into the many obstacles faced by battered immigrant women of color, bringing their stories and voices to the fore. Ultimately, Villalon proposes an active policy advocacy agenda and suggests possible changes to gender violence-based immigration laws, revealing the complexities of the lives of Latina immigrants as they confront issues of citizenship, gender violence, and social inequalities.

"Batterer Intervention Systems is a very important book--probably the most important one on batter interventions and evaluations to date.... The writing style is very strong, conversational, and kept my interest. It presents complex information in a non-technical way. The book should be very accessible to a wide audience."

?JEFFREY L. EDLESON, Professor of Social Work, University of Minnesota,

The first edition of this book was also the first volume in the Issues in Children's and Families' Lives book series. Like the others in the series, this volume is devoted to issues affecting children and their families. The decision to devote the first volume to family violence was made because it was recognized that violence remains one of the major factors undermining the quality of family life, especially for women and children. It can be acknowledged that there has been some progress in the areas of social policy and clinical practice and yet the number of individuals and families affected by violence is still at an alarming level. The chapters in this second edition testify to the ongoing expansion of knowledge in the field of family and intimate violence. They attempt to summarize some of the best of current scholarship conducted by family violence researchers. Several chapters address issues of prevention, treatment, and intervention services. The contributors are all leaders in the field and reflect a variety of disciplines and different approaches. The diverse perspectives brought to bear on the subject by professionals from a range of disciplines add to the richness of this volume.

Natalie has established herself as an expert on domestic violence through over a decade of work in this area, and her own personal experiences of domestic abuse.

Queer lives remain at the margins of most academic inquiry into domestic violence. When same-sex violence is considered, it is most commonly as an added on, without close attention to the specificity and meaning of violence within the lives of lesbian/ gay/ bisexual/ transgender/Two-Spirit and queer people (LGBTQ). This edited volume seeks to change this discourse by bringing together the most innovative research about intimate partner violence that is specific to the lives of LGBTQ people. Including contributions based on research conducted in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, the volume is framed around central themes: conceptualizing violence; exploring differing spaces and lived experiences of violence; and the ethical challenges of responding to violence. The contributors also consider issues of race, class, gender, sexuality and other social differences, moving beyond a simple gender lens to one involving a framework of intersectionality.

Gendered Justice takes a unique, multi-layered look at the various elements that factor into our understanding of domestic violence and how the criminal justice system handles situations of domestic violence. The book focuses primarily on the role of gender, but also considers socio-economic status, race, age, education, and the relationship between the victim and criminal. Illustrated with case studies throughout, the book introduces major themes, such as the social construction of gender and victimology, as well as topics such as the portrayal of intimate partner violence in the media and how it shapes our understanding of violence.