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. ]

This book provides a comprehensive guide to the development of a coordinated community response to domestic violence based on the internationally known "Duluth Model." Drawing from the experiences of practitioners, scholars, and researchers in the field, this book provides rich insights into the complexities and challenges of addressing domestic violence. Eight key components of a successful community intervention project are addressed in separate chapters:

- Developing policies and protocols

- Enhancing networking among service providers

- Building monitoring and tracking systems

- Developing a supportive infrastructure for victims

- Providing sanctions and rehabilitation opportunities

- Addressing the needs of children

- Evaluating the effectiveness of community response

Other chapters discuss types of violence that have been most difficult to address in providing a community response, the use of violence by women, and marital rape. Replication and adaptation in different countries (England, Australia, and New Zealand) are the focus of two chapters that lend an international perspective. This book provides the answers about what is indeed the "Duluth Model."

An RCMP sting caught Nicole Doucet (Ryan) trying to hire a hitman to kill her ex-husband. It was supposed to be an open-and-shut case. It wasn't. No Legal Way Out details the process, the media coverage, and the legal implications of R v Ryan, all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada. The outcome of the case limited the legal options for women seeking to escape abuse and had a damaging impact on public perceptions of domestic violence. This unabashedly feminist analysis explains why the court, the police, and the media let down all women trapped by intimate partner terrorism.

An interdisciplinary collection of critical, feminist reflections on interpersonal gender violence Despite the growing interest in the subject of gender violence, surprisingly little has been written in recent years about the methodology behind this emerging field of research. This interdisciplinary collection seeks to fill this gap by empowering scholars to conduct gender violence research in ways that deconstruct rather than reinforce existing power structures and hierarchies. The book argues for new approaches to research and activism on gender-based violence grounded in the intersectional realities of individuals and communities. Each chapter discusses the role of reflective methodologies to recognize institutional and intersectional inequalities, challenging the reader to contemplate ethical considerations of an embodied feminist methodology when researching gender-based violence. By centering these issues for applied scholars, practitioners, and academic activists, the book offers insights about where sociocultural notions of criminality and innocence might align across geographies of gender-based violence. The volume encourages further thinking about embodied methodological creativity in and for the future of interpersonal gender-based violence research. A powerful tool for conducting productive scholarship, Researching Gender-Based Violence provides recommendations for interrogating, practicing, and collaborating across fields, disciplines, and lived realities.

When domestic abuse and children are involved, divorce and custody can be the epitome of high-stakes conflict and frustration and all too frequently protective parents lose custody of their child to a named abuser. Domestic Abuse, Child Custody, and Visitation helps mental health professionals, attorneys, and lay readers navigate the judicial process so that decisions are truly made in the best interest of children. The text reveals how all the puzzle pieces of the judicial process fit together - judges, attorneys, mental health experts, children, spouses - and how to overcome many of the obstacles they will confront along the way. This runs the gamut, from the selelection of a lawyer and experts, to setting necessary groundwork for an appeal. Domestic Abuse, Child Custody, and Visitation is an essential read for mental health professionals and lay people involved in divorce and custody, family court judges, family law attorneys, and mental health professionals involved in domestic abuse and custody matters.

Transgender survivors of violence tell their stories Transgender people face some of the highest rates of violence in the US and around the world, particularly within romantic relationships. In Transgressed, Xavier L. Guadalupe-Diaz offers a ground-breaking examination of intimate partner violence in the lives of transgender people. Drawing on interviews and written accounts from transgender survivors of intimate partner violence, he sheds much-needed light on the dynamics of abuse that entrap trans partners in violent relationships. Transgressed shows how rigidly gendered discussions of violence have served to marginalize and silence stories of abuse. Ultimately, these stories of survival follow their unique journeys as they navigate-and break free-from the cycle of abuse, providing us with a better understanding of their experiences. An emotionally compelling read, Transgressed offers new ways of understanding the complexities of intimate partner violence through the eyes of transgender survivors.

In "Domestic Violence: Intersectionality and Culturally Competent Practice," experts working with twelve unique groups of domestic abuse survivors provide the latest research on their populations and use a case study approach to demonstrate culturally sensitive intervention strategies. Chapters focus on African Americans, Native Americans, Latinas, Asian and Pacific Island communities, persons with disabilities, immigrants and refugees, women in later life, LGBT survivors, and military families. They address domestic violence in rural environments and among teens, as well as the role of religion in shaping attitudes and behavior.

Lettie L. Lockhart and Fran S. Danis are editors of the Council of Social Work Education's popular teaching modules on domestic violence and founding co-chairs of the CSWE symposium on violence against women and children. In their introduction, they provide a thorough overview of intersectionality, culturally competent practice, and domestic violence and basic practice strategies, such as universal screening, risk assessment, and safety planning. They follow with collaborative chapters on specific populations demonstrating the value of generalist social work practice, including developing respectful relationships that define issues from the survivor's perspective; collecting and assessing data; setting goals and contracting; identifying culturally specific interventions; implementing culturally appropriate courses of action; participating in community-level strategies; and advocating for improved policies and funding at local, state, and federal levels. Featuring resources applicable to both practitioners and clients, Domestic Violence forms an effective tool for analysis and action.

Home is where the heart is. But home is also the most common site for murder. The grimly fascinating new book from the UK's leading criminologist David Wilson uncovers the dangers that exist where we least expect them - perfect for fans of The Dark Side of the Mind and The Mind of a Murderer. The home is the place where murder most commonly occurs. In England and Wales, each year on average 75 per cent of female murder victims and 39 per cent of murdered men are killed at home. This gripping new title from the author of My Life with Murderers and A Plot to Kill explores the tragic prevalence of domestic murder and how, for so many victims, their own home is the place they are most in danger. David Wilson is the UK's leading criminologist and his knowledge of murder is unparalleled. By walking through each part of the house, he explains how each room's purpose has changed over time, the weapons they contain, and ultimately, how these things combine in murder. Delving into infamous as well as lesser-known true crime cases, this examination of the tragic, ordinary nature of murder is both a chilling read and a startling insight into the everyday impact of violence and how it can touch us all.

A look at gun control, campus sexual assault, immigration, and more that considers the future of responses to domestic violence Domestic violence is commonly assumed to be a bipartisan, nonpolitical issue, with politicians of all stripes claiming to work to end family violence. Nevertheless, the Violence Against Women Act expired for over 500 days between 2012 and 2013 due to differences between the U.S. Senate and House, demonstrating that legal protections for domestic abuse survivors are both highly political and highly vulnerable. Racial and gender politics, the move toward criminalization, reproductive justice concerns, gun control debates, and political interests are increasingly shaping responses to domestic violence, demonstrating the need for greater consideration of the interplay of politics, domestic violence, and how the law works in people's lives. The Politicization of Safety provides a critical historical perspective on domestic violence responses in the United States. It grapples with the ways in which child welfare systems and civil and criminal justice responses intersect, and considers the different, overlapping ways in which survivors of domestic abuse are forced to cope with institutionalized discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation, and immigration status. The book also examines movement politics and the feminist movement with respect to domestic violence policies. The tensions discussed in this book, similar to those involved in the #metoo movement, include questions of accountability, reckoning, redemption, healing, and forgiveness. What is the future of feminism and the movements against gender-based violence and domestic violence? Readers are invited to question assumptions about how society and the legal system respond to intimate partner violence and to challenge the domestic violence field to move beyond old paradigms and contend with larger justice issues.

Written by experts with a combined 50 years of experience teaching and researching in the field of domestic abuse, Intimate Partner Violence: Effective Procedure, Response, and Policy provides practical instruction for practitioners and lay people responding to domestic violence, as well as ideas for policymakers working to create solutions to the violence. Narratives by victims of intimate partner abuse provide a framework from which students and practitioners can assess address problems of domestic abuse. This book focuses on what can be practically done to address the problem of domestic violence for individual practitioners as well as policymakers, lawmakers, and criminal justice practitioners.

Public service advertising can be a powerful and effective tool for awareness and education in helping both the public and specific target audiences learn more about urgent health issues. Given the recognition intimate partner violence has gained in the last two decades as an urgent health problem around the world, this issue was selected to explore advertising's effect and potential to help a specific target audience. This research examined female survivors' impressions of domestic violence campaigns. A sample of 16 focus groups of approximately six women in two-hour sessions were conducted, at two different points in time over the past two decades. These focus groups included a fairly equal number of African-American, White, Asian, and Latino women in two different geographic areas of the country. Participants were asked to describe their opinions about a sampling of current domestic violence campaign material. The women who participated expressed heightened negative emotional responses to specific elements of some of the advertising, suggesting the potential of some campaigns to exacerbate the problem for this target group. The purpose of this research was to formulate a base of information to create improved public service advertising for this segment of the public, as they are the group most severely affected by this issue. Thus, based on the Editor's research and the participants' responses, the key goal for an improved campaign should be enhancing early identification, empowerment, and help-seeking behaviour.

This book examines contemporary media stories about women who kill their children. By analyzing media texts, motherhood blogs, and journalistic interviews, the book seeks to understand better maternal violence and the factors that lead women to harm their children. The central thesis of this book is that media practices have changed dramatically during the past 50 years, as has society's views on "appropriate" feminine behavior, yet definitions of characteristics of good mothers remain largely defined by 1950s sit coms, Victorian ideals, and Christian theology. The book contends that in spite of media saturation in American society, and the media's increased opportunities to tell complex and nuanced stories, news media narratives continue to situate maternal violence as rare, unfathomable, and unpredictable. The news media's shift in focus-from public service to profit-making industry-has encouraged superficial coverage of maternal violence as reporters look for stories that sell, not stories that explain. Motherhood blogs, in contrast, offer an opportunity for women to tell their own stories about motherhood, based on experience. Interviews with journalists offer insights into how the structure of their jobs dictates media coverage of this intimate form of violence.

How do modern Muslims' attitudes to marital violence and patriarchy relate to the Islamic tradition? In recent years, discussion regarding the interpretation of the Qur'an has become highly controversial. Especially contentious is passage 4:34, which covers the legitimacy of marital violence and the subjugation of women within Islam. Scholarly opinion on the topic is heavily influenced by contemporary context, so the issue remains largely unsettled. While pre-colonial Islamic jurists permitted the use of violence against women, they still held ethical concerns about the disciplinary privileges of husbands. Consequently, the debate for these early scholars was focussed on the level of violence permitted, and how to apply the three disciplinary steps: admonishment, abandonment, and physical abuse. Ayesha Chaudhry argues that all living religious traditions are rooted in a patriarchal, social, and historical context, and they need ways to reconcile gender egalitarian values with religious tradition. Post-colonial, modern Islamic scholars that consult the Qu'ran for gender-egalitarian interpretations must confront a difficult and unique debate: equality vs authority. As in many religions, authority is derived from tradition, rebelling from which results in a loss of authority in the eyes of the community. Chaudhry reveals that Muslims do not speak with one voice about Islam. Instead, Muslim scholarly discourse is spirited and diverse. The voices of contemporary Muslim scholars enrich the scope of the 'Islamic tradition'. Many recent works on Islam strive to promote a 'public relations' image of Islam. This book deals with ethical problems of domestic violence as discussed in historic and contemporary Islamic religious doctrine. The stakes are high, and very real. The author confronts the significant issue of how modern Muslims can relate to Islamic tradition and the Qur'anic text.

Pat Craven while working as a probation officer ran courses for men who were violent to women. She used this experience to create the Freedom Programme to help and empower women and girls who may be involved with such men. The programme is also available for men who want to improve their behaviour. The programme includes information about the effects of domestic abuse on children and about how to recognise an abuser. It is available at hundreds of locations across the UK including several schools. Now this programme is available as a home study course for any adult who wishes to access it. It must be used in conjunction with Pat Craven's book "Living with the Dominator". It is not a stand alone publication. The course is easy to follow and contains no jargon.

Handbook of Intervention Strategies with Domestic Violence will help professionals swiftly and compassionately meet the multiple needs of domestic violence clients. Based on the successful Helping Battered Women (OUP, 1996), this completely revised and expanded volume includes 25 chapters written by experts in the field covering the latest research, policies and treatment models. The Handbook also addresses important policy reforms, risk assessment protocols, and program developments. Its five sections include: Public Policy, Research, and Social Action; Criminal Justice and Legal System Responses; Health Care, Addictions, and Mental Health Treatment; Crisis Intervention, Advocacy, and Specialized Programs; Vulnerable At-Risk Groups and Multi-Cultural Issues.

AN ESQUIRE AND NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR

An award-winning journalist’s exploration of the domestic violence epidemic, and how to combat it.

An average of 137 women are killed by familial violence across the globe every day. In the UK alone, two women die each week at the hands of their partners, and in the US domestic violence homicides have risen by 32 percent since 2017. The WHO deems it a ‘global epidemic’. Yet public understanding of this urgent problem remains catastrophically low.

Journalist Rachel Louise Snyder was no exception. Despite years of experience reporting on international conflicts, when it came to violence in the domestic sphere, she believed all the common assumptions: that it was a fate for the unlucky few, a matter of bad choices and cruel environments. That if things were dire enough, victims would leave. That violence inside the home was private. And, perhaps most of all, that unless you stand at the receiving end of a punch, it has nothing to do with you.

All this changed when Snyder began talking to the victims and perpetrators whose stories she tells in this book. Fearlessly reporting from the front lines of the epidemic, in No Visible Bruises she interviews men who have murdered their families, women who have nearly been murdered, and people who have grown up besieged by familial aggression, painting a vivid and nuanced picture of its reality. She talks to experts in violence prevention and law enforcement, revealing how domestic abuse has its roots in our education, economic, health, and justice systems, and how by tackling these origins we can render it preventable.

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.

Domestic violence, a serious and far-reaching social problem, has generated two key debates among researchers. The first debate is about gender and domestic violence. Some scholars argue that domestic violence is primarily male-perpetrated, others that women are as violent as men in intimate relationships. Johnson's response to this debate - and the central theme of this book - is that there is more than one type of intimate partner violence. Some studies address the type of violence that is perpetrated primarily by men, while others are getting at the kind of violence that women are involved in as well. Because there has been no theoretical framework delineating types of domestic violence, researchers have easily misread one another's studies.The second major debate involves how many women are abused each year by their partners. Estimates range from two to six million. Johnson's response once again comes from this book's central theme. If there is more than one type of intimate partner violence, then the numbers depend on what type you're talking about.Johnson argues that domestic violence is not a unitary phenomenon. Instead, he delineates three major, dramatically different, forms of partner violence: intimate terrorism, violent resistance, and situational couple violence. He roots the conceptual distinctions among the forms of violence in an analysis of the role of power and control in relationship violence and shows that the failure to make these basic distinctions among types of partner violence has produced a research literature that is plagued by both overgeneralizations and ostensibly contradictory findings. This volume begins the work of theorizing forms of domestic violence, a crucial first step to a better understanding of these phenomena among scholars, social scientists, policy makers, and service providers.It reassesses thirty years of domestic violence research and demonstrates three forms of partner violence, distinctive in their origins, effects, and treatments.

Domestic violence has a serious impact on children and families but some of the harm can be minimised by providing parents with effective guidance on developing safe, protective and positive ways of caring for their children in the aftermath of a violent relationship. This practical guide provides techniques and exercises to help practitioners work in a structured and focused way with parents after domestic violence has occurred. It sets out a framework for assessing risks and needs, and covers how to build strengths, set goals, and plan an intervention pathway. Advice, exercises and handouts that are easily photocopied will help parents understand the impact of domestic violence and develop their relationship with their child. The resource also covers how to use discipline, talking to children, understanding child development, and how to build resilience and empathy. Guidance on working with both the perpetrator and the victim of domestic violence is included. This invaluable resource will benefit child and family social workers, children's centre workers, therapists, counsellors and anyone supporting a family recovering from the trauma of domestic violence.

Spanning children's and adult's services, this book explores the nature and impact of domestic abuse and violence (DVA) throughout the lifecourse. It highlights evidence-informed practice and serves as an accessible and invaluable resource for all working with and supporting those dealing with DVA. Structured around three core themes of coercive control, developmental experiences of violence and the importance of an intersectional understanding of DVA, this book highlights the need for a coordinated 'whole family' approach in safeguarding work in this area. Chapters move through different stages of life, addressing topics such as children living with domestic violence, abuse in young people's relationships, mental illness, substance use and adolescent to parent abuse. Following significant changes in this field, including the introduction of coercive control as a legal offence and the global impact of COVID on DVA cases, this is a timely and much-needed resource.

This book is devoted to illustrating the significance of perpetrator-victim relationship, including its status and state, in understanding intimate partner homicide (IPH) in the context of China today after comparing with the findings in the previous studies. By analyzing the correlation between intimate relationships as a focal variable and other variables such as IPH characteristics and risk factors, a deeper understanding of IPH in China today has emerged. Finally, this book shows that many perpetrators and victims had intimate relationships with people outside their marriages as the main reason for the rapid increase in the number of instances of IPH, which seems to be in tandem with China's rapid modernization and urbanization. Presenting the sole academic research that closely investigates the characteristics of intimate partner homicide in modern China, the book is a valuable resource for not only for the Chinese government but also for Chinese and international researchers.

This book draws on empirical work to examine the debates surrounding domestic violence disclosure schemes (also known as Clare's Law), focussing on England and Wales with comparisons to similar jurisdictions. Clare's Law allows any member of the public the right to ask the police if their partner may pose a risk to them. This book sets out a coherent methodology for analysing these schemes which are growing in popularity. It discusses their pros and cons and the challenges with operating and regulating them. It ultimately seeks to examine whether the disclosure of information concerning the criminal history of one person to that person's intimate partner will ultimately increase the likelihood of keeping their partner safe. It speaks to academics working in the domestic violence / regulation/ criminal justice/ criminology fields as well as by policy makers in front line services and government agencies.

Born into a perfect family, by 16, Jacqui Burnett wants to kill her father. With his gun.

Decades later, in her early ‘40s, Jacqui believes she has left her turbulent past and the trauma of eight near-death experiences behind her. On the surface, she has everything she’s ever dreamed of – an education, success and a wonderful husband. What Jacqui doesn’t know is that she’s about to lose everything.

"I was about to step into a board meeting but instead I slid from my office chair and cowered under my desk, sobbing. As managing director, I was meant to announce a year of outstanding results; instead, I was paralysed."

In a desperate search for answers, Jacqui travels to America. Alone in the Rocky Mountains, her life starts unravelling and the truth of her chaotic childhood begins to emerge. In her confused attempts to find love and meaning, Jacqui has to face death one more time, along with an avalanche of unexpected obstacles, before rising from the ashes to heal.

This book seeks to break new ground in the way in which adolescent-to-parent violence and abuse is understood. Incorporating knowledge from an original research project undertaken in the UK and international literature, this book provides insight into the prevalence of this form of domestic violence which can include psychological, physical, and economic abuse. Young person and family characteristics are explored, and links are made between sibling aggression and school bullying behaviours. A key theme is how the data can be used to develop statistical models which can screen for young people behaving abusively towards their parents. It discusses how the research can be applied to inform theoretical frameworks, policy development, and professional practice, with a focus on prevention and early intervention that uses positive youth justice and restorative approaches.