The Healing Journey offers a startling analysis of intimate partner abuse and its negative effects on women's earnings, education and vocational training as well as on the labour market itself. Victims of abuse often suffer from chronic physical and mental health issues, which impede their participation in the labour market. Based on findings from a seven-wave study coordinated by RESOLVE, a family violence research centre housed in universities across the prairie provinces, the goal of this book is to advance a social scientific understanding of women's employment status and barriers to participation, occupations, household income sources and vocational training outcomes over the course of a woman's journey to heal from intimate partner abuse.

This book draws on a wide range of evidence to explore the facts about the relationship between substance misuse and domestic violence and their effect on children, and examines the response of children's services when there are concerns about the safety and welfare of children. It reveals the vulnerability of these children and the extent to which domestic violence, parental alcohol or parental drug misuse impact on children's health and development, affect the adults' capacity to undertake key parenting tasks, and influence the response of wider family and the community. It includes parents' own voices and allows them to explain what help they feel would best support families in similar situations. The authors explore the extent to which current local authority plans, procedures, joint protocols and training support information sharing and collaborative working. Emphasising the importance of an holistic inter-agency approach to assessment, planning and service provision, the authors draw from the findings implications for policy and practice in both children and adult services. This book is essential reading for all professionals working to promote the welfare and wellbeing of children and those working with vulnerable adults, many of whom are parents.

"Finally, a book that moves us forward in the 'mutuality debate.' Miller's research demonstrates the seeming inability--or unwillingness--of the criminal legal system to recognize that gender (as well as race, class, and sexual orientation) matters in intimate partner violence, but even more importantly, she offers compelling answers to the question, 'What can we do about it?'" --Claire M. Renzetti, Ph.D., editor of Violence Against Women: An International, Interdisciplinary Journal Arrests of women for assault increased more than 40 percent over the past decade, while male arrests for this offense have fallen by about 1 percent. Some studies report that for the first time ever the rate of reported intimate partner abuse among men and women is nearly equal. Susan L. Miller's timely book explores the most important questions raised by these startling statistics. Are women finally closing the gender gap on violence? Or does this phenomenon reflect a backlash shaped by men who batter? How do abusive men use the criminal justice system to increase control over their wives? Do police, courts, and treatment providers support aggressive arrest policies for women? Are these women "victims" or "offenders"? In answering these questions, Miller draws on extensive data from a study of police behavior in the field, interviews with criminal justice professionals and social service providers, and participant observation of female offender programs. She offers a critical analysis of the theoretical assumptions framing the study of violence and provides insight into the often contradictory implications of the mandatory and pro-arrest policies enacted in the 1980s and 1990s. Miller argues that these enforcement strategies, designed to protect women, have often victimized women in different ways. Without sensationalizing, Miller unveils a reality that looks very different from what current statistics on domestic violence imply. Susan L. Miller is a professor of sociology and criminal justice at the University of Delaware. A volume in the Critical Issues in Crime and Society series, edited by Raymond J. Michalowski, Jr.

This book is a story of survival, heartbreak, of domestic violence and abuse, the pain of divorce but most of all the devastation of a mother forced to leave her children behind. The Author speaks straight from her heart while she reflects on the events of her extraordinary and often unhappy life. Originally drafted as part of a cathartic process, this is book one in a series penned firstly in an effort to make sense of past trauma and heartbreak and secondly to finally explain her own decisions to herself, to her children and family who have also suffered through this rollercoaster. Inspired by real events from the first 4 decades of her life, you often feel like you are sitting with the Author as she is telling her life story. A story which is shocking, touching and thought provoking while at the same time written with humour and positivity. * This book is most likely for women but anyone feeling trapped in a toxic relationship, marriage or situation. * People at a loss, without hope going through a breakup involving being separated from their children. * For anyone living with domestic abuse and in fear of the consequences. Anyone who needs strength to find a way out. * People who cannot see a way out of their situation and have or are about to give up hope. * Anyone being forced to make decisions they don't want to make and struggling with emotional blackmail. * If you like a page turner this story is for you, a book you will probably read in one or two sittings and cannot put down. Written as the Author speaks, reading the book will be like sitting down with your friend as they tell you one part of their heart breaking life story. To find out more please go to the Author's website : https://www.ruthtunnicliffe.com/

This influential book provides an innovative framework for understanding and treating intimate partner violence. Integrating a variety of theoretical and empirical perspectives, Donald G. Dutton demonstrates that male abusiveness is more than just a learned pattern of behavior--it is the outgrowth of a particular personality configuration. He illuminates the development of the abusive personality from early childhood to adulthood and presents an evidence-based treatment approach designed to meet this population's unique needs. The second edition features two new chapters on the neurobiological roots of abusive behavior and the development of abusiveness in females.

This memoir is an inspirational yet harrowing story of a domestic violence victim's search for the truth about her marriage. Twenty-one-year-old Sarah Doucette married a charming, gregarious and attentive man. Six years later, she left the marriage, lucky to be alive. Suffering from PTSD and dissociation after years of physical and emotional abuse, Sarah could barely remember the details of her marriage. After her ex-husband's death by suicide, Sarah set out to interview those who knew him, piecing together the destructive patterns in his life and how it affected her even years later. This book is a cautionary tale about trusting one's inner voice in order to leave an abusive relationship. It is a story of domestic abuse survival that can help others survive their trauma while outlining the many kinds of domestic abuse.

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.

'He pushed open the door, and I saw that he was pulling something out of a bag he was carrying. It was a gun - a sawn-off shotgun.' Featured on ITV's Lorraine with Michael Sheen and Rachel Williams. Darren was funny and attractive, and 21-year-old Rachel fell head-over-heels for him; it wasn't long before they moved in together, and she fell pregnant with his child. But his inner demons soon surfaced... Weakened and alone, Rachel was beaten and tormented by him for 18 years, until one day, Darren turned up at her place of work with a shotgun and left her for dead. But her ordeal wasn't over... Devastating yet inspiring, Rachel's story of hope tells of how you can always find the light, even in the very darkest of times. 'Incredibly poignant and powerful.' - Victoria Derbyshire 'Transformative. Life changing.' - Michael Sheen

A woman, a man, a rape, and a hard journey from violence to reconciliation. One ordinary spring morning in Reykjavik, Thordis Elva kisses her son and partner goodbye before boarding a plane to do an extraordinary thing: fly seven thousand miles south to meet up with the man who raped her when she was just sixteen. Meanwhile, in Sydney, Australia, Tom Stranger nervously embarks on an equally life-changing journey, wondering whether he is worthy of this meeting. After exchanging hundreds of searingly honest emails over eight years, Thordis and Tom decided it was time to speak face to face. Coming from opposite sides of the globe, they meet in the middle, in Cape Town, South Africa, a country that is no stranger to violence and the healing power of forgiveness. South of Forgiveness is an unprecedented collaboration between a survivor and a perpetrator, each equally committed to exploring the darkest moment of their lives. It is a true story about being bent but not broken, of facing fear with courage, and of finding hope even in the most wounded of places.

Natasha Trethewey was born in Mississippi in the 60s to a black mother and a white father. When she was six, Natasha's parents divorced, and she and her mother moved to Atlanta. There, her mother met the man who would become her second husband, and Natasha's stepfather. While she was still a child, Natasha decided that she would not tell her mother about what her stepfather did when she was not there: the quiet bullying and control, the games of cat and mouse. Her mother kept her own secrets, secrets that grew harder to hide as Natasha came of age. When Natasha was nineteen and away at college, her stepfather shot her mother dead on the driveway outside their home. With penetrating insight and a searing voice that moves from the wrenching to the elegiac, Memorial Drive is a compelling and searching look at a shared human experience of sudden loss and absence, and a piercing glimpse at the enduring ripple effects of white racism and domestic abuse. Luminous, urgent, and visceral, it cements Trethewey's position as one of the most important voices in America today.

The Third Edition of this comprehensive volume covers the current state of research, theory, prevention, and intervention regarding violence against women. The book's 15 chapters are divided into three parts: theoretical and methodological issues in researching violence against women; types of violence against women; and, new to this edition, programs that work. Featuring new chapters, pedagogy, sections on controversies in the field, and autobiographical essays by leaders in grassroots anti-violence work, the Third Edition has been designed to encourage discussion and debate, to address issues of diversity and cultural contexts, and to examine inequalities of race and ethnicity, social class, physical ability, sexual orientation, and geographic location.

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.

Exploring the dynamics between victim and offender is paramount to answering important issues of character and vital for forensic research. This involves examining the role of the victim during and after victimization; this process is especially important for spousal violence because of the interactive process between the victim and the offender. Forensic Psychology of Spousal Violence covers the phenomenon of spousal violence and its different forms, discussing the consequences of abuse, providing research tips to be used in the field, including relevant case studies and much more. The innovative approach of this text fills a void in the current understanding of spousal violence.

This book provides fresh sociological analyses on family violence in Japan. Aimed at an international audience, the authors adopt a life course perspective in presenting their research. Following a comprehensive overview of family violence in Japan in both historical and contemporary contexts, it then goes on to define the extent and causes of child abuse, intimate partner violence, filial violence, and elder abuse. In doing so, the book is the first of its kind to look at these different types of violence in Japanese families and simultaneously incorporate historical development of individuals and intergenerational factors. Furthermore, its reliance on the life course perspective enables readers to obtain a broader understanding of family violence in the country. Written by five Japanese family sociologists who have identified various major sociocultural characteristics that either induce or suppress family violence in Japan, it is a valuable resource not only to scholars and students of the topic, but also to those specializing in sociology, psychology, anthropology and comparative family studies around the globe.

A workbook for men who want to improve their behaviour. Must be used in conjunction with Living with the Dominator book by the same author. The workbook is suitable for one-to -one work by professionals with perpetrators of domestic abuse.

Nikola was sexually assaulted and raped as a girl, her disturbed behaviour and emotional cries for help ignored by the adults around her. Her self-esteem at rock bottom she fell prey to a frightening stranger, a man who would turn her life into a living nightmare. He was handsome and charming and she was too young to see the warning signs. She married him while she was in her teens and the abuse started on the first night of their honeymoon. Over the next few years she was kept a virtual prisoner, subject to beatings and abuse, tormented by her husband who insisted he was only doing this because he loved her. Finally, fearing he would kill her, she found the strength to escape. Eventually Nikola turned her life around and today works as a therapist helping others. Written without self-pity, this is a compelling and ultimately inspiring book.

This provocative book challenges the pervasive stereotypes that depict battered women as passive and presents an alternative strengths-based framework. Battered women are not passive and in denial; they act to protect themselves and their loved ones in many ways. Many women who experience abuse are facing numerous other risks, such as the risk of homelessness or the threat of losing custody of their children in a divorce battle. Understanding the full range of risks is necessary to understanding the complex problem of battering. Using an approach called Multiple Criteria Decision Making, this book outlines a procedure for comprehensive risk assessment, safety planning and risk management. One key step is recognizing all of the protective strategies that battered women routinely use. Quantitative, qualitative, and clinical data reveal a wide range of protective strategies: immediate defensive responses in the moments following an attack, protecting children and other loved ones, reaching out for social support, turning to religious and spiritual resources and engaging formal helpseeking. There are many, many strategies that are still largely invisible to providers and researchers-steps women take that receive very little attention or acknowledgement in the domestic violence field. In two new studies, survivors of domestic violence identified 133 different protective strategies in open-ended questions. These and other insights from survivors are included throughout the book. This book shows how to use the strength of battered women to create better and more nuanced research and intervention.

. This one-of-a-kind edited collection draws on the expertise of authors from 16 countries representing 17 cultures to tell the story of domestic violence in their respective parts of the world. The book incorporates a strengths-based approach, including individual, relationship, community, and societal strengths. The collection draws on multiple perspectives (academics, counselors, organizers, activists, and victims) to determine strengths and analyze how they can translate into greater safety for victims, increased accountability of perpetrators, and improved policy formation and research. Each chapter focuses on the lived experiences of victims of intimate partner violence, child abuse, or elder abuse and includes information about the abuser, the family, the community, and the culture.

Overcome violation and build the life you deserve. You're free, strong, and capable. You made the choice to be a survivor and not a victim. But your life from here on out should be about more than just getting by. Written by women who have taken a similar journey, Surviving Domestic Violence helps you find your path toward healing, change, and the future you've always wanted. Authors Danielle F. Wozniak and Karen N. Allen have used their vast experience and years of teaching and researching to create a clinically tested program that not only helps you understand the devastating effects of domestic violence, but also leads you through the four stages of recovery. Through a series of meditations, activities, and pieces of inspiration, you will learn to reclaim your personal power, restore your life trajectory, reconnect with your community, and re-envision what lies ahead. With the guidance of this book, you can finally conquer your past and step into a brighter future. Simple, straightforward, and practical, Surviving Domestic Violence helps you heal from the violation you have experienced and thrive once again.

Domestic Violence and International Law argues that certain forms of domestic violence are a violation of international human rights law. The argument is based on the international law principle that, where a state fails to protect a vulnerable group of people from harm, whether perpetrated by the state or private actors, it has breached its obligations to protect against human rights violation. This book provides a comprehensive legal analysis for why a state should be accountable in international law for allowing women to suffer extreme forms of domestic violence and how this can help individual victims. It is irrelevant that the violence is perpetrated by individuals and not state actors such as soldiers or the police. The state's breach of its responsibility is in its failure to act effectively in domestic violence cases; and in its silent endorsement of the violence, it becomes complicit. The book seeks to reformulate academic and political debate on domestic violence and the responsibility of states under international law. It is based on empirical data combined with an honest assessment of whether or not domestic violence is recognised by the international community as a human rights violation. 'Domestic Violence in International Law [...] provides an original, provocative, and much needed legal framework for the coherent development of a norm against domestic violence in international human rights law...Dr. Meyersfeld has developed a thoroughgoing analysis that asks and answers the most difficult questions often neglected by academics, lawyers and activists who dismiss the possibility that systemic violence against women could violate international law...Most fundamentally, this book is memorable for the hope and optimism it expresses about the transformative possibilities of international law. For without compromising such intensely human values as privacy, autonomy and cultural identity, Dr. Meyersfeld moves her reader with an abiding conviction: that international law, fueled with the power of transnational actors, can propel public actors to protect abused and vulnerable people in their most private worlds.' From the Foreword by Harold Koh, The Legal Adviser, United States Department of State (2009-).

In this moving and inspirational work, Schwartz shares the trauma involved in living with an abuser, and takes the reader with her during the gradual process that allowed her to escape from the nightmare and move toward true healing. Along the way, she reveals how to recognize the warning signs of domestic violence, listen to your inner spirit, rid yourself of false beliefs and love yourself enough to protect your precious soul. Throughout this book, Schwartz offers valuable self-help techniques to enable battered women to discover their self-worth and regain their lives. Her honesty in detailing her thought processes provides enormous insight into the psyche of a victim of abuse, while her ultimate recovery offers hope to others trapped within the cycle of domestic violence.

The Butterfly's Cage, is the heart wrenching, inspiring true story of a young Pakistani woman's flight to freedom. Suffering familial abuse, tyranny and disownment as a result of refusing to submit to the abuse received by not one but two violent husbands, Shahnaz* opens the doors to a hidden world, illustrating how cultural values can allow human rights violations to prosper and the cost of reputation is integrity, respect and love. Born into a wealthy family with homes in both Britain and Pakistan, she was forced to give up school at the age of 12 in order to care for her younger brothers. There followed two arranged marriages, to a violent, drug addicted, petty criminal and then to a vicious, controlling sadist. Her family ignored her pleas to escape her marital hell, instead casting her as the wicked, immoral daughter whose selfish desires threatened to damage the family's reputation. After years of abuse and intimidation in both England and Pakistan, Shahnaz fled the family homes to try to start a new life in London with her young daughter only to be lured back to Pakistan under false pretences. Stripped of her possessions and kept under house arrest, Shahnaz was in constant fear of her life for a further 18 months, enduring brutal beatings and diabolical threats to her life. Through her intelligence, courage and unwavering fortitude alone, Shahnaz overcame adversity, won her freedom, her family's acceptance and now lives in England with her daughter and third husband, embarking on a career in social care. Six years on, wishing to reveal the pain and suffering that can be caused by misguided cultural attitudes and social values, Shahnaz has written her story. *Shahnaz is not her real name - she does not want herself or her family to be identified

This book covers timely issues such as women's rights, domestic violence, sex offenders, prostitution, and cyber bullying. Each article is engaging and reader-friendly, and the chapter-opening human interest stories will spark the interest of students. Issues for Debate in Family Violence is an ideal supplementary textbook for upper-division undergraduate and graduate courses on family and child violence. About CQ Researcher Readers In the tradition of nonpartisanship and current analysis that is the hallmark of CQ Press, CQ Researcher readers investigate important and controversial policy issues. Offer your students the balanced reporting, complete overviews, and engaging writing that CQ Researcher has consistently provided for more than 80 years. Each article gives substantial background and analysis of a particular issue as well as useful pedagogical features to inspire critical thinking and to help students grasp and review key material: A pro/con box that examines two competing sides of a single question A detailed chronology of key dates and events An annotated bibliography and Web resources An outlook section that addresses possible regulation and initiatives from Capitol Hill and the White House over the next 5 to 10 years Photos, charts, graphs, and maps

In this groundbreaking book, Linda Mills--feminist, scholar, activist, and survivor--challenges the prevailing orthodoxies and maps out a plan to change domestic abuse treatment programs. Drawing on case studies and research from her abuse prevention programs, Mills reveals that intimate abuse is far more complex than we realize, and develops a program for healing that engages everyone caught up in a violent dynamic. Essential reading for therapists, couples, public health experts, and members of the criminal justice system, Violent Partners outlines a breakthrough approach to a major social problem.

The first history of the battered women's shelter movement in Canada, No Place to Go traces the development of transition houses and services for abused women and the campaign that made wife battering a political issue. Nancy Janovicek focuses on women's groups in small cities and rural communities, examining anti-violence activism in Thunder Bay, Kenora, Nelson, and Moncton. She also pays close attention to Aboriginal women in northwestern Ontario, where the connections between family violence and the devaluation of indigenous culture in Canadian society complicated effots to end domestic violence. This book lays bare the aims and challenges of establishing women's shelters in non-urban areas. The local histories presented here show how transition houses became hubs in a larger movement to change attitudes about domestic violence and to lobby for legislation to protect women.