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Male/Female Perceptions of Domestic Abuse

Feminist theory holds that incidents of domestic violence are the result of an ongoing patriarchal social system. This system has created a dichotomous notion of acceptable behavior, as men take their power for granted and work to maintain it with little conscious thought. Much abuse goes unnoticed because it consists of psychological abuse, which leaves no visible scars on the victim and may not be performed consciously by the offender. A nationwide sample of adults was examined about their attitudes on domestic abuse in their personal relationships, and the responses of men and women were compared to determine whether such a drastically different perspective exists.

In several speeches in 1989, the United States Surgeon General indicated that over 2 million women are physically assaulted by their spouses or partners each year (Geffner & Rosenbaum, 1990). The O.J. Simpson trial, despite its many sideshows, managed to place the issue of domestic abuse more firmly on the center stage of public discourse. This growing discourse, however, has become marred by the attempts of various public figures attempting to make a name for themselves by politicizing the issue. Numerous claims are made about the prevalence of domestic abuse, with the statistical data on reported cases the center of the debate. Some commentators point to the numbers to determine that the problem is not so bad. Others contend that those numbers are unreliable, however, as there is a tendency of many women, especially the poor and powerless, to fail to report any violence. Male offenders, on the other hand, fail to report incidents in order to avoid punishment. Also, there is much debate about exactly what composes domestic abuse. Some argue that abuse occurs at both the physical and psychological levels, while others argue that it occurs only when physical contact or physical threats are present.

This study will confront the definitional problem of dom...

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Male/Female Perceptions of Domestic Abuse. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 16:36, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1691071.html