How do women fend off domestic violence?

Concordia study says government has power to help women effectively resist

2011-02-16

(Press-News.org) This release is available in French.

Montreal, February 15, 2011 — For many women in violent relationships, leaving is not an option. Yet a woman's arsenal of defenses for resisting violence critically depends on her position within the family and community, according to new research from Concordia University published in the journal Review of Radical Political Economics.

"Women's resistance is often conceptualized only as exit, which is problematic," says study author Stephanie Paterson, a professor in the Concordia University Department of Political Science and member of the Centre for Research in Human Development. "We know that violence increases upon separation. Focusing on exit obscures the experiences of women who are unwilling and/or unable to leave," says Paterson, who is also a fellow at the Simone de Beauvoir Institute, Canada's pioneering college in the field of women's studies.

Paterson's study found that, contrary to popular theory, wealth is not a guaranteed escape from an abusive relationship. It's just one of many factors that can help a woman resist violence. Those factors can be tangible, such as access to a caring personal network. They can be intangible, such as her partner's perception of her resources, and his perception of her role within the family. If a partner perceives a woman as being in a strong position to resist, he's more likely to reconsider being violent towards her.

How battered women can push back
Paterson's study examines the different options faced by battered women – from placating an abuser to threatening to exit – and how these options can influence subsequent violence. The notion that women have some bargaining power in cases of domestic abuse, she argues, forces society to reconsider the dynamics of violence and expands the options for victims of such abuse.

For women's negotiation tactics to be effective, however, much has to change in society at both the household and public policy levels. "Not only must we provide women with adequate material resources," says Paterson, "we must also address and challenge the origins of authority within families."

"Enabling resistance is not about making women accountable, but rather challenging the state to create systems in which effective resistance is possible," she continues. "Only then will violence against women cease."

INFORMATION:

Partners in research:
This study was funded by the Ontario Graduate Scholarship from the Government of Ontario and the Legacy Scholarship from Carleton University.

About the study:
The paper, "Rethinking the Dynamics of Abusive Relationships: The Implications of Violence and Resistance for Household Bargaining," published in Review of Radical Political Economics, was authored by Stephanie Paterson of Concordia University.

Related links: Cited study from Review of Radical Political Economics: http://rrp.sagepub.com/content/early/2010/12/13/0486613410391392 Concordia Department of Political Science: http://politicalscience.concordia.ca Centre for Research in Human Development: http://crdh.concordia.ca Simone de Beauvoir Institute: http://wsdb.concordia.ca Profile on Stephanie Paterson : http://now.concordia.ca/what-we-do/research/20101025/analysing-womens-place-in-public-policy.php

Media contact:
Sylvain-Jacques Desjardins
Senior advisor, external communications
Concordia University
Phone: 514-848-2424, ext. 5068
Email: s-j.desjardins@concordia.ca
Twitter: http://twitter.com/concordianews
Concordia news: http://now.concordia.ca

[Attachments] See images for this press release:

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Using chlorhexidine gluconate baths to reduce hospital-acquired infections

2011-02-16

CHG cloths more effective in reducing risk for acquiring HAIs Study shows 64 percent decreased risk of infection from MRSA or VRE May be beneficial for both ICU and general medical unit patients PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A new study from Rhode Island Hospital has found a reduced risk of hospital-acquired infections (HAI) when using two percent chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) cloths for daily bathing instead of soap and water. The study found a 64 percent decrease in the risk of acquiring an infection from either methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or Vancomycin-resistant ...

'Healthy' patients at high risk of cardiac death identified

2011-02-16

The way the heart responds to an early beat is predictive of cardiac death, especially for people with no conventional markers of cardiovascular disease, according to new research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The conventional risk factors, such as high cholesterol, smoking, diabetes and high blood pressure, account for many but not all deaths from cardiovascular causes. As a result, doctors are always searching for better ways to identify patients at risk of cardiac death. The new research indicates that an abnormal response to an early ...

UF leads world in reconfigurable supercomputing

2011-02-16

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida researchers say their supercomputer, named Novo-G, is the world's fastest reconfigurable supercomputer and is able to perform some important science applications faster than the Chinese supercomputer touted as the world's most powerful. In November, the TOP500 list of the world's most powerful supercomputers, for the first time ever, named the Chinese Tianhe-1A system at the National Computer Center in Tainjin, China as No. 1. In his state of the union speech, President Barack Obama noted, "Just recently, China became home ...

EARTH: Oil and water help US win World War II

2011-02-16

Alexandria, VA – The U.S. had two key strategic advantages over the Axis in World War II: oil and water. Although other factors played major roles in the U.S. and its allies winning the war, these two natural resources played a much larger role than recognized. World War II was the first highly mechanized war. In the March feature "How Oil and Water Helped the U.S. Win World War II," EARTH magazine explores how the abundance of domestic US oil and water in the South and Pacific Northwest drove not only tanks and planes, but also industrial production and technological ...

Study compares balanced propofol sedation with conventional sedation for therapeutic GI endoscopic procedures

2011-02-16

OAK BROOK, Ill. – Feb. 15, 2011 – Researchers from Korea report that, compared with conventional sedation, balanced propofol sedation (BPS) using propofol in combination with midazolam and meperidine, provided higher health care provider satisfaction, better patient cooperation, and similar adverse event profiles in patients undergoing therapeutic endoscopic procedures. This is the first prospective study of BPS in direct comparison with conventional sedation. The researchers note that this study provides further evidence to support the adoption of endoscopist-directed ...

FASEB praises President Obama for increasing funding for research in his FY 2012 budget

2011-02-16

Bethesda, MD - William T. Talman, MD, President of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), praised President Barack Obama for his continuing support for science and engineering. "The President recognizes that our future depends on research," Talman stated. In a letter to President Obama, Talman noted that his "support for this critical investment—even during a time of unprecedented budgetary constraints—will help to improve the lives of millions of people." In his FY 2012 Budget, President Obama proposed a $745 million increase over the ...

A device enables the remote explosion of improvised land-mines

2011-02-16

Composed of diverse elements, mostly of plastic, with little metal used, improvised explosive devices are very difficult to detect. In cooperation with two colombian universities, scientists at EPFL's Electromagnetic Compatibility Laboratory have found a solution. They have developed a device enabling the remote explosion of these mines, by using the energy from their electromagnetic impulses. This type of mine is often used by guerillas or terrorist groups in conflict zones, and is present in many regions of the world, such as Colombia, Iraq and Afghanistan. They kill ...

University of Miami scientists find new way to estimate global rainfall and track ocean pollution

2011-02-16

MIAMI – Feb 15, 2011 – A study by scientists at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science suggests a new way to estimate how much of the ocean's pollution is falling from the sky. The new findings can help improve scientific understanding of how toxic airborne chemicals, from the burning of fossil fuels and industrial power plants emissions, are impacting the oceans globally. By measuring Beryllium-7 (7Be) isotope concentrations in the ocean, which is found naturally throughout Earth's atmosphere, Rosenstiel School scientists David ...

Government mashups -- better contact with public authorities

2011-02-16

Potholes in the road or a park bench in need of repair – we all come across these or similar problems every now and then. If only there were a simple way of reporting them to the right department of the public administration! The latest mashup technology and mobile applications make it possible to come up with solutions. Inspired by the UK website www.fixmystreet.com, the Fraunhofer Institute for Open Communication Systems FOKUS in Berlin is taking this approach further. Damage reports can be assigned GPS coordinates by cell phone and entered. The system then provides ...

Got a goal?: A helpful partner isn't always helpful

2011-02-16

You might think that a loving partner helps keep you on track—say, when you want to stick to your jogging or concentrate on your studies. But a new study in Psychological Science, a publication of the Association of Psychological Science, reports the opposite: Thinking about the support a significant other offers in pursuing goals can undermine the motivation to work toward those goals—and can increase procrastination before getting down to work. The study's authors, psychological scientists Gráinne M. Fitzsimons of Duke University and Eli J. Finkel of Northwestern University, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Label distribution similarity-based noise correction for crowdsourcing

The Lancet: Without immediate action nearly 260 million people in the USA predicted to have overweight or obesity by 2050

Standardized autism screening during pediatric well visits identified more, younger children with high likelihood for autism diagnosis

Researchers shed light on skin tone bias in breast cancer imaging

Study finds humidity diminishes daytime cooling gains in urban green spaces

Tennessee RiverLine secures $500,000 Appalachian Regional Commission Grant for river experience planning and design standards

New study in Science finds that just four global policies could eliminate more than 90% of plastic waste and 30% of linked carbon emissions by 2050

Breakthrough in capturing 'hot' CO2 from industrial exhaust

New discovery enables gene therapy for muscular dystrophies, other disorders

[Press-News.org] How do women fend off domestic violence?
Concordia study says government has power to help women effectively resist