As obese and overweight people know all too well, judgment about your appearance isn't always kind. But for women in France, harsh weight criticism from a partner or boyfriend could become criminal.
National Public Radio recently reported on a proposed law in France that could make it illegal to mentally abuse your loved one. The abuse could cover a range of verbal threats, including berating someone over their weight. It's not clear exactly where the line would be drawn on this issue in courts, potentially making it difficult to enforce. But it's très intéressant nonetheless.
Does it seem like a radical move? Joan C. Chrisler, professor of psychology at Connecticut College, doesn't think so. "Insulting remarks from spouses or parents are particularly likely to hurt relationships," she said. "Studies show that teasing among peers hurts and marginalizes overweight children, and comments from coaches and teachers have been reported by girls with eating disorders as the spark that ignited their anorexic or bulimic behavior."
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"Intimate partner violence is a big problem in most societies," said Chrisler. "Most physical abusers also abuse their partners psychologically, primarily through a pattern of insulting and demeaning
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2016) states “intimate partner violence includes physical violence, sexual violence, threats of physical or sexual violence, stalking and psychological aggression…by a current or former intimate partner”. Furthermore, the CDC reports that “more than 1 in 3 women (35.6%)…in the U.S. have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner, nearly 1 in 3 women (30.3%) has been slapped, pushed or shoved by an intimate partner…, and nearly half of all women in the U.S. (48.4%) have experienced at least one form of psychological aggression with 4 in 10 (40.3%) reporting some form of expressive aggression (e.g., their partner
Without a question, it is not fair that overweight people go through their entire lives being criticized and taunted for their weight. Worley explains how rude comments discourage fat people from exercising because they are embarrassed and “they don’t have the support they need to continue” (494). It is the stares and snide remarks that give overweight people low self-esteem. Worley justly states that “you’re entitled to the space you take up” (496). No person should feel like they need to hide away from the world.
The targeted objective of this report is to increase awareness for counselors-in-training to incorporate Intimate Partner Violence training in their course of studies. What is Intimate Partner Violence? Intimate Partner Violence is sometimes referred to as domestic violence. It is associated with a display of repetitious violent behaviors between intimate partners in close relationships. Power and control are the antecedents associated with the consistent episodes of this type of violence. According to Erickson (2010) Intimate Partner Violence is defined as "physical, sexual, psychological, and emotional abuse or the threat of abuse from a current or former intimate partner," (227). Any violent behaviors which encompass the actions to
1)F.Scott Christopher and Tiffani S. Kisler(2012)surveyed mental health issues faced by women who experienced intimate partner violence.339 college women were surveyed and analysis showed that verbal aggression and minor and major physical violence overlapped.Experiences of sexual assault and minor physical violence also co-occurred.Women who experienced verbal and physical abuse but not sexual violence showed symptoms of hostility,anxiety,and depression and those who experienced sexual abuse displayed signs of depression.
Domestic violence exists everywhere and affects all people regardless of socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, sex, ethnicity, or religion. Most times physical violence is accompanied by emotional abuse and controlling behaviors. The result of domestic violence includes physical injury, psychological issues, and death. Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) occurs in 1 of 4 women in the United States and can be correlated with a loss of emotional, social, physical and mental health. Intimate Partner Violence is an issue that does not receive a lot of recognition and is overlooked majority of the time. There is a lot of information on women in intimate partner violence relationships that explains how it affects women physically, mentally, and socially.
Furthermore, in past years, there were rules that permitted a husband to beat his wife, “As long as the instrument he used had a circumference that was smaller than the circumference of his thumb.” (Davies, 2008 pg. 134). Back in the day, the killing of a wife was not seen as a crime. In many areas, if a man or woman discovered infidelity, and killed their spouses in result, was viewed as acceptable. Intimate partner violence is treated differently from state to state. The criminal justice system overall has made improvements when dealing with intimate partner violence over the last 15 years. Many states have implemented laws dealing with domestic abuse, which include: anti-stalking laws in every state, and spousal exemption laws in rape cases. Additionally, every law enforcement personnel have to make an arrest without a warrant for domestic violence cases and penalties are being enforced in violation of court orders.
Intimate partner violence is prevalent around the world. Domestic violence is accepted in many cultures and is considered a private matter meant to be kept in the home. The majority of the perpetrators are men and the victims are women. Victims are usually blamed for the violence which influence the likelihood of women reporting abuse.
Pressure, guilt trips, lying, cheating, violating trust, laying blame on her or other forms of harassment are all forms of mental abuse. Generally, to some degree, all three types of violence are used because they tend to overlap. For example, mental abuse and physical abuse can occur simultaneously when a man is yelling at his wife, telling her how worthless she is while he is beating her (Morris and Biehl 36, Haley 9-13).
It finally took some counseling and a realization that body-shaming happens to ALL body types. But why are we doing it? Does it make us feel better about our own body types to tell other women that they need to lose or gain weight? Is it really that important that we must insert our own (albeit invalid) opinion into other individuals lives? I am lucky. I have a very grounded home life and a great relationship with my parents in which I was able to move past these comments. Now, whenever I receive any sort of body-shaming remark, I smile and put it behind me. Others are not as lucky. One nasty or even well-meaning comment might send someone into a downward spiral of
Violence has become an enormous issue all around the world, but in the United Sates alone it has been estimated that nearly ten million people are abused in a time frame of only one year. According to Spitzberg, intimate partner violence is any behavior intended to inflict physical harm on someone in an ongoing interdependent or close relationship with the perpetrator. He has also specified that there many forms of intimate partner violence and he went on to fully explained the difference between aggression and intimate partner violence as well. Many scholars have done intense research on IPV and the research can be quite surprising as there have been many stigmas associated with violence and who are mostly the perpetrator in IPV. All the research
“We define domestic violence as a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner. Domestic violence can be physical, sexual, emotional, economic, or psychological actions or threats of actions that influence another person. This includes any behaviors that intimidate, manipulate, humiliate, isolate, frighten, terrorize, coerce, threaten, blame, hurt, injure, or wound someone.”
What is Intimate Partner Violence and who does it affect? According to Wilcoxon, Remley, and Gladding (2013), “Domestic violence or intimate partner violence (IPV) have emerged in the professional literature as descriptors of chronic as well as episodic patterns of abuse, ranging from harsh criticism to aggressive brutality, between adults in intimate relationships” (p.105). IPV does not discriminate, it refers to both married and unmarried individuals. This type of violence affects men, woman, and children.
Domestic violence is not a label that can be boxed and defined. No, it is emotions of pain, fear, shock, confusion, and most surprising, love. It is difficult for many to comprehend if not brought up within a violent home; the true, passionate emotions that fall as a burden upon the victims, who often stay quiet. What brings the traumatic pain to domestic violence is that a person who is supposed to cherish and love another, ends up creating fear and panic when even mentioned. Domestic violence, which is indeed a form of abuse, is an issue that needs to be handled with delicate, yet able coherence. Within the society of America, the fight against domestic violence needs to be accepted instead of ignored. In doing so, there are many questions
Domestic Violence is abuse or violence, which takes place in the household. One side of Domestic Violence is physical, impulsive, and vicious. When that level of violence kicks in, the only response is to take whatever means necessary to stop it. Both men and women are equally at fault for abuse. It is not either man or women’s fault, “Both male and the female are bound in their incapacity for intimacy and appreciation of differences”(Sherven 27). This means that male and female need each other to perpetuate personal and collective dramas of victimization and lovelessness, regrettably so, neither can leave. Women and men are equally at fault for Domestic Abuse.
Battered husbands have historically been either ignored or subjected to ridicule and abuse. In 18th-century France, a battered husband "was made to wear an outlandish outfit and ride backwards around the village on a donkey" (Steinmetz & Lucca 1988).