Domestic Violence And Sexual Violence

Domestic violence is a pattern of behavior which involves violence or other abuse by one person against another in a domestic context, such as in marriage or cohabitation. Intimate partner violence is domestic violence against a spouse or other intimate partner. Domestic violence can take place in heterosexual or same-sex relationships. Domestic violence can take a number of forms including physical, emotional, verbal, economic and sexual abuse, which can range from subtle, coercive forms to marital rape and to violent physical abuse that results in disfigurement or death. Globally, a wife or female partner is more commonly the victim of domestic violence, though the victim can also be the male partner, or both partners may engage in

Domestic violence occurs in epidemic proportions, impacting an estimated 6.2 million American women every year, and causing more

Domestic violence is a growing concern in Australia. Police handled more than 3,000 domestic violence matters in just one suburb of Brisbane in the past 12 months and for the whole of Queensland, handled another 25,000 matters.

“Domestic violence, or intimate partner violence, is defined as a pattern of assaultive and coercive behaviors, including physical, sexual, and psychological attacks as well as economic coercion that adults or adolescents use against their intimate partners” (Peeks-Asa). When it comes to domestic violence many people don’t want to get involved, but if just one person took a stand maybe others would follow and potentially save a life, like the neighbors did in The Day It Happened by Rosario Morales. Domestic violence can happen to anyone at any time, there is no typical victim or perpetrator. The fact that there is no one specific group that domestic violence occurs in more than another, only makes it more difficult to get an accurate

The purpose of finding the appropriate definition of domestic violence is to clearly distinguish domestic violence from physical violence in general. Due to its nature, cases of domestic violence require specific treatment and perspective as it can be identified in many concealed forms and would not leave behind physical wounds. Therefore to know the types and forms of violence the victims have to face is crucial to develop a legal response.

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.

There are different forms of violence that a victim could be subjected too if in a domestic violence relationship. Physical violence, psychological/emotion violence and sexual violence are the main violence enforced onto

Domestic violence has become an increasingly dominant problem within Australian society but is constantly pushed to the side like a burden. Domestic violence is a relationship between intimate partners in which one individual seeks to assert power and control over the other and cause fear or intimidation and doesn’t have to be physical abuse, it can be emotional, psychological, financial, sexual or other types of abuse. It can affect anyone in the community regardless of gender, sexual identity, race, age, culture, ethnicity, religion, disability, economic status or location ("home - Domestic Violence", 2016). Violence isn’t just physical violence it can also be sexual, verbal, psychological, emotional, spiritual, economic or social. Domestic violence is the most frequent form of assault in Australian society nevertheless, it remains a hidden problem because it occurs within the privacy of the home and those involved are usually reluctant to speak out. Women and Children are commonly affected by domestic violence in fact, 33.3% of women had experienced physical violence since the age of 15 (Domestic Violence Statistics, 2016). Although, studies show that men are not the only perpetrators, in fact more than 10,000 men alone have been affected by domestic violence in NSW ("10,000 men are domestic violence victims", 2016).

Domestic violence is a pattern of abusive behavior or coercive control in any relationship that is used by one person to gain or maintain power and control over another. (Violence). Most of society’s think domestic violence is when one of the spouses is abusing the other spouse. Domestic violence can occur between anyone who has lived together at one point of time; couples who have never lived together, but have a child together and family member who has live together in the same household. Domestic violence can happen to anyone, regardless of their class, religion, ethnic background, education, age, gender, disability status, sexual orientation, gender presentation, or immigration status. The domestic violence can place in different categories, such as; emotional abuse, physical abuse, psychological abuse, sexual abuse and financial abuse. Researcher had discovered tactics that the abusers use to control their victims such as; dominance, humiliation, isolation, threats, intimidation, denial and shifting blame. (Helpguide.org).

Domestic violence in Australia is a very serious issue with just under half a million women reporting that they have experienced physical or sexual assault in the past 12 months. Domestic violence is defined as violent or aggressive behaviour that occurs in the home. This can involve every member of the family. As the public have become more aware and open to speaking about domestic violence, organisations such as Reach Out and support services have been setup. The more open a society is to an issue the more that can be done about it. Media has helped strongly to spread awareness around as information is able to be sent to millions of Australians.

Domestic violence is an issue that is impacting the indigenous Australian population (Korff, J. 2015).This should be concerning to Australians so that they may help reduce fatal deaths by domestic violence (Korff, J. 2015).

“Domestic violence is a type of abuse by one or both partners in marriage, friends, family, dating or cohabitation” (Aziz & Mahmoud, 2010). There are many forms of abuse from verbal and emotional to physical that often escalates over time in intensity for the victim. Data from the criminal justice system, hospital patient medical records and mental health records, police reports, surveys and social services reports of thousands of women revealed that many are injured and killed as a result of violence from someone close to them. “The US Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) defines 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 regardless of race, age, sexual orientation, religion, or gender” (Robertson & Murachver, 2009). Researchers and the criminal justice system have not been able to agree on a clear definition to domestic violence which can range from physical injury, stalking, verbal abuse and humiliation, denial of shelter and access to money, and intimidation through aggressive behaviors. The definition of domestic violence may vary but the results from physical injury, mental and emotional trauma, and sometimes even death can last a life time.

Even though there are more services and awareness about domestic violence in Australia, it is still an epidemic with 1 in 3 people affected. Those affected usually do not seek support from outside sources due to being scared of the reactions of the perpetrator, fear of not being believed or even fear of what the police or other services may do to their family. This leaves the victim in a vulnerable situation feeling helpless and subjected to more and more violence overtime, increasing risk of suicidality or worse, murder.

Domestic Violence is a type of abuse that usually involves a partner or spouse wanting to take control and power of the other partner through the form of physical or verbal assault. Domestic Violence, defined as abuse involving intimate partners, is a growing problem in the United States (Barrier 1998). The frequency of violence can be on and off, occasional or chronic.

However, this has not solved the debate regarding its conceptualization and what it involves (Groves and Thomas 11). Despite this, domestic violence qualifies to be considered a rampant social problem across the society. According to the University of Michigan, domestic violence arises when an individual retorts to physical violence, intimidation, threats, coercion, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and economic abuse with an aim of controlling another person who they share a domestic relationship (University of Michigan Para 1). As a major public health issue, domestic violence is attributed to estimated 1,200 deaths and 2 million injuries experienced by women annually. These figures can even be higher when considering that, unlike the other kinds of crimes, several instances of domestic violence abuse take place prior to complaint being made to a law enforcement agency (Sloan, Platt and Chepke