Is Battered Person Syndrome?

The report responding to section 40507 of the Violence Against Women Act from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services- National Institute of Mental Health determined that:

A disabled person is defined as; an intellectual, emotional, physical or mental impairment that effects daily living. For the purposes of this paper violence against women and intimate partner violence (IPV) will be used interchangeably. The definition of a disability varies by country. However, the official definition defined by the Americans Disability Act (ADA) is a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more life activities (ADAta.org). ADA became a federal law in 1990, which made discrimination against disabled people illegal. The ADA protects disabled men, women and children from education to housing discrimination. The agency provides further protections for accommodations in

When people hear about someone being abused, your mind automatically thinks of a woman or child. Most of the time, people think of a man being the abuser not the victim of abuse that is happening. However, there are hundreds of thousands of men who experience domestic abuse each year. “On average, nearly twenty people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. For one year, this equates to more than ten million women and men.” (Vieira).

The Battered Woman Syndrome (BWM) is a syndrome whereas women react in a certain manner because of repetitively physical or psychological abused imposed on them by their mates. The Battered Woman Syndrome (BMW) is not limited in one area or location it is a problem that is occurring all over in the world (2009, pg. 148). Like every other issue in the world criticism come into play by psychologists and others when someone claims that they are victims of the Battered Woman Syndrome or the Battered Woman Defense when they are taken to trial for killing their batterers (BMW) (2009, pgs. 162-163).

Battered women’s syndrome is a mental disorder or psychological paralysis that occurs in many different households worldwide. Battered Women’s Syndrome is more common in abusive relationships with intimate partners, it can also be caused by being abused as a child or seeing abuse around you. The major causes of abuse is alcohol or stress.

Even though women are more likely to be the victims of domestic violence, each year three million men are victims of domestic violence from their partners (Domestic Violence). Men also have a tendency to not report that they are victims of domestic violence because he may feel as if some of his “manly ego” may be lost or does not see it as something that should be reported. Instead, he may try to work it out with the loved one; and in some situations where it is man and woman he knows that he is bigger or stronger so the threat of being overpowered by his wife or girlfriend is not an issue. Unlike if it were a woman who is small in size that fear being overpowered by her loved one that is significantly bigger than her. One of the biggest issues of domestic violence is that most domestic violence situations go unreported every year (Domestic Violence).

The health of any individual, whether male or female, should not be overlooked in any circumstance. More specifically, one of the most underrated, controversial health situation for men is domestic violence against men. Domestic violence, also known as intimate partner violence, occurs between people in an intimate relationship. Despite the common belief that domestic violence only involves a physical altercation, it takes on many different forms including threats of abuse, emotional and sexual too. Typically, society perceives this type of conduct to be primarily committed against women. However, statistics will show that more than 1 in 4 men in the United States (28.5%) has experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking

Battered woman syndrome is a mental disorder that emerges within victims of long-term domestic abuse (Thompson Reuters). Around 4,000 women a year die at the hands of their abusers — 75 percent of them because they are trying to leave. For women, killing is often seen as a last resort — a defensive move, whereas, for men, it’s an offensive move (Starre Vartan). An example

Domestic violence is often perceived as males projecting physical abuse to female victims which overlooks the psychological abuse that they also experience (Carlson and Worden, 2005). Jill is a domestic violence survivor who filed a restraining order against her husband. Jill remained with her husband despite being abused because she felt threatened to leave the relationship. Her behavior triggered battered-women syndrome. Battered- women syndrome refers to the male batter’s violent behavior patterns towards the female victims and her response towards the abuse (Walker, 1984b). This paper will show that women stay with their abuser due to the post-traumatic stress disorder, learned helplessness, and emotional intelligence.

An estimated 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by an intimate partner each year. A surfacing psychological condition known as Battered Woman Syndrome (BWS), develops after experiencing physical and emotional abuse over an extended period of time. BWS has been subcategorized as a form of post-traumatic stress disorder, proving that it is indeed, a very serious and severe condition. Battered Woman Syndrome causes severe, emotional and psychological trauma in women after prolonged abuse in an intimate relationship; the number of Battered Woman cases in America is rising each year and it is necessary that more attention be brought to its significance as well as the victims being effected. More

Suddenly changing your appearance and behavior, avoiding contact with family and friends, directs majority or all time to a significant other, being moody and stress, with physical signs of abuse are signs of being in an abusive relationship. Domestic abuse, battering, and spouse abuse are commonly used terms that reflect having complete and utter control and power. These types of abuse have formed a named to sum the types of abuse. Which is called, “Intimate partner violence (IPV) (also called domestic violence, battering, or spouse abuse) is violence commented by a current or former spouse, opposite-sex cohabiting partner, same-sex cohabiting partner, date, or boyfriend or girlfriend (Gosselin, 2014).” Victims of this violence can be of either gender. Intimate violence can viewed as emotional, physical, verbal, economic and sexual abuse. These acts aren’t only taken place in a household; they can take place outside the home in public. This violence has a reoccurring cycle that is meant to be used as an isolation and controlling method. In this cycle it is formed by apologizing, tension, and battering. Which lead to need medical attention, depression and the end of the cycle of death. In many cases this violence has many effects on their children and their health. All of these effects come from cause that could’ve been prevented.

The subject of husband-battering had finally been addressed, but not to the great satisfaction of anyone. Although it had finally been shown that there was violence being perpetrated both by wives and husbands, there was no information about relative frequency or severity, or who initiated the abuse and who was acting in self defense. Furthermore, some researchers became concerned that the use of police or social services references in choosing subjects to study might be biasing the results. In short, they recognized that battered husbands might be nearly invisible next to their female counterparts.

Battered women are women with mental issues due to abusive behavior by a man at home as an after effect of severe, lengthy abuse. A woman is considered battered when she feels discouraged, oppressed, and ineligible to leave the abusive circumstances. In spite of the fact that it may appear the victim can easily leave her situation, however, it feels totally impossible for her. Feeling frightful and powerless, and in some cases even trusting that her abuser will quit abusing her, the victim stays with the abuser, proceeding with the sequence of aggressive behavior at home over and over again. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, on average, nearly 20 women per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States (NCVAD, 2015). These statistics are alarming, consequently posing the reasons why anyone would want to endure physical and mental abuse. Ferraro and Johnson’s research study raises the question how do women experience battering and why do battered women stay in their relationships? They observe how women neutralize their roles as the victim as the result of financial, self-esteem, emotional, and continuity dependencies. Another study conducted by Pritchard, Jordan, and Jones addresses the gaps between battered women in shelters and the criminal justice system. It contributes to a clearer understanding of the processes that entrap some women in a cycle of victimization.

When most people think of abusers, their minds go straight towards the stereotypical picture of a man beating a women but men are not the only partners in a relationship that can be abusive. Women also violent towards their intimate partners, it is not just a male crime. The stereotyping of males being the abusers has partly contributed to the reason why there isn’t a lot of data on female abusers. It wasn’t until recently that psychologist had started do research in this field. Some of the data that has come from this newly emerging field is interesting. A number of surveys and research studies have found competing ideas about women who commit intimate partner violence. Some say that men and women are both commit about equal rates of intimate partner violence and some goes as far as to say that women commit more than men. Women might use more violence according to some of these studies but the motives and result of the violence is different among men and women.

I then discuss the particular moral issue of subjectivity or moral personhood involved in instances wherein a woman victimized by domestic violence responds by killing her batterer. Finally, I argue that the battered woman syndrome and similar alternatives to or qualifications of self-defense are problematic because they strip a woman of her moral subjectivity. I conclude with a brief articulation of a proposal for reform of the criminal justice system specifically aimed at cases wherein there has been a long history of abuse or violence.