Abuse can be interpreted as threatening behaviour threatening behavior of family member, who threats moral and physical health of other members of the family. Despite we live in civilized society where human dignity is often described as the most precious value the cases of abuse are still often in our society. Despite the type of people who abuse their partners shares some common characteristics there are still distinguishing feature which differ in different cultures, social and religious background. “The particular shape that abusiveness takes can vary considerably among races and cultures. Abusers rely heavily on the forms of abuse that are most acceptable among men of their background.” (Nissl et al,2004,p. 124) History of the country, traditions and social status have great influence on abuse. Things which are usual and ordinary in one country can be treated like abuse in another one. In this case it is necessary to mention cultural differences between East and West outlook. Attitude to woman and upbringing are fundamentally different in these two different parts of the world. Despite differences, abuse is a common problem of our time and it needs a careful study in order to find the way out.

In all countries women are children are more likely to become the victims of abuse and domestic violence. According to CASI investigation “Over their lifetime, 22.7% of women and 14.9% of men reported being a victim of domestic assault” (British Medical Association, 2002). In addition, the consequences of domestic violence are not equal for men and women. In the cases when women become victims of domestic violence they experience more serious injuries. Women are usually two times oftener injured in attacks. This can be explained by simple fact that men and women have different physical characteristics and abuse caused by men has stronger effect on women than vice versa. In addition women several times oftener become victims of frightening threats. By statistics women are more likely to experience multiple abuses. Most of the acts of violence performed by women are usually committed as a self-defence. In addition, Criminal Statistics of England shows that “that 47% of female homicide victims were killed by their partners (compared to 8% of men)” (British Medical Association, 2002).
Different cultures have strong influence on the abuse. In different cultural backgrounds abuse may have different reasons. In some countries housekeeping becomes the main reason of abuse. “Men from some cultures are more focused on precisely how their partners care for the house and prepare meals… they expect to be waited on like royalty with a warm, creative and tasty dinner every night. If the man shows up two hours late without calling, the meal is still expected to be warm somehow, or else” (Nissl, 144). Jealousy is another common reason of abuse. It also may vary for different countries. Oriental and Muslim countries usually demonstrate the type of society where women have less freedom. Men in these societies also tend to be more jealous. “Men from certain countries stand out for their fanatical jealousy, which can lead verbally to ripping into their partners for speaking to a stranger on the street for ten minutes or for dancing one number with another man at a party” (Nissl, 2004, p.145).
There are several indicators, which increase the risks connected with domestic violence. Specialists state that single cases of domestic abuse are rare. Usually one single case is followed by other cases. According to statistics “35% of households have a second incident within five weeks of the first” (Johnson, 1998, p. 482). Even if the smallest abuse takes place it often becomes a sign that bigger abuse can occur any time.
There are additional risk factors, which show the danger of domestic violence. Violence is less likely to occur in families or couples, where partners possess equal position. Domestic abuse is more common for dependant relations. In the case when one partner becomes dependant of another the risk of abuse increases. Economic dependency is the most common type of dependency which increases the risk of abuse. This way unemployed women and housewives oftener suffer from domestic abuse.
Income level can also influence the level of domestic abuse. Statistics shows that in the families with low income abuse occurs oftener than in families with higher income. Despite there is a correlation between income level and domestic violence, it also can be found in families with high income. Still general correlation indicates relations between income level and domestic violence. Low income level is usually associated with higher abuse rates. In some cases there can be traced a reverse relations. In these cases domestic abuse becomes a reason of poverty. These can be explained in several ways. First of all it domestic abuse prevents its victims (mostly women) from finding a normal and well-paid job. In addition domestic violence often becomes a reason of serious health problems. Ethnicity also influences domestic violence. According to statistics women from ethnic minorities oftener become victims of domestic violence. The situation is also complicated by the fact that these women often have difficulties accessing support services because of their ethnicity. They may also experience language and cultural difficulties. Background violence is also sometimes regarded as a factor, which increases the risk to become a victim of domestic violence. Under background violence we understand the situation when people faced violence in their past, mostly childhood. Some specialists believe that people who faced violence in the childhood oftener become victims of domestic violence in their adult life when they create families of their own. This opinion is still disputable and needs additional research.
History and traditions of the country have a very big influence on the abuse rate. Some oriental countries, like China or India, for example have a long history of suppression of women and their abuse. For centuries women in India and China had been treated like things. They possessed no rights and had to survive in completely patriarchal societies. There are many movements, which struggle for the women right in both countries. Female infanticide in China existed as early as 2,000 BC Now it’s prohibited and legally prosecuted but this tendency is still present in some areas of the country and women are still abused for giving birth to girls. India is also famous for the centuries of discrimination of women. Some progress has been made on this field in both countries. In India women take active part in political and social life nowadays. It’s worth to remember the notable example of India Gandhi – a women who became and example for millions of Indian women. There are a number of state programs, which are developed in order to increase the number of women in Indian government. The establishing of one-third requirement for women in the Indian government is a good proof of positive changes in this field. China is famous for its patriarchal social structure. During the centuries men possess more rights and freedoms in China while women possessed no these privileges. Women right movement in China has also achieved good results. The constitution of 1946 proclaims for the first time in Chinese history that : “All citizens of the Republic of China, irrespective of sex, religion, race, class, or party affiliation, shall be equal before the law.” If to compare movements for women rights in both countries we will find out that though some progress can be noticed in both of them in India women struggle not only for equal rights with man but also for the taking active part in social, political and cultural life of the country.
Child abuse and domestic violence are closely interconnected. Very often these two violations coexist. This way in the families where domestic violence occurs it is often is supplemented by child abuse. Unfortunately the cases of child abuses increased dramatically during the last decades.
Modern psychological theories insist on the fact that child abuse holds together families, as it’s a kind of solving emotional problems. A number of theories continue these ones and say that child abuse stimulates solving collective emotional problems of the whole society.
The first data that we can relate to child abuse are connected with ancient child sacrifice. At Carthage there was found a cemetery where were buried more then 20,000 children, this event dates back to 400-200 BC. Parents used to vow to kill their next child if gods would be gracious to them. Sometimes the parents had to kill their first child if the promised child wasn’t born alive. Such kind of sacrifice was a happy ritual with singing and dancing sometimes accompanied by the ritual rape of virgin girls. A similar ritual exists even nowadays in the Andean Mountains. Such kinds of rituals resemble satanic rituals where sexual abuse, rape and genital mutilation of children take place.
In the contemporary society child abuse differs in different countries and different social and cultural surrounding. “Abusive men from one region of the world commonly hit their children with belts, a behavior that meets with stern disapproval from abusers from other parts of the world, who in turn may horrify the first group by taking custody of their children away from their mothers” ( Nissl et al, 123).
It is evident that the government of different countries should pay attention to such serious problem as domestic violence. Only united effort of government and social organizations can help to overcome this serious problem. Study of the roots of the problem is important because it can help to resolve it. Pamela Prah in her article called Domestic Violence makes an attempt to trace the roots o the problem. She believes that: “Early in America’s history, women were viewed as the property of men, much like children or slaves, who could be punished physically for not obeying orders” (Prah, p. 10). Despite the problem of domestic violence is a burning issue in the modern society the progress is still very little in this field. Fortunately, different social organizations started paying more attention to the problem. This give hope that in the future the problem will be overcome completely. For this to happen it is necessary to spend some time and effort resolving it.
Domestic violence is a problem which can not be neglected any more. It is evident that such a phenomenon as domestic violence can not exist in civilized society and all people should unite their effort in order to stop it. United efforts and special knowledge in this field will make that combinations, which will help to resolve this problem effectively, to my mind. Unfortunately such problem as child abuse also exists in our “civilized” society. It goes without saying that child abuse leads to problems. Consequences can be not just physical injuries, child abuse easily effects the further psychical state. Abuse in the childhood may result in emotional problems, problems with friends, relatives and communication as a whole.


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