Research proposal Problem or objective The Boston Police Department has started enforcing new laws that require an officer to make an arrest when responding to cases of domestic violence. This is a strict new law that is being enforced. Previously, it was not necessary to make an arrest for such an incident. The officer had to make sure that the parties were safe and could judge on what action to carry out next. Now, it is a requirement by law to make an arrest if they respond to any case of domestic violence. It is important to study whether enactment of this new law has led to a change in behavior of people in intimate relationships regarding domestic violence. Hypothesis The hypothesis for this research will be 'Have the new stricter policies on domestic violence among intimate partners led to a decrease in repeat offenders? ' This research is very important in determining the measures to take to be a deterrent to this crime. There are many approaches to dealing with crime. There are preventive methods that seek to prevent a crime from happening. There is also a punitive method of preventing crime that work by making the penalty for committing a crime very high. It prevents people from committing a crime and offenders from repeating the crime. This research seeks to establish whether making the penalty stiff will work in repeating repeat and future offenders. This research is tied to a larger theory that harsh punishments act as a deterrent to crime. They work by making people not commit a crime for fear of the punishment that is going to follow. This research is applicable across many facets of crimes that are rampant. It is going to help identify whether enacting stricter laws and enforcing them helps in reducing the relate... ... middle of paper ... ... policies have to be able to effectively deal with the crime. The results of this study can be used to formulate policy in the state and in other states. The study plays an important role in understanding the nature of domestic violence, and how enforcement of stricter laws against it will affect its prevalence in the community. Works Cited Clarke, Ronald Situational Crime Prevention. New York: Sage, 2005. Print Kennedy, Bernice R. Domestic Violence: A.k.a. Intimate Partner Violence (ipv). New York: iUniverse, 2013. Print. Shipway, Lyn. Domestic Violence: A Handbook for Health Professionals. London: Routledge, 2004. Print. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, (2006) “Criminal Victimization, 2005,” September 2006. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, (2006) “Intimate Partner Violence in the United States,” December 2006.
In the study involving 2,143 married couples living together completed in 1975 and the study involving 6,002 couples completed in 1985 these studies showed that females had a slightly higher rate of assaulting their spouse than men did (Straus & Gelles, 1986, 1990). The overall rates in the 1985 National Family Violence Survey was 124 per 1,000 women assaulted their male partners compared to 122 per 1000 men who assaulted their female partners (Dutton, 1988; Stets & Straus, 1990). These studies show that women have the same if not hig...
Domestic violence seems to be a never-ending problem from state to state with every state having its fair share of domestic violence. The Texas Council on Family Violence was formed to serve three focal points when dealing with domestic violence in the State of Texas implementing prevention programs that are focused in ending the root cause of domestic violence, providing victim services of domestic violence and promoting support to victims and the violent offenders to help them deal with their issues in domestic violence.
In the United States, domestic violence calls are one of the most common issues that police officers and other law enforcement personnel deal with. However, this approach places all involved in a reactionary mode rather than a preventive or proactive mode when dealing with domestic abuse. In order to both reduce the number of domestic violence occurrences and the resulting need for police intervention as well as protecting the abused; stronger prevention and early intervention programs should be implemented. Prevention programs aimed at our youth as well as correct identification of abusers to determine the appropriate intervention programs would help reduce domestic violence incidences. Although there are some existing laws and regulations for offenders, more could be done to enhance, monitor and establish better laws. If domestic violence incidents can be significantly reduced, then law enforcement resources can be freed up to focus on other critical social issues such as human trafficking and drug enforcement, which would also reduce the financial and emotional costs those issues have associated to them.
Smith, P. H., Thornton, G. E., DeVellis, R., Earp, J., & Coker, A. L. (2002). A population-based study of the prevalence and distinctiveness of battering, physical assault, and sexual assault in intimate relationships. Violence Against Women, 8, 1208-1232.
Buzawa, Carl G. and Buzawa, Eve S. Second Edition: Domestic Violence. Sage Publications, Inc.; Thousand Oaks, California. 1996
Domestic abuse is a rising issue in the United States. It happens everywhere and anywhere. This violence has occurred significantly throughout history and sadly, it’s continuing. What is even more devastating is that most domestic abuse situations are not even reported. “Domestic violence is one of the most underreported crimes” (Heidi Evans). This means that domestic abuse is even more threatening and present in the United States than we know. The key to solving this problem is the understanding of it. Through explaining the history of domestic abuse, its link to economic statuses, and the cycles it creates in relationships, one should now have a better understanding of this issue and should promote the actions that need to be taken against the problem of domestic abuse.
It wasn’t until recently that attitudes regarding domestic violence have been taken seriously. Historically, the predominant thought was to blame the victim and give into myths and stereotypes. However, there has been a push to reevaluate these attitudes and begin to retrain law enforcement to understand domestic violence (Grover, Paul, and Dodge 626). In a study regarding attitudes of police officers towards domestic violence, it was found that “most of the officers (84%) felt that domestic violence calls take too much of their time and effort” (Grover et al 626). Officers “showed a high level of frustration with repeat calls to the same address (93%), and believed that too many domestic violence calls are for verbal arguments (93%)” (Grover et al 626). However, the same study also found that 87% of officers disagreed with the statement that domestic violence cases should be handled as private matters and 64% agreed with the statement, “Domestic violence offenders must be arrested even when the victims don’t feel it is necessary” (Grover et al 626). Evidence suggests that officer respect policies and procedures that have been created to assist the victim as well as protect the community.
Domestic violence can often go unnoticed, unreported and undeterred before it’s too late. Unfortunately, recent awareness efforts have gathered traction only when public outcry for high profile cases are magnified through the media. Despite this post-measured reality, a general response to domestic violence (DV) and intimate partner violence (IPV) by the majority of the public is in line with what most consider unacceptable and also with what the law considers legally wrong. Consider by many, more than just a social discrepancy, the Center of Diseases Control and Prevention currently classifies IPV and DV as a social health problem (CDC, 2014).
Domestic violence, also referred to as intimate partner violence, intimate partner abuse or domestic abuse, affects over one million people in the United States alone. It can be carried out in any number of ways including physically, emotionally, sexually, psychologically and/or financially. Its legal definition considers it to be “any assault, battery, sexual assault, sexual battery, or any criminal offense resulting in physically injury or death of one family member or household member by another who is residing in the same single dwelling unit” (Brown, 2008). In the United States it is considered a major health problem so much so that it was declared the number one health concern by the U.S. Surgeon General in 1992 (Peterman & Dixon, 2003). Not only is it a rapidly growing health problem but it is a growing societal concern as well. Extending beyond the effect felt by the victims and their families, it impacts our communities, government, law enforcement and public service agencies.
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is historically referred to as domestic violence. It describes a pattern of coercive and assaultive behavior that may include psychological abuse, progressive isolation, sexual assault, physical injury, stalking, intimidation, deprivation, and reproductive coercion among partners (The Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF), 1999). IPV leads to lifelong consequences such as lasting physical impairment, emotional trauma, chronic health problems, and even death. It is an issue effecting individuals in every community, regardless of age, economic status, race, religion, nationality or educational background. Eighty-five percent of domestic violence victims are women (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2003). More than one in three women in the United States have experienced rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime (The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 2012). Thirty to sixty percent of perpetrators tend to also abuse children in the household (Edelson, 1999). Witnessing violence between parents or caretakers is considered the strongest risk factor of transmitting violent behavior from one generation to the next (Break the Cycle, 2006).
Thesis: In my paper, I will be examining the different types, possible causes, and effects of Intimate Partner Violence, and what treatments or programs are available to combat this growing problem in America. Regardless of differing approaches to fight it, statistics show that women all across the world suffer from the effects of domestic violence at a similar rate independent of class, race, or religion.
Domestic violence is not just fighting, hitting or an occasional argument. It’s a chronic abuse of power. The abuser of domestic violence, controls and tortures the victim of threats, intimidation, and physical violence. Domestic violence is one of the leading causes of violence in America. The abusers are not only men, women can be abusers as well. Women make up the vast majority of domestic violence. According to the American Bar Association (ABA), 90-95% of domestic violence victims are females and 70% of intimidating homicides are females. Domestic violence is a serious crime and everyone needs to be aware of its effects. This essay presents and explains the evidence supporting the major risk factors for intimate partner homicides.
McHugh, M. C., & Frieze, I. H. (2006). Intimate partner violence. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1087, 121–141. doi: 10.1196/annals.1385.011
“Domestic violence is a violent confrontation between family or household members involving physical harm, sexual assault, or fear of physical harm” (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). In most places domestic violence is looked on as one of the higher priorities when trying to stop crime. Domestic Violence cases are thought to be influenced by the use of alcohol, drugs, stress or anger but in reality, they are just learned behaviors by the batterer. These habits can be stopped as long as one seeks help (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). For instance, a child is brought up in a household that is constantly involved in criminal acts. As this child grows up, the criminal lifestyle will be synonymous with his/her behavior. With that being said, it is also a given fact that if a household and its members are surrounded with violence, the relationships between one another will be strained. Eventually this will end up in a divorce or even worse, death, depending on how far the violence goes. If there is violence in a family, then the ones who are affected by it may feel like they deserve it because of what the batterer is accusing them of doing. Battering occurs among people of all races, ages, socio-economic classes, religious affiliations, occupations, and educational backgrounds (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). Domestic violence can affect families in more aspects than one; the husband-wife relationship, the children, and also the financial stability.
Domestic violence is skyrocketing in our society. In the U.S., as many as 1.5 million women and 850,000 men were physically assaulted by their intimate partner last year, and numerous children abused by their parents. These sad criminal acts will continue to grow in our society, unless our community takes action to stop these crimes.