Women Victimization Of Women

The Victimization of Women in Domestic Violence

According to the gender role theory, the victimization of women begins during the traditional socialization of children. During the early years of socialization, girls are taught to be passive to the stronger male. Because of this passivity, girls are then more vulnerable to becoming victims later in life. Girls are also socialized to be sexually appealing to men, more so than men are to women. This leads to a media portrayal of women that can make girls more susceptible to sexual abuse later in life. Boys on the other had are socialized to be aggressive, self-reliant, and in control at all times. This leads to a patriarchy, where men hold top positions and are constantly in charge. By

According to Farmer and Tiefethaler, “violence against women by intimate partners fell by 21 percent between 1993 and 1998 from 1.1 million violent incidents to 876,340 incidents” (2). This is, in large part, due to the women’s movement, where domestic violence victimization was a major concern for women. “Economic theory predicts that the incidence of abuse declines as women gain economic independence and therefore gain power in their relationships” (4). Also a large effect of the women’s movement, as women’s alternatives and freedoms within their relationships improve, women are more able to exit, or threaten to exit their relationships and experience less violence. In order to avoid losing their partner, men must lessen their use of violence. With this we should expect a couple of situations in which a women’s situation would help their victimization. For one, we should expect that women who have greater earnings or earning potential are more likely to leave abusive relationships (5). These women are more likely to leave because they are able to support themselves on their own. We should also expect the gender equality of their community to provide them with better opportunity and alternatives to leaving an abusive relationship. According to Farmer and Tiefenthaler, “For example, a woman’s threat to leave her abuser is much more credible if she lives in an area where a large percentage of women are employed and women’s wages are high”