The consequences on the mental health of physically abused wives

Abstract

Wife abuse has long been a feature of marriage in societies in which men are believed to have the right to dominate their wives. For centuries, it was so normative, that no sanctions existed against it. The primary response of a battered woman during these times was to attempt to minimise violence by catering to the every mood and whim of her partner. Prevalence data revealing the enormous proportions of the problem have. been available for fewer than twenty years. Despite the self-evident nature of the thesis that women suffer severe and long-lasting emotional disorders as a consequence of the violence and battering they experience at the hands of their partners, and despite the consistency of reports supporting this view, there is little adequate empirical evidence to support it. Early research on violence toward woman paid little attention to the psychological consequences of experiencing violence. This study builds on previous research and examines cases in which wives presently resident at Merħba Bik suffered physical abuse and probably various degrees of Post-Traumatic Stress. The latter will be conducted through a survey. The research will be designed in such a way as to extract and consequently examine psychological distress (such as tension and fear) and physical (such as insomnia) state of every individual client. Existing studies have been largely clinical and descriptive in nature and suffer from a number of methodological short comings including no or inappropriate comparison group and imprecise definitions of violence, abuse and emotional disturbance. On the other hand, this study offers some distinct advantages for assessing the relationship among violence, psychological distressand other variables. The psychological consequences of violence and battering pose an additional challenge to those engaged in prevention and treatment efforts. The depression, demoralisation, and hopelessness that battered women experience must not be turned back on them, the victims, as a means of justifying why they are battered. Recognising that psychological distress is a consequence of abuse means that the treatment requires more than simply healing the physical injuries. The deep and sometimes secret psychological wounds sustained by many battered women must be treated as well.