Question

Why are more than half of all cases of IPV unreported and why are victims unlikely to report abuse and why do some victims stay?

Answer 1

• Domestic violence is a significant social problem in the United States. It is often characterized as violence between household or family members, specifically spouses. To include unmarried, cohabitating, and same-sex couples, family sociologists have created the term intimate partner violence (IPV). Women are the primary victims of intimate partner violence. It is estimated that one in four women has experienced some form of IPV in her lifetime.
• IPV may include physical violence, such as punching, kicking, or other methods of inflicting physical pain; sexual violence, such as rape or other forced sexual acts; threats and intimidation that imply either physical or sexual abuse; and emotional abuse, such as harming another’s sense of self-worth through words or controlling another’s behavior. IPV often starts as emotional abuse and then escalates to other forms or combinations of abuse.
• Since most victims of IPV are women,they are emotionally dependent on their partners and sometimes even financially too,which is why out fear,the reporting of such violence is less by them. Without money, access to resources or even a place to go, it can seem impossible for them to leave the relationship and report it.
• Most women choose to remain quite because they dont want to lose their family and are also sometimes threatened by the partner,to harm their families or take away the child.Some women are also not aware of their basic rights and laws to protect to them.
• Sometimes families of women do not support them and ask them to remain quite for the sake of keeping peace in the family,and telling them that it will subside with time.This mostly happens in lower socio economic status,wherein families cannot financially support their daughters.
• Leaving an abusive relationship is the most dangerous thing to do for a woman,because abuse is about power and control. When a victim leaves, they are taking control and threatening the abusive partner’s power, which could cause the abusive partner to retaliate in very destructive ways.
• A person may not know what a healthy relationship looks like, perhaps from growing up in an environment where abuse was common, and they may not recognize that their relationship is unhealthy.If someone is in an LGBTQ relationship and has not yet come out to everyone, their partner may threaten to reveal this secret.
• It’s often difficult for someone to admit that they’ve been abused. They may feel they’ve done something wrong by becoming involved with an abusive partner. They may also worry that their friends and family will judge them.
• When an abusive partner constantly puts someone down and blames them for the abuse, it can be easy for the victim to believe those statements and think that the abuse is their fault.
• If a partner is disabled and is physically dependent on their abusive partner, they can feel that their well-being is connected to the relationship. This dependency could heavily influence their decision to stay in an abusive relationship.