By Maria Mustafa Lecturer , GWS AIOU.

1. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN By Maria Mustafa Lecturer , GWS AIOU.

2. DEFINITION Violence "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or against a group or community, that either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, maldevelopment, or deprivation.“(WHO,2012) • Violence is defined as a willful action on the part of a person or party or nation taken with an intention to physically harm the other person or party or ethnic group.

3. TYPOLOGY OF VIOLENCE • Self-directed violence refers to violence in which the perpetrator and the victim are the same individual and is subdivided into self-abuse and suicide.

4. Interpersonal violence refers to violence between individuals, and is subdivided into family and intimate partner violence and community violence. The former category includes child maltreatment; intimate partner violence; and elder abuse, while the latter is broken down into acquaintance and stranger violence.

5. Collective violence refers to violence committed by larger groups of individuals and can be subdivided into social, political and economic violence.

7. Causes of violence • Gender • Power • Stress • Intimacy • Sources of interpersonal violence • Criminal violence • Intimate violence

8. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN • The United Nations defines violence against women as • 'any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.‘(WHO,2012)

9. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN • Violence against women is a chosen action against a woman or a girl child simply because of her gender. Women are not intentionally made victims of violence because they are women rather they are targeted because they are weaker and have secondary status .

10. Feministic Model • The phenomenon of violence against women is deeply rooted in our social psyche which is influenced by patriarchy. • Feministic explanation of violence stresses the role of male dominance in violence. This approach draws its conclusions from a historical perspective; it holds that the most social systems have traditionally placed women in a subordinate position to men thus supporting the institution of male violence..

11. Categories of vaw There are many forms of violence however it is divided into three broad cateories: • Domestic violence • Sexual offences • community /State violence

12. Domestic violence It seems like a cruel irony that the relationships we most value are also the relationship in which we are most violent .It is an unhappy fact that the intimacy or relatedness increases our likelihood of experiencing violence and abuse. • Domestic violence: • Battering • Dowry related violence • Early forced marriages • Burn victims

13. Sexual offences • Rape • Eve teasing • Sexual harassment at work place • Incest • Child sexual abuse • Prostitution and trafficking • Community and State violence • Honor killings • Custodial violence • Political violence • Violence in armed conflict situations • Violence against migrants workers, refugee and displaced women

14. Why is violence against women used? • Violence is permissible • Violence is an effective strategy to gain compliance and control • The benefit of battering in domestic violence outweighs any potential disadvantage to perpetrators.

15. Battering Battering is usually used in reference to women who are physically assaulted by their partners through actions such as hitting, slapping, punching, kicking choking etc. Emotional , verbal and economic abuse in battering • Belittling , degrading , calling her crazy , calling names , swearing isolation , controlling mobility and resources etc Characteristics of battered wives: • Experienced violence at home as Witness or victim • Have lower levels of self esteem and greater depression

16. Characteristics of battering husbands • Predisposition for aggressive and antisocial behaviors • Experienced violence at home as Witness or victim • Greater contact with deviant peer • Hostile and dominating attitude toward women •  Borderline personality disorder, Antisocial personality disorder, Bipolar disorder, Schizophrenia, Drug abuse ,Alcoholism and stress.

17. Cycle of violence: • Tension building phase • Acute battering episode phase • Reconciliation / tranquil phase • (Walker, E.L,1984)

18. Causative Theories of battering • Bio-psychosocial perspective: • Resource theory : Economic dependence • Social exchange theory: Reward and cost , People hit and abuse each other because it achieves a certain goal and the benefit outweighs the cost • comparison level and prospects for alternatives • Social learning theory :exposure to violence ,imitation , modeling , reinforcements acceptance of violence submissively • Theory of power and control

19. Consequences of Battering • Battered Women Syndrome (Walker, L.,1984) a pattern of psychological and behavioral symptoms found in women living in battering relationships. There are four general characteristics of the syndrome: • The woman believes that the violence was her fault • The woman has an inability to place the responsibility for the violence elsewhere. • The woman fears for her life and/or her children's lives. • The woman has an irrational belief that the abuser is omnipresent and omniscient. • Learned helplessness; internal ,stable and global attribution

20. RAPE The unlawful compelling of a woman through physical force or duress to have sexual intercourse. or Any act of sexual intercourse that is forced upon a person.

21. Theories of Rape The feminist theory of rape is • "rape is nothing more or less than a conscious process of intimidation by which all men keep all women in a state of fear". It asserts rape to be a crime of power that has little or nothing to do with sex itself. 

22. psychological theories • While modern psychological theories support the belief that rape is motivated by aggression; there is some evidence that rape can be sexually motivated as well.  • Social learning theory  of rape is similar to the feminist theory and links cultural traditions such as imitation, sex-violence linkages, rape myths (e.g. "women secretly desire to be raped"), and desensitization to the core causes of rape.

23. Factors increasing men’s risk of committing rape

24. CONSEQUENCES OF RAPE • Psychological : • postassault depression, • feelings of betrayal and humiliation, • problems with trust and intimacy, • guilt, anxiety, fears, anger, • sexual difficulties, • lowered self-esteem • PTSD Physical: • Physical injury to the victim or leads to medical difficulties. • rape victims can contract sexually transmitted diseases from rapists. • Female victims may also become pregnant

25. Myths of Rape • Women provoke men • Only young, fashionable and outgoing women are raped • Women are safe in homes • Rapes is a shame form the victim • We should not talk about rape • Segregation of sexes will reduce rape

26. SEXUAL HARASSMENT • Sexual harassment is defined as unwelcome behavior of a sexual nature. • Unwelcome sexual advances, • requests for sexual favors, • and other visual, verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature • Sexual harassment may take many forms—subtle and indirect, or blatant and overt.

27. SEXUAL HARASSMENT Quid Pro Quo Harassment is when employment and/or employment decisions for an employee are based on that employees's acceptance or rejection of unwelcome sexual behavior. Hostile Work Environment is a work environment created by unwelcome sexual behavior or behavior directed at an employee because of that employee's sex that is offensive, hostile and/or intimidating and that adversely affects that employee'sability to do his or her job.

28. Harasser Patterns • Sexual harassment is not about sex--at the core of the problem is the abuse of  power or authority, though the perpetrator might try to convince the victim and him/herself that the behavior is about sexual or romantic interest.   • In addition to targeting subordinates, perpetrators of sexual harassment may choose their victims based on such characteristics as age, perceived passivity or lack of assertiveness, poor education or naiveté, low self esteem,

29. Types and myths of Harrassment Physical , Verbal and Non verbal • Myth: Some people ask to be sexually harassed. They do this with how they dress, or how they act. They send "signals." • Myth: If a person really wanted to discourage, or stop, sexual harassment, they could. • Myth: Most charges of sexual harassment are false.Myth: If you ignore sexually harassing behavior, it will eventually stop. • Myth: Sexual harassment is inevitable when people are working together.

30. Psychological and physical Consequences • Depression • Anxiety and/or panic attacks • Shame and guilt; self-blame • Sleeplessness and/or nightmares • Difficulty concentrating • Headaches • Fatigue or loss of motivation • Difficulties with time • Stomach problems; gastrointestinal disorders • Eating disorders (weight loss or gain) • Feeling betrayed and/or violated • Feeling angry or violent towards the perpetrator • Feeling powerless, helpless, or out of control • Increased blood pressure • Loss of confidence and self esteem • Overall loss of trust in people; problems with intimacy • Problems with sex (sexual dysfunction) • Withdrawal and isolation • Suicidal thoughts or attempts; suicide   • Traumatic stress; post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

31. Economic Consequences • First, sexual harassment can degrade employee performance. • Second, harassment can breed resentment and mistrust in the workplace. • Third, harassment contributes to costly turnover.

32. Thank You