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The Influence Of Domestic Violence On Family Relationship Among Couples
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CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1Background to the Study
Domestic
abuse is a problem that is entrenched in many society across the globe
and Nigeria is not exception. Research in this area has shown that this
type of violence has touched the lives of many Nigerian couples.
Although societal awareness and condemnation of the issue has increased
in recent years. Domestic violence remain a hidden and persistent
problem because of the power and control held by the abuser, the fear,
intimidation and humiliation suffered by the victim of this crime.
The
oldest and most prevalent institution in the world today is the
marriage institution. In all culture, there is a particular sanctity
attached to this institution, so much that it is particularly considered
to be a building block of any society.
The pivotal position of
marriage has made domestic violence a subject of interest to various
disciplines, government, religious sects and professional associations.
American
Psychological Association (APA) (1996) defined domestic violence as a
pattern of abusive behaviour including a wide range of physical, sexual,
and psychological maltreatment used by a person in an intimate
relationship against another to gain power unfairly or to maintain that
person misuse of power, control and authority. If the abuse between
intimate partners in which one person tries to control the other person
through violence. Domestic violence is other wise called spousal abuse.
The
role of spouse in family relationship is significant, such that some
people have acclaimed it to the power of surviving family adjustment.
However, this role has its own problems. some spouses have been found to
be abused in various forms, ranging from sexual to financial abuse and
communicative abuse. All these have implication on family relationship.
Domestic
violence occurs in traditional heterosexual marriages, as well as in
some sexual partnership. The abuse may occur during a relationship,
while the couple is breakup, or after the relationship has ended. The
key elements of domestic violence are: intimidation, humiliation and
physical injury. Going by the definition of domestic violence couples
engage in it to control the other partner and keep him/her from
departing or quitting the relationship.
A critical look at the
definition of domestic violence will reveal that they assume the
dimension of portraying women as the victims bearing the brunt, while
men are seen perpetrators.
This could be as a result of the widely
held beliefs that women are the weaker sex while men are by right, the
head of the family that must be obeyed.
Nigeria as a country has her
own fair share of domestic violence, which could be seen in the rate of
divorce, separation and marital dishonesty in the country.
According
to Ajila (2000) in his study on wife beating in western Nigeria, it was
found that 32% of women indicated that they have experienced abuse, 21%
believe strongly that wives should be beaten while 72% believe that
wives should be beaten once in a while.
Bakare (1986) identified marital conflict to exist along a particular continuum which are:
1. Occasional verbal quarrels
2. Frequent verbal quarrels
3. Occasional physiological quarrel
4. Frequent physical quarrel
5. Psychological separation
6. Physical separation
7. Divorce
A
close look at this shows that a particular couple is expected to go
through the whole stages, but it is not necessarily so in all
situations. Some couples get to the divorce stage without going through
physical quarrels and physical separation, while some resolve the
conflict completely before it gets to divorce stage.
Researchers
indicated domestic violence, through prevalent in Nigeria is still
largely under reported, if reported at all. The causes of domestic
violence can be seen in two broad categories.
The traditional causes
are those factors that are commonly seen and discussed as leading to
fighting among couples. They are immediate causes that can be pin
pointed as leading to violence in the home. These include, among others,
sex role, sexual dissatisfaction and infidelity, ego message, feeling
of staying control, income petibility, religion conflict, alcohol
consumption, money matters, childlessness, influence of inlaws etc.
Secondly
contemporary causes of domestic violence are those underlying remote
factors that are not easily seen or implicated, yet they influence
violence behaviour in marital relationship.
Domestic violence has now
become a common phenomenon. It should be noted here that as husbands
abuse their wives so also wives abuse their husbands (Steinmetz, 1977).
It is only the degree that varies.
The question then is how well has
domestic violence or abuse has been able to achieve its end going by the
high rate of family discord, divorce, separation etc experienced today?
Base
on the above picture, the study is to determine the influence domestic
violence on family relationship among couple in Oshodi Local Government
Area of Lagos State.
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 4]
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]The study examined the influence of domestic violence on family relationship among couples in Oshodi/Isolo Local Government Area of Lagos State. Descriptive research survey design was used, while a self-designed questionnaire was used as the major instrument.A total of 102 respondents were sampled. Four null hypotheses were formulated and tested using the independent t-test statistical tool at 0.05 level of significance.At the end of the analyses, the result shows that:1. There is a si ... Continue reading---