The Effects of Battered Women Syndrome

Overview

A battered woman’s syndrome is a mixture of feelings alongside other temperamental patterns which are as a result of the consequences of trauma, lack of assistance and a round of violence which makes the affected female victim to blindly acknowledge that it is impossible to evade the abusive relationship (Reed & Enright, 2006). The battered women usually find it difficult to leave the abusers. Although men may equally be abused by their spouses or those whom they are in love with, most victims are usually women who find themselves susceptible to the attack from male partners who are largely perceived by the former as mighty and authoritative. Furthermore, women who stick to the abuser have varied reasons for not taking any drastic steps. For instance, most women who may be victims of domestic violence are often not in a position to support themselves financially and so the dependency syndrome on their husbands becomes the order of the day. Other abused women feel that running away from their habitual attackers may prove to be futile because they will always be caught up with the abuser.

Legislation

The poor application of the defending oneself in case of danger of an attack from an abuser led to the early development of the battered woman syndrome. This was especially in cases when these victimised women would kill their partners as one way of defending themselves. Conventionally, self defence was used as a way of protecting oneself from the abuser although this tactic required expert evaluation and interpretation. The amount of force used by these victims in defending themselves was also an issue of concern and is still a matter of concern up to date (Valera & Berenbaum, 2003). Nevertheless, the idea of self defence has never been successfully used before court of law to justify any killings to abusers. There are some cases when the abused females wpuld defend themselves in a court of law by asserting that at the time of killing, there were under the influence of the battered woman syndrome. This argument, however, cannot be used as a valid reason for the killing of the abuser. This is almost similar to ignorance of the law which has ever been regarded as no defence at all. Therefore, a testimony from a legal professional is very important in the assessment and final evaluation of the fate of female who ends up killing an abuser.

A research study carried out by Valera and Berenbaum (2003) aimed at establishing whether women in abusive relationships undergo any form of injury related to brain. In this case, the expert testimony is equally necessary in assisting the judging panel on the validity of whatever reason is given by the killer in the event of abusive relationships. When this professional testimony is offered in defence of the abused woman who has killed the abuser, it does not imply that at the time of murder, the battered woman had no right sense of mind and therefore acted in bad taste to execute the killing. A fair and sound judgement is sought in order to establish a credible judgement which can be sustained in any other legal system (Valera & Berenbaum, 2003). Hence, the main role of expert opinions is to draw a clear boundary between the traditional myth of self defence in case of alarming danger as well as how reasonable the act of killing was bearing in mind that it is outright wrong to do so.

The current legal application and interpretation of the battered woman syndrome has been extended to cover the effects of the very syndrome so that the ides of self defence can be more realistic and arguable in a legal process. Interestingly, there are those battered men who have entered this “battering and its effects” so as to able to defend themselves before a jury. In other words, the battered woman syndrome is fast transforming itself into the battered person syndrome so as cover both gender and also give a wider perspective of the phenomena (Roberts, 1996). The legal system has attempted to expand this definition to encompass even those men who are victims of domestic violence.

The use of extreme force in executing an attack to the abuser is equally subject to court decision to determine whether the abused partner contravened the law or not. In most cases, excessive force can only be permissible if the attacker felt that only that amount of force would deter the abuser from committing a heinous act. Such level of argument as far as self defence is concerned can be given a fair hearing in a court of law only if the truth behind such assertions has been established. A battered woman who is extremely in danger can easily find herself resorting to such measures.

Meanwhile, there are many murder cases which occur at a time when the abuser is not violent at all and perhaps taking some rest like sleep. Battered women who avenge their anger after a considerably long period of time are considered to be more dangerous as much as they still stand to be abused in future. Currently, most states are implanting a holistic approach to battering and its effects approach as compared to culturally embraced practice of self defence whenever such attacks occur. Both gender and a neutral approach is being used to pass judgements over cases which entail battering of either partner in a relationship. There are some states which are however still practicing the old practice of self defence as a result of battered woman syndrome. Under this conventional judgment system, women who are surviving in abusive relationships have no fair chance of being listened to. First of all, there is a lot of insubordination and labelling of character based on gender. Women are stereotyped and have minimal defence strength when arguing out their case.

The effect of battering on women is quite broad both in terms of its content and interpretation. For instance, the cultural battered woman syndrome could only address a few questions like why the woman could not abandon her partner immediately after she sensed a dangerous atmosphere. Why should the battered woman wait until at a point when she has to revenge her fury on the man? Is it necessary for such battered women to reach a dead end of killing their partners? These are some of the pertinent questions which are adequately addressed when the subject on gender violence is transformed into battering and its effects.

Battered Woman Syndrome

The admission of expert opinion was very instrumental in assisting a team of judges to make final decisions regarding female victims who murdered their spouses. This approach however, could not answer some of the questions inquired above. The expert opinions, as mentioned earlier, provided the limelight for passing judgements related to spousal killings. In any case, courts were very thorough when giving their submissions and they tried to be as fair as possible in their verdicts. Hence, the inquiry behind the use of self defence gave rise to the battered woman syndrome (Reed & Enright, 2006). Definitely, there was a lot of unfairness in terms of gender; women offers would in several cases be victims of skewed judgements.

In most civilisations, a woman, once married to a man was considered a special property of the latter. Man had express authority over a woman especially within the context of marriage. As much as these draconian cultural practices have been alleviated in the contemporary society, the beating of women has hardly received a fair legal hearing. The reality that a woman could kill her husband was unbearable unlike the converse; a man killing a woman was not considered to be very strange. Those women who are battered in whatever form of relationships undergo through much which has uniquely been reduced to a set of cognitive feelings called syndrome. Further, it can be observed that women who are battered in relationships suffer a lot of negative effects which range from actual physical injury to psychological trauma.

Domestic violence a study on battered women who were on different occupational activities was done by Chronister and McWhirter (2006).The effects characterised by domestic violence were found to be diverse because different groups of battered occupational women would have different reactions to the acts of the abuser. 73 women were used in the study. Colleagues at work and other acquaintances as well as the community are affected by domestic violence. For instance, the battering of women by abusive husbands leaves children more susceptible to violence itself eve as they grow up in life. Witnessing horrible scenes of parental in fights only prepares these children to be more defensive and offensive in character at the expense of the entire society. When children are constantly under the influence of violence in homes, they tend to develop an attitude that fighting is a normal thing and that engaging in it is not a great deal. In other words, domestic violence especially through the common woman battering does not create any role model system for children to identify with and eventually emulate. When children are regular witnesses of domestic feuds between parents, they have a higher chance of developing into hardcore characters whose hobby will be in violence. It is important to note that children learn best what they see

Similarly, Paul (2004) investigated the diverse effects which women undergo when they are abused by those whom they are in a relationship with. According to the author, women battering syndrome has persisted for long in spite of the publicity it has received. Those who undergo through the negative effects of domestic violence experience diverse forms of trauma. For example, women who are usually battered do not undergo such lifetime encounters only once but rather repeatedly. This is the reason why these females will slowly develop the battered woman syndrome (Walker, 2009). They live under great fear of their abuser and this is one of the reasons why some abused women will not quit the trauma for the basic fear of being apprehended by the abuser. In the course of domestic violence, the abused is extremely threatened in a manner that they cannot take any decisive step or line of action. As a result, violence persists and the victim continues to suffer all manner of ills from the abuser. In the course of this domestic violence, the abused woman will encounter a series of sufferings some of which will be emotional strain while others psychological. Physical torture through thorough beating and forced intimacy can grossly devastate the victim.

Self Worth

According to the study carried out by Schuller et al. (2004), there is real evidence of battered women syndrome since there is profound trauma which victims undergo when they are repeatedly abused. This study was carried out to determine how the abused woman would kill her abuser and the rationale for choosing the killing method. A total of 72 people participated in the study and in which they were to handle different cases involving a woman who had killed her spouse. From the findings, it was evident that one dominant effect of long term abuses like in the case of woman battering is that the spouse may be eventually killed as a way of revenging. Before such a critical stage, the abused woman will have suffered terribly. One important element of personal well being called self worth will be completely eroded. The victim will not consider herself worthy. This will be witnessed by low self esteem, dejection, poor way of relating with other people as well as inability to make decisions on their own. Besides, women who are battered are surrounded by a multitude of other life challenges in their day to day lives.

Woman battering as one way of domestic violence, may also lead to the development of other negative physical and psychological conditions. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a vivid example of such complication. The main cause of this disorder is depression which is contributed by several other physiological factors. A regularly battered woman, for instance, will suffer from chronic fatigue characterised by lot of hopelessness. Victims sometimes tend to relate the present time to the distant past and regret a lot. One significant cause of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is long-term domestic violence which is often repetitive.

Victims who have gone through constant violence in households are also backed with untold fear, lack of sleep and horrifying dreams. Violence of whatever nature tends to leave a lasting impression in the mind of the affected victim. This is why battered women may sometimes act out of proportion by killing their abusers in cold blood at the most unexpected times.

Effect on Children

The psychological development of children may profoundly be put at risk when parents who are supposed to give them both emotional and psychological support turn out to be instruments of war time and again. There is a higher likelihood of children who grow in abusive homes to develop undesired characteristics which will be envisaged through behavioural patterns (Roberts, 1996). As their mother is being battered, children will automatically get an impression that the female character in the house is not a valuable entity. They will often end up not respecting the battered mother while at the same time becoming extremely fearful of the male abusive figure instead of respecting the very person. Additionally, lack of parental support is one cause of gross withdrawal attitude among children. They will keep to themselves and avoid any kind of relationship with others. Loneliness soon troops in since they do not engage in any meaningful activity. It is also at this tender age when children are naturally developing behavioural patterns and interactive skills without which they may end up as lonely and independent human beings even when they finally grew up (Schuller et al., 2004). For most women who survive in abusive relationships, they often make relentless attempts to safeguard or rescue their children from the effects of domestic violence. However, this is sometimes not very possible because as victims of domestic violence, these battered women have to first of all retrieve themselves from this mess before finally saving their children from being adversely affected. This has been very tricky to achieve bearing in mind that both women and children are potential victims of such abuses and none of them may be in a better position to save the other. It requires an external expert help.

Why is domestic violence catastrophic?

Battering of women is one powerful waves of domestic violence. As noted earlier, any form of violence which takes place within a family set up can seriously injure the well being of that particular household. In the first place, a battered woman will not be able to focus on the nature and care of her children. Instances when the abused might opt to take refuge away from home are even more disastrous so to speak because children will be left unattended to (Frisch B.M & Mackenzie, 1991). The pre-occupation of both parents in the violent activities will eventually result into family break up through separation and divorce. This will often be preceded by stress and depression which as noted earlier, are the main causes of conditional ailments today. Dejected parents may find it extremely difficult to fend for their children. The effects of battering women are not only numerous but also devastating.

Women who are battered alongside other forms of abuse have been found to exhibit very punitive tactics if bringing up their children. This is one way through which they demonstrate the kind of intrinsic aggressiveness and pain which they are going through. They are not gentle and passionate at all with their children. In the case of abusive fathers, they lack basic affection and emotional care for their families because in the first place, they have developed into animal like human beings who can only resort to violence to solve their problems.

Treatment of woman battering and domestic violence

All forms of domestic violence including woman battering pose a serious risk not just to the immediate family members but also to the wider community and society in general. It is therefore imperative to seek prompt treatment to this menace once it has been diagnosed within a family set up.

To begin with, the therapist who has been entrusted to handle a specific case of domestic violence should be endowed with adequate information in terms of literature of the violence concerned (Chronister & McWhirter, 2006). To achieve this, the therapist will have to assess and evaluate certain factors which are directly linked to the cause of the specific violence and also understand the dynamics and the changing faces of this form of violence in order to give it the best interpretation and solution. In addition, as the victim of domestic violence continues to recuperate, the therapist will have the duty of ensuring due safety of the client throughout the recovery period. The follow-up exercises are also very instrumental even after the victim has been discharged from the treatment facility. On the same note, the disparity in terms of power between the abused and the abuser is crucial for the therapist to consider before commencing the due process of treatment.

Although the battered woman may have to some extent contributed to the eruption of violence, the therapist is not supposed to point a finger at the abused. The best way to blame is by creating a concept that both have equal mistakes in the outcome of the fight(Kazak & Segal-Andrews, 1992). Other better psychological terms like mutual combat can be used by the therapist to elaborate on the violence instead of using some terms which may instil fear and anxiety to the victim. For instance, the use of the term “abuse” might trigger uneasy feeling to the abused and ruin the treatment process of the victimised person.

There are some instances when elaborate resources may be required to effect the treatment and recovery of affected persons. It is upon those who provide treatment to carry our a survey of the resources available for the exercise as well as the possible challenges which may act as impediments to the process.

Biased Judgement

The research carried out by Walker (2004) revealed that the public opinion has significantly changed regarding court judgement on women who are battered. Apart from the fact that women can now receive fair judgements against their abuser, the treatment and recovery process of the affected victims may to a larger extent be quite involving and in some cases, some biased judgement may be advanced to the victim like in a situation whereby there is due need to take legal action against the abuser. As much as such proposals may be deemed necessary by the therapists, it should be done with extra caution to deter any possibility of further injury or harm to the victim (Walker, 1984). Any kind of biased or personalised judgement offered should be well evaluated such that the outcome favours the victim.

Counselling of Couples

Generally speaking, counselling of couples is one way of resolving domestic violence such as wife battering. However, there are those who argue that counselling of couples rarely bares any fruit because the barterer is more enhanced to continue with the heinous act which might hinder the affected victim from making a firm decision of whether to quit the relationship or stay put (Kazak & Segal-Andrews, 1992). Although this may be partly true, it is equally important to approach the counselling process for couples with a lot of caution. Suppose the abuser is not pleased with the decision to be counselled as a couple, the victim may face further threats from the assailant after leaving the secure counselling office. Hence, the safety of the victim is paramount and should be decided upon beforehand to avoid further mess.

Moreover, the counselling process, if not carried out in an intelligent manner may hinder precise monitoring of how much the victim is being abused since there is a likelihood of the victim giving partial and incomplete reporting in the event the abuse is extreme (Chronister & McWhirter, 2006). Again, very accurate and precise reporting of the abuser by the victim may as well trigger some other hidden issues leading to worsening relationship.

Conclusion

In summing up this paper, it is imperative to note that the effects of woman battering syndrome revolves around a set of feelings and cognitive patterns of behaviour which are inherent in a woman who ahs been barterer alongside other forms of abuse and therefore the abused victim finds it difficult to quit from the relationship due to fear or an element of intimidation. Although the justice system can be followed for women who have been battered by men, the law may sill be weak and not assertive in favour of women. This is due to the traditional approach towards the idea of self defence which was largely used by battered women who killed their spouses as a way of defending themselves in a court of law. Women were greatly subordinated in such judgements on the basis of their gender. In spite of this, there is a comprehensive legal process which battered women can follow to defend themselves against abusers.

Besides, battering of women cannot be discussed in isolation without mentioning the effects of domestic violence. Households which have been ruptured by domestic violence experience a lot of challenges both in bringing up children as well as maintaining their individual physical, emotional and psychological well being.

References

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3. Frisch B.M and Mackenzie J.C. (1991). A comparison of formerly and chronically battered women on cognitive and situational dimensions, Psychotherapy, 28(2): 339-343.
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7. Schuller et al. (2004). Rethinking Battered Woman Syndrome Evidence: The Impact of Alternative Forms of Expert Testimony on Mock Jurors’ Decisions. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 36(2): 127-136.
8. Valera M.E and Berenbaum H. (2003). Brain Injury in Battered Women. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 71 (4): 797–804
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