Victims as Offenders

Victims as Offenders
Author: Susan Miller
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2005-09-22
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0813537762

Arrests of women for assault increased more than 40 percent over the past decade, while male arrests for this offense have fallen by about one percent. Some studies report that for the first time ever the rate of reported intimate partner abuse among men and women is nearly equal. Susan L. Miller’s timely book explores the important questions raised by these startling statistics. Are women finally closing the gender gap on violence? Or does this phenomenon reflect a backlash shaped by men who batter? How do abusive men use the criminal justice system to increase control over their wives? Do police, courts, and treatment providers support aggressive arrest policies for women? Are these women “victims” or “offenders”? In answering these questions, Miller draws on extensive data from a study of police behavior in the field, interviews with criminal justice professionals and social service providers, and participant observation of female offender programs. She offers a critical analysis of the theoretical assumptions framing the study of violence and provides insight into the often contradictory implications of the mandatory and pro-arrest policies enacted in the 1980s and 1990s. Miller argues that these enforcement strategies, designed to protect women, have often victimized women in different ways. Without sensationalizing, Miller unveils a reality that looks very different from what current statistics on domestic violence imply.

The Hidden America

The Hidden America
Author: Robert M. Moore
Publisher: Susquehanna University Press
Total Pages: 334
Release: 2001
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 9781575910475

Moore dispels the myths that rural life does not contain urban problems, such as poor parenting and substance abuse, while its economy depends on farming or mineral extraction. The realities and recent changes in rural life mean that social services must adapt to the needs of the rural communities.

Psychological Problems, Social Issues, and Law

Psychological Problems, Social Issues, and Law
Author: Murray Levine
Publisher: Allyn & Bacon
Total Pages: 632
Release: 2007
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN:

The much-anticipated Second Edition of "Psychological Problems, Social Issues, and Law" offers updated research, legal cases, and new examples. The text uses historical and systems perspectives to examine the interaction between the social science community and the law. Each chapter contains a historical or a philosophical introduction to a problem, followed by discussion of the major legal issues and reviews of a wide range of research, including experimental literature. In addition to addressing many topics typically covered in psychology and law texts, Levine emphasizes social problems, dealing with issues such as abortion, intimate partner violence, divorce and custody, child protection, and more."

Battering Of Women

Battering Of Women
Author: Larry Tifft
Publisher: Westview Press
Total Pages: 256
Release: 1993-08-04
Genre: Family & Relationships
ISBN:

Why have most interventions failed to decrease domestic violence in this country? Larry Tifft provides reasons—and suggests possible solutions—in this revealing study of the cultural, social structural, and interpersonal dynamics that support a man's choice to batter his intimate partner.Tifft addresses the cultural underpinnings of violence against women, including the gender hierarchy evident in the basic structure of our society and in our institutions. Through an analysis of the stages in the battering process, he explores the context, meanings, and decision-making processes that lead men to batter women and encourage women to choose various coping, resistance, and survival strategies. What emerges from Tifft's study are not only patterns of physical violence, but also patterns of sexual, psychological, and spiritual violence that the batterer uses to control his partner's thoughts, to annihilate her voice, and to deconstruct her sense of self and reality.Intrapersonal and interpersonal interventions have failed to decrease the prevalence of battering in our society. Primary prevention strategies designed to change the social structural arrangements that foster violence are likely to be much more effective. Tifft explains why and how these community-coordinated interventions, which challenge our most basic assumptions, are our best hope for reducing the incidence of battering.