The Battered Women Syndrome and Eclectic View

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Running head: BATTERED WOMAN SYNDROME AN ECLECTIC PERSPECTIVE Battered Woman Syndrome: An Eclectic Perspective Laura R. Koel Contemporary Issues in Psychology Nov 08, 2007 Battered Woman Syndrome: An Eclectic Perspective Domestic violence and specifically violence against women is an important and serious contemporary issue in need of immediate and continued attention by society. According to Carpenito (1996) domestic violence is a behavior chosen by a batterer to gain control over another person. There are thousands of women in intimate relationships in our society who are victims of domestic violence by their male partner. Culture, economic status, or education does not exempt one from being battered. It can happen to anyone in any class of people and in any neighborhood. Violence towards anyone is unacceptable and there is no excuse for violent behavior such as drug or alcohol abuse. In order to understand the severity of this issue it is important to know some statistics about domestic violence. The statistics show that every 9 seconds somewhere in the U. S., a woman is battered by someone she knows. Every year a staggering 8.7 million women are abused by partners in their homes (Roberts, 2006). Violence among current or former intimate partners is pervasive in society. Between 22% and 35% of emergency room visits are due to symptoms or injuries related to ongoing physical abuse (Gilardi, 2005). Battered Women Syndrome refers to the physical and psychological effects of abuse, and describes a pattern of responses and perceptions presumed to be characteristic of women who have been subjected to continuous physical abuse by a partner (Gatowski, Dobbin, Richardson, Ginsburg, 1997). The definition of BWS speaks for itself. Women who have been battered over a long period of time show certain physical and
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