Essay Example on Dimensional Approach of Early Feminist Ideology

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Despite moving away from the one-dimensional approach of early feminist ideology and now addressing socioeconomic explanations of IPV many critics still reject the feminist explanation and argue that gender inequality is just one of the numerous variables which can cause IPV Kaur and Garg 2008 Many theorists instead propose a family conflict theory when attempting to explain the causation of IPV Gelles 1985 Family conflict theories points toward the fact not all men are violent within societies experiencing high levels of gender inequality they instead suggest factors such as age employment income and status play important roles in the causation of IPV Lawson 2012 Family conflict theories use social structuralism when attempting to explain the causation of IPV they suggest that violence occurs due to institutionalized variations among socioeconomic status gender and ethnicity divisions Gelles 1985 Within family conflict theories IPV is seen as the outcome of a pileup of stressors associated with a perceived excess of demands over resources Benson et al 2002 p 794 Despite the increasing popularity of family conflict and feminist theories one of the very first sociological explanations of IPV was goode s 1971 resource theory Goode proposed that the balance between partners is dependent upon the contribution each make towards a relationship Gelles 1980 Goode suggests that violence and force is used as a tool to reclaim power within a relationship when offering very little resources towards it Gelles 1980

Although feminist conflict and resources theories individually have their critics it is believed that each hold elements of plausibility within them Heise 2012 As a result it is suggested that various factors on individualistic societal and household levels can contribute to IPV Future research therefore should use a multifaceted approach when conducting and examining empirical research Heise 2012 In 2017 the European commission conducted the first ever EU wide research attempting to identify the influence of economic independence and domestic abuse Results showed that finical independence significantly reduced the risk of domestic abuse whilst those in critical economic positions were more exposed to abuse form their partners particularly sexually Bettio Ticci 2017 Victims of IPV particularly women within the UK may also experience occupational apartheid with abusive partners often attempting to limit occupational and educational opportunities in order to maintain control of the relationship Cage 2007 Victims may also struggle to gain employability skills or preform within the workplace due to low self esteem and poor self efficacy because of the abuse from their partner Cage 2007 Despite their being significant evidence to suggest poor economic stability can increase risk of IPV research has also shown that IPV is a wide spread problem with those of higher and finically secure economic status also being at risk of abuse In 2014 a survey involving three thousand four hundred individuals who live with their partners found that women earning 67 or more of their household income were up to seven times more likely than women earning 33 or less to experience some form of IPV Kass 2014 The survey also showed similar correlation between men and house hold income with men who have a higher income and education than their partner experiencing forms of psychological abuse significantly more than those with lower incomes Kass 2014 This arguably shows that IPV is a growing concern with individuals of all socioeconomic levels being at risk of abuse Due to the severity and complications of IPV in an attempt to gain a better understanding of it criminologists and sociologists have long studied it s the causation and the effects it can have on the individual and society

The social policies and theories that develop from research into the area allow for better explanation and knowledge of the issue and can help to assist victims of IPV better educate and support them Brinkerhoff et al 2010 The social policy s and theories that stem from research also allows the justice and law enforcement system to gain a better understanding of how best to tackle IPV Brinkerhoff et al 2010 Research and discussion regarding socioeconomic status and IPV, however, has proven to be inconsistent and arguably inconclusive For example weaver et al 2009 suggest that poor economic status is heavily linked to increasing the susceptibility of becoming a victim of IPV Weaver et al suggest that those who are economically dependent on their partner are significantly more likely to experience some form of domestic abuse Poor individuals who depend upon their partner are also unlikely to leave abusive relationships due to the dependence on their partner This has been backed up in various research including an EU wide survey by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights FRA in 2014 which found that women who struggle to survive on their own income were more than twice as likely to have experienced some form of domestic abuse from a partner than those who were financially comfortable

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