chapter 13: family stress and violence

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Chapter 13: Family Stress and Violence


Social Stresses on Families

Stressor events are sources of stress and situations for which families have little or no preparation.

Hardships are complications in a crisis-precipitating event.

Stress is pressure in the family system, and is an outcome of an event that disturbs or disrupts the family system.


ABCX Model of Stress

This model is used to explain why different families respond so differently to particular events and circumstances.

The model uses the formula

A + (B + C) =X to examine the concept of family adequacy.



Factor A is the stressor event. – The source of the event influences how it

affects the family.

– External events tend to solidify the group.

– Internal events may be more disruptive because they reflect on the family’s internal adequacy.



Factor B refers to the resources the family has to meet the crisis.

Factor C refers to the extent to which the family defines the event as a crisis.

Factor X refers to the crisis-proneness or degree of stress.

The level of stress is caused by a deficiency in resources and a tendency to define hardships as crisis producing.


Variations in the ABCX Model

McCubbin and others proposed a longitudinal model that distinguishes between pre- and post-crisis events.

They added the idea of “pile up” to the model. The Double ABCX Model examines the concept

of family adaptation. Walker proposed expanding the model to

incorporate macro level dimensions such as historical and socio-cultural context.


Violence in Families andAmong Intimates

Family violence and violence among intimates both refer to any act that is carried out with the intention of causing physical harm to legally related individuals or those in close primary relationships.

People in the U.S. are more likely to be physically assaulted, raped or killed by their loved ones than by strangers.


Myths of Family Violence

The family is nonviolent. Abusers are aliens and victims are innocents. Abuse is confined to poor, minority families. Alcohol and drugs are the real causes of intimate

violence. Children who are abused grow up to be abusers. Battered women like being hit. Violence and love are incompatible.


Causes of Family Violence

Psychological and medical theories attribute violence to individual psychopathology or alcohol or drug use.

Social psychological theories attribute violence to social learning, exchange, and interaction.

Socio-cultural theories locate the source of violence in cultural belief systems and the structure of social institutions.


Causes of Family Violence

Straus and Smith identified five key social factors:

1. Intra-family conflict

2. Male dominance in family and society

3. Cultural norms permitting family violence

4. Family socialization in violence

5. Pervasiveness of violence


Child Abuse and Violence

Corporal Punishment is legal and defined as an acceptable method of discipline.

It induces children to conform in the immediate situation, but may increase the probability of delinquency in adolescence and crime in adulthood.


Cultural Spillover Theory

Violence in one life sphere tends to engender violence in other spheres by promoting the use of force to attain the desired ends.

The more a society uses force in one area, the greater the tendency for force to be used in other areas.


Child Sexual Abuse Children are assumed to be incapable of

consenting to sex with an adult because they lack the power to decline involvement, and often do not understand what they are consenting to.

27% of women and 16% of men report having been sexually abused as a child.

Abusers are most likely to be male, and to be non-biologically related caretakers.


Parent Abuse and Violence

Parents who are assaulted by their children often attempt to conceal the abuse.

Children who are violent to animals are more likely to engage in aggressive and violent behavior towards others.


Wife and Female Partner Abuse

Physical aggression is twice as common among cohabiting couples as among married couples.

Common couple violence is characterized by the occasional violent outburst from one or both partners during conflict.

Patriarchal terrorism is when male partners systematically use violence, threats, and isolation to control their female partners.


Rape Among Intimates Rape is forced sex without consent. It is a common form of violence against

women. Rape is used to maintain male control and

domination by inducing fear in women. It received little attention until the 1970’s

and 1980’s. Marital rape is now illegal in every state.


Why Do Women Stay?

Learned helplessness Psychological entrapment Investments Reasoned action/planned behavior


Husband and MalePartner Abuse

Little is known about this phenomenon because men are reluctant to admit that they have been beaten.

Feminists fear that attention to male abuse will detract from efforts to end abuse of females.

Women are more likely to be injured by family violence, thus making male victims less visible.


Mutual Abuse and Violence in Couples

Mutual abuse is the use of physical violence and verbal aggression by both partners in an intimate relationship.

Women express greater fear and suffer more from intimate violence.

Children who witness parental violence are vulnerable to behavioral and emotional difficulties.


Sibling Abuse and Violence

The most frequent and accepted form of family violence is sibling violence.

Aggressive acts are explained away as sibling rivalry or jealousy.


Elderly Abuse and Violence

Five types of elder abuse:1. Passive neglect2. Active neglect3. Verbal or emotional abuse4. Physical abuse5. Sexual abuse

Elderly women who are frail, disabled, and living with the perpetrator are most at risk for mistreatment.


Violence Among Other Intimates

Violence during dating and courtship is common.

Low parental support and involvement is associated with teen dating violence.

One-fourth of females have experienced forced sexual contact.

Men who are traditional in sex role beliefs tend to be more sexually aggressive.


Treating and PreventingFamily Violence

The ABCX model suggests that persons react to family violence by:– Enduring it– Fighting back– Escaping

This depends on the meaning attached to the violence (C), as well as the resources the person has available (B).


Treating and PreventingFamily Violence

Violence prevention must be directed at two factors that make it possible for people to abuse those they love:– Elimination of cultural norms and values that

accept violence as a legitimate means of resolving conflict; and

– Reduction of the internal and external stresses and inequalities that strain families.

chapter 13: family stress and violence

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