Faith in Freedom by Nafiseh Ghafournia

Author:Nafiseh Ghafournia
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780522874297
Publisher: Melbourne University Publishing

Differences and similarities in women’s responses to abuse

The women’s responses to domestic violence were in a way similar to the mainstream population, as most of the women reached for formal help after trying other informal help such as talking to family and friends. The same pattern can be found in mainstream population.

Contrary to the common stereotype of immigrant women, especially Muslim women, that they are unwilling to approach relevant services, most of the women sought formal help despite the significant barriers they faced in doing so. They all responded actively to domestic violence. This is in contrast to some research findings which indicate that the immigrant women are less likely to ask for formal help and to report domestic violence in comparison to mainstream women (Morgan & Chadwick, 2009; Tually, 2008). All of the women in the study who asked for help from different services found it very positive and the only way they could stop the abuse. This is supported by some works that challenge the myth of immigrant abused women as submissive victims of violence (Mehrotra, 2010; Sokoloff & Dupont, 2005b; Thiara & Gill, 2010).

In the sample, eleven women reached formal help after years of suffering. Also, the average length of living with their partners that seemed long enough to tolerate constant abuse was fourteen years. Most of the women started asking for help from their families and friends, as well as English teachers, GPs, counsellors and social workers. Reaching for specific help, such as domestic violence hotline, women’s health centres and police was usually the last option when nothing else worked. This finding is supported by the existing literature which indicates that immigrant women reach for external help late (Ahmad et al, 2009; Ammar et al, 2014). The women’s experiences of utilising services, such as teachers, counsellors, nurses, social workers, GPs, the domestic violence hotline, refuges and the police contrasts with some studies that indicate immigrant women’s experience of accessing formal help is negative (Colucci et al, 2014; Ingram et al, 2010; Kulwicki et al, 2010).

On the other hand, there were some differences among the women in the sample in terms of responding to domestic violence. As mentioned earlier, age seemed to be a variable in responding to abuse. In the study, younger women reached for formal help earlier than older women. Three women who sought help earlier in their relationship were all in the age group of twenty to thirty years old. However, older women in the sample appeared to be more bound by their cultural beliefs than younger women. As mentioned before, just three of the respondents were living with their partners at the time of the interviews. These three women were over forty and had grown up children. They talked about their fear of their family and friends, and their community in general, gossiping about them in case they divorced or asked for formal help.

Moreover, the length of living with their partner and the length of living in Australia were other factors which affected the women’s response to abuse.

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