War on the Homefront: An Examination of Wife Abuse / Edition 1

by Shawn D. Haley, Ellie Braun-Haley

Overview

About half of the women in the United States and Canada have been physically or sexually assaulted after the age of 16. The figures in other countries are similar. Written by an outsider (an anthropologist) and an insider (a spousal abuse survivor), this book offers a humanistic, rather than statistical, overview of the problem of spousal abuse. It is based on an extensive set of interviews with abused women and individuals who seek to help them (shelter workers, police officers, marriage counselors). More particularly, it follows four women as they move through the steps they must follow to extricate themselves from an abusive relationship and then get on with their lives. The reader witnesses their success and failures as they face a task that is both necessary and daunting, and the effects that spousal abuse (and at attempts stopping the abuse) have on an ever-widening circle of people.

This book illustrates how society in general and individuals and organizations in particular help and hinder the process of extrication - often at the same time. By analyzing the solutions, and their implications, that have been offered to and by the abused women, the authors arrive at a set of alternative solutions that could significantly reduce the incidence of spouse abuse in the future.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781571811172
Publisher:	Berghahn Books
Publication date:	02/01/2001
Series:	Public Issues in Anthropological Perspective , #2
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

Shawn D. Haley teaches anthropology at Red Deer College in central Alberta, Canada. With a background in both Cultural Anthropology and Archaeology, he has conducted field work in Canada, the United States, Peru and Mexico. He has also done considerable work in the area of Applied Anthropology - the application of anthropological techniques and insights to modern societal problems.

Ellie Braun-Haley is a published writer and was employed as a newspaper correspondent for six years. She has designed programs for the YMCA and developed a program for mentally challenged teens and adults. More recently, she has been teaching at Young Writer's Workshops.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1. Types of Abuse - Social Stigma and Silence
Chapter 2. The Impact of Abuse
Chapter 3. Breaking Away
Chapter 4. Participant and Stakeholder Solutions
Chapter 5. The Future of Wife Abuse

Bibliography
Index