NCJ Number
127846
Journal
Wisconsin Sociologist Volume: 26 Issue: 1 Dated: (Winter 1989) Pages: 17-32
Date Published
1989
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study of domestic violence in a rural Wisconsin county explores the dynamics of domestic violence and its impact upon women who are geographically and socially isolated from many public services that their urban counterparts take for granted.
Abstract
Data were taken principally from case files developed by a battered women's shelter in the county; also from interviews with victims, shelter staff, and a county law enforcement officer. Findings are that some law enforcement personnel remain reluctant to protect women from abusive partners; that local, predominantly fundamentalist, churches frequently do not offer support to victims within their congregations and make divorce an unacceptable option; that rural families who do not own a phone are especially isolated in times of emergency due to the distance between neighbors; that typically conservative rural communities resist acknowledging and dealing with social problems such as domestic violence; and that the outlook for increased funding of services and shelter for rural women escaping domestic violence is grim. Rural women may stay in abusive relationships because of economic powerlessness and rural social norms which make it difficult to approach neighbors for help. Public display of firearms and easy access to alcohol also help perpetuate the cycle of domestic violence. (Author abstract modified)