NCJ Number
210249
Journal
Journal of Emotional Abuse Volume: 5 Issue: 1 Dated: 2005 Pages: 125-140
Date Published
2005
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study examined the prevalence and nature of emotional abuse in 2 samples of women: an immigrant sample of Caribbean-Canadian women (n=20) and a sample of women living in the English-speaking Caribbean who had never lived outside the Caribbean (n=20).
Abstract
To be eligible for the study, the Caribbean-Canadian sample must have immigrated from the Caribbean to Canada more than 5 years ago. The study measured emotional abuse with a method that acknowledges the importance of the participant's life context. An adapted version of the contextual rating system used in previous research on emotional abuse focused on the quantification of the severity of each emotional abuse experience. Interviews with the women obtained details about each participant's life context in relation to each instance of emotional abuse. The study found that although the two samples of women did not differ in the overall experience of emotional abuse, they did differ in the types of emotional abuse experienced. The Caribbean women rated as serious those emotional abuse experiences that occurred in relationships; and the immigrant Caribbean-Canadian women's emotional abuse occurred mostly in workplace settings. Consistent with the experience of workplace abuse, the Caribbean-Canadian women were most likely to cite systemic causes such as racism. This attribution contrasts with the individual causes reported by the Caribbean women. These findings suggest that research and treatment related to emotional abuse must consider the context and victims' subjective interpretations of the abuse. 3 tables and 19 references