NCJ Number
190145
Journal
Violence Against Women Volume: 7 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2001 Pages: 927-946
Date Published
August 2001
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This study examined the cultural context of spousal abuse among American Muslim women by using an interpretive approach that examined culturally specific marriage practices and the ways that these practices intertwined with women's abuse experiences.
Abstract
The study used an adaptation of interpretive phenomenology that incorporated both life histories and focused interviewing techniques. A total of 17 Muslim women between the ages of 20 and 59 participated in the study. All of the participants followed Sunni Islamic teachings. All participants were asked to tell their life stories, beginning in early childhood; to describe the details of their spousal abuse experiences; and to reflect on the meaning of these abuse experiences by using a storytelling, conversational approach. Follow-up interviews were conducted until adequate descriptions were obtained. The data were collected over a 6-month period. The goal of data analysis was to uncover themes of commonality and differences among American Muslim women regarding their lived experience of abuse and ultimately to place emerging themes in a larger social context. The significance of marriage for study participants was found to be rooted in Muslim culture. The often-cited hadith, "Marriage is half of faith and the rest is fear Allah," is reflective of the almost prescriptive nature of marriage for Muslims. Marriage practices and approaches to dealing with the problem of abuse in American Muslim families tended to be grounded in a culturally derived belief system that is distinctly different from dominant American culture. The significance of the value of wifely obedience is a case in point. Wives who believed they must obey husbands found themselves in a predicament when spousal abuse occurred. The belief that good wives are obedient often resulted in inner conflict among abused women. When this tension gave way to submission on the part of wives toward husbands, a process termed "negation of the self" emerged. This study underscores the importance of incorporating an awareness of cultural differences into the study of family violence. 17 references