NCJ Number
188131
Journal
Violence Against Women Volume: 7 Issue: 5 Dated: May 2001 Pages: 563-585
Date Published
May 2001
Length
23 pages
Annotation
In this phenomenological study, battered women from a multiethnic population in Hawaii provided descriptions of their lived experiences.
Abstract
The sample consisted of 12 English-speaking women from Hawaii who had been abused at some point in their lives; the sample was composed of one Hawaiian, three Chinese, one Filipina, one Samoan, two of mixed race, and four Caucasian women. Each subject was interviewed by one of the researchers for 1 to 1.5 hours. The initial question was, "Tell me about your experience of living in a relationship as a battered woman." Using an unstructured method, additional questions were asked to clarify and amplify the description. Researchers worked as a team to debrief, review, and critique the interviews. During the four-stage analysis of the interviews, common meanings and shared motivations emerged as themes. After these significant statements were identified, they were grouped into themes and compared across the cultural groups. Three major theme clusters emerged from the data, reflecting how the women organized their stories: "painting the whole picture," describing the violence, and living with the consequences. Each major theme was further broken down into subthemes that completed the profile of how it felt to live in an abusive situation. Across ethnic groups, women experienced common issues, motivations, fears, and hopes. It was clear that for these women violence impacted every aspect of their living as well as those around them. In their struggles to cope with the violence, they experienced a mixed response from support systems: lack of support from family, positive response from caregivers, mixed response from police, and frustration with the courts. It was evident that the effects of violence continued long after the violence itself ended. Still, women were able to express hope for the future and confidence in their ability to survive. 39 references