Perception of Relationship Violence in the Lyrics of a Song

• NCJ Number: 208922
• Journal: Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 16 Issue: 7 Dated: July 2001 Pages: 640-661
• Author(s): Jennifer P. Maxwell
• Date Published: July 2001
• Length: 22 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the relationship between the experience of victimization and how victims interpreted musical lyrics, as well as the role that music might have in helping victims to recognize and perceive their experiences of relationship violence.

Abstract

Q methodology, which was used in the study, was developed to study subjective perception. It allows individual respondents to express subjective perspectives on a particular topic through rank-ordering (Q sorting) of a group of statements that pertain to the topic. Individuals' Q sorts are then compared with one another through correlational and factor analysis. Study participants -- students in a graduate public administration class and two undergraduate self-defense classes -- were asked to listen to the song, "I May Know the Word" (Merchant, 1995), which was selected for the study because it is suggestive of the dialectic of trauma, i.e., "the conflict between the will to deny horrible events and the will to proclaim them aloud" (Herman, 1997). The song begins, "I may know the word but not say it; I may know the truth but not face it." Each of the 44 respondents worked independently to prioritize the set of 72 responses or themes in the song. All respondents also completed a questionnaire on their experiences of relationship violence. In grouping the ranking of statements chosen to interpret the song lyrics, there were two distinctive groups of individuals: those who interpreted the song as a literal representation of rape, battering, and sexual assault; and those who viewed the song as a more abstract conflict over decisionmaking. There was a significant correlation between the more literal interpretation of the lyrics and the experience of abuse in relationships; however, although individuals victimized by multiple types of abuse were more likely to interpret the song in a literal way, they did not necessarily identify their experiences as rape or violence. The literature on the effects of traumatic experiences is explored to explain this apparent contradiction. 2 tables, appended study instruments, and 30 references