Women's Experience of Emotional Abuse in Intimate Relationships: A Qualitative Study

• NCJ Number: 210246
• Journal: Journal of Emotional Abuse Volume: 5 Issue: 1 Dated: 2005 Pages: 29-64
• Author(s): Marianne Lammers; Jane Ritchie; Neville Robertson
• Date Published: 2005
• Length: 36 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This qualitative study was conducted to examine women's experience of emotional abuse within heterosexual relationships.

Abstract

Seven women who identified themselves as having been in an emotionally abusive intimate relationship participated in the study. All of the women had been out of their emotionally abusive relationship for at least 1 year. None of the women had experienced physical abuse. The women met as a group eight times over a period of 4 months, with each session lasting approximately 3 hours. Six of the sessions were based on memory work. In the first stage of memory work, participants composed written descriptions of individual memories associated with cues selected to elicit data on emotional abuse experienced. The memories had to be of a particular event and written in the third person in order to achieve detachment in the descriptions. In the second phase of memory work, the women compared, discussed, and analyzed each other's written memories. This was done to identify the social, rather than the individual, meaning of the events described. The third phase of the memory work consisted of comparing the group's findings with the author's analysis of the findings in relation to relevant theories in the literature. The study concluded that being routinely subordinated by men had long-term negative consequences for women's emotional health. The women perceived their partners as authority figures who set the rules and standards in the relationship. Similarly, the men were perceived as expecting special privileges, such as being right in their decisions and behavior and often behaving in a self-righteous manner. Consequences of the emotional abuse included emotional loneliness, despair, guilt, confusion, fear, diminished self-esteem, diminished identity, and anger. As the women broke their emotional bond to their abusive partners, their personal power increased as they referenced their worth and competence against standards other than those set by their partners. 54 references