Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

South Asian Women in the U.S. and their Experience of Domestic Violence

  • ORIGINAL ARTICLE
  • Published:
Journal of Family Violence Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study examined the extent of domestic violence and sociocultural factors (isolation, social support, acculturation, and patriarchy) associated with domestic violence among a community sample of 215 women of South Asian origin in the U.S. The sample is the largest to date in a study of domestic violence among South Asian women. Both paper and Web surveys were used. Of the sample, 38 % experienced some form of abuse in the past year. Isolation from spouse/partner and perceived social support predicted abuse. This information is vital in developing effective and culturally appropriate intervention methods for South Asian women victims of domestic violence.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abraham, M. (1999). Sexual abuse in South Asian immigrant marriages. Violence Against Women, 5, 587–590.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Abraham, M. (2000a). Isolation a form of marital violence: the South Asian immigrant experience. Journal of Social Distress and the Homeless, 9, 221–236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Abraham, M. (2000b). Speaking the unspeakable: Marital violence among South Asian immigrants in the U.S.. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adam, N. M. (2000). Domestic violence against women within immigrant Indian and Pakistani communities in the U.S. Dissertation Abstracts International, 61(11), 4547A.

  • Adam, N. M., & Schewe, P. A. (2007). A multilevel framework exploring domestic violence against immigrant Indian and Pakistani women in the U.S. Journal of Muslim Mental Health, 2(1), 5–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Adkins, K. S., & Kamp Dush, C. M. (2010). The mental health of mothers in and after violent and controlling unions. Social Science Research, 39, 925–937.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ahmad, F., Riaz, S., Barata, P., & Stewart, D. E. (2004). Patriarchal beliefs and perceptions of abuse among South Asian immigrant women. Violence Against Women, 10, 262–282.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ahmed, K., Mohan, R. A., & Bhugra, D. (2007). Self-harm in South Asian women: a literature review informed approach to assessment and formulation. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 61(1), 71–81.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Arias, I., Lyons, C., & Street, A. E. (1997). Individual and marital consequences of victimization: moderating effects of relationship efficacy and spouse support. Journal of Family Violence, 12, 193–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ayyub, R. (2000). Domestic violence in the South Asian Muslim immigrant population in the U.S. Journal of Social Distress and the Homeless, 9(30), 237–248.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barnes, J. S., & Bennett, C. E. (2002). The Asian population: 2000. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce, Economics and Statistics Administration. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/2002pubs/c2kbr01-16.pdf

  • Blasco-Ros, C., Sánchez-Lorente, S., & Martinez, M. (2010). Recovery from depressive symptoms, state anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder in women exposed to physical and psychological, but not to psychological intimate partner violence alone: a longitudinal study. BioMed Central Psychiatry, 10, 98–109.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bui, H. N. (2003). Help-seeking behavior among abused immigrant women: a case of Vietnamese American women. Violence Against Women, 9, 207–239.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bui, H. N., & Morash, M. (1999). Domestic violence in the Vietnamese immigrant community: an exploratory study. Violence Against Women, 5, 769–795.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Campbell, C., Sullivan, C. M., & Davidson, W., II. (1995). Women who use domestic violence shelters. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 19, 237–255.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dasgupta, S. D. (2000). Charting the course: an overview of domestic violence in the South Asian community in the U.S. Journal of Social Distress and the Homeless, 9(3), 173–185.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dasgupta, S. D., & Warrier, S. (1996). In the footsteps of “Arundhati”: Asian Indian women’s experience of domestic violence in the U.S. Violence Against Women, 2, 238–259.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ganguly, A. (1998). Predictors of attitudes towards wife-beating among Asian Indians in America. Dissertation Abstract International, 5(9B), 229.

  • Goodman, L., & Epstein, D. (2005). Refocusing on women: a new direction for policy and research on intimate partner violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 20, 479–487.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, L. A., & Smyth, K. F. (2010). A call for social network-oriented approach to survivors of intimate partner violence. Psychology of Violence, 1(2), 79–92.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gupta, R., & Yick, A. G. (2001). Preliminary validation of the acculturation scale on Chinese Americans. Journal of Social Work Research and Evaluation, 2(1), 43–56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacinto, G. A., Turnage, B. F., & Cook, I. (2010). Domestic violence survivors: spirituality and social support. Journal of Religion & Spirituality in Social Work: Social Thought, 29(2), 109–123.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kallivayalil, D. (2010). Narratives of suffering South Asian immigrant survivors of domestic violence. Violence Against Women, 16, 789–811.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Liao, M. S. (2006). Domestic violence against Asian Indian immigrant women: risk factors, acculturation, and intervention. Women & Therapy, 29(1/2), 23–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lynam, M. J. (1985). Support networks developed by immigrant women. Social Science & Medicine, 21, 327–333.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • MacKinnon, C. A. (1983). Feminism, Marxism, method, and the state: toward feminist jurisprudence. Signs, 8, 653–658.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marin, G., Sabogal, F., Marin, B. V., Otero-Sabogal, R., & Perez, E. J. (1987). Development of a short acculturation scale for Hispanics. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 9(2), 183–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mehrotra, M. (1999). The social construction of wife abuse: experiences of Asian Indian women in the U.S. Violence Against Women, 5, 619–640.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Midlarsky, E., Venkataramani-Kothari, A., & Plante, M. (2006). Domestic violence in the Chinese and South Asian immigrant communities. Violence and Exploitation Against Women and Girls, 1087, 279–300.

    Google Scholar 

  • Natarajan, M. (2002). Domestic violence among immigrants from India: what we need to know—and what we should do. International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice, 26, 301–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paradkar, B. (2000). Suffering in silence. Toronto Star. Retrieved from http://www.paklinks.com/gs/all-views/3579-suffering-in-silence.html

  • Raj, A., & Silverman, J. G. (2002). Intimate partner violence against South Asian women residing in greater Boston. Journal of the American Medical Women’s Association, 57(2), 111–114.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Raj, A., & Silverman, J. G. (2003). Immigrant South Asian women at greater risk for injury from intimate partner violence. American Journal of Public Health, 93, 435–437.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Raj, A., & Silverman, J. G. (2007). Domestic violence help-seeking behaviors of South Asian battered women residing in the U.S. International Review of Victimology, 14(1), 143–170.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rennison, C. M., & Welchans, S. (2000). Bureau of Justice statistics, special report: Intimate partner violence. Retrieved from http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/ascii/ipv.txt

  • Rianon, N. J., & Shelton, A. J. (2003). Perception of spousal abuse expressed by married Bangladeshi immigrant women in Houston, Texas, U.S.A. Journal of Immigrant Health, 5(1), 37–44.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rose, L. E., Campbell, J., & Kub, J. (2000). The role of social support and family relationships in women’s responses to battering. Health Care for Women International, 21(1), 27–39.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rudrappa, S. (2004). Radical caring in an ethnic shelter: South Asian American women workers at Apna Ghar, Chicago. Gender and Society, 18, 588–609.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sheehan, H. E., Javier, R. A., & Thanjan, T. (2000). Introduction to the special issue on domestic violence and the South Asian community. Journal of Social Distress and the Homeless, 9(3), 167–171.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shiu-Thornton, S., Senturia, K., & Sullivan, M. (2005). “Like a bird in a cage”: Vietnamese women survivors talk about domestic violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 20, 959–976.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, M. (1990). Patriarchal ideology and wife beatings: tests of a feminist hypothesis. Violence and Victims, 5, 257–273.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, M., & Segal, J. (2011). Domestic violence and abuse: Warning signs and symptoms of abusive relationships. Retrieved from http://www.helpguide.org/mental/domestic_violence_abuse_types_signs_causes_effects.htm

  • South Asian American Policy and Research Institute. (2000). Making data count: South Asian Americans in the 2000 census with focus on Illinois. Retrieved from http://saapri.org/pdfs/Web-Document5.pdf

  • Stets, J. E. (1991). Cohabiting and marital aggression: the role of social isolation. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 53, 669–680.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Straus, M. A., Hamby, S. L., Boney-McCoy, S., & Sugarman, D. B. (1996). The Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2): development of primary psychometric data. Journal of Family Issues, 17, 283–316.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Supriya, K. (1995). Speaking others, practicing selves: representational practices of battered immigrant women in Apna Ghar (“our home”). Women & Performance: A Journal of Feminist Theory, 7, 241–266.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sutherland, C. A., Sullivan, C. M., & Bybee, D. I. (2001). Effects of intimate partner violence versus poverty on women’s health. Violence Against Women, 7, 1122–1143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Svavarsdottir, E. K., & Orlygsdottir, B. (2009). Intimate partner abuse factors associated with women’s health: a general population study. Journal of Advancing Nursing, 65, 1452–1462.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Swan, S. C., & Snow, D. L. (2003). Behavioral and psychological differences among abused women who use violence in intimate partner relationships. Violence Against Women, 9, 75–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tan, C., Sullivan, C. M., & Davidson, W. S., II. (1995). The role of social support in the lives of women exiting domestic violence shelters. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 10, 437–451.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thapa-Oli, S., Dulal, H. N., & Baba, Y. (2009). A preliminary study of intimate partner violence among Nepali women in the U.S. Violence Against Women, 15, 206–223.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Thoits, P. A. (1986). Social support as coping assistance. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 54, 416–423.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tjaden, P., & Thoeness, N. (2000). Extent, nature, and consequences of intimate partner violence: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tourangeau, R., & Yan, T. (2007). Sensitive questions in surveys. Psychological Bulletin, 133, 859–883.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Census Bureau. (2007). Facts for feature: Asian Pacific American heritage month May 2007. U.S. Census Bureau News. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/pdf/cb07-ff05.pdf

  • U.S. Census Bureau. (2011). The 2011 Statistical Abstract: Educational attainment by race and Hispanic origin: 1970 to 2009. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2011/tables/11s0226.pdf

  • Weitzman, S. (2000). Not to people like us. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yoshioka, M. R., Gilbert, L., El-Bassel, N., & Baib-Amin, M. (2003). Social support and disclosure of abuse: comparing South Asian, African American, and Hispanic battered women. Journal of Family Violence, 18, 171–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zimet, G. D., Dahlem, N. W., Zimet, S. G., & Farley, G. K. (1988). The multidimensional scale of perceived social support. Journal of Personality Assessment, 52(1), 30–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Social Work, University of Wyoming, Department 3632, 1000 E. University Avenue, Laramie, WY, 82071, USA

    Neely Mahapatra

Authors
  1. Neely Mahapatra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Neely Mahapatra.

Additional information

I would like to thank Dr. Diana M. DiNitto, Cullen Trust Centennial Professor in Alcohol Studies and Education Distinguished Teaching Professor, School of Social Work, the University of Texas at Austin, for reading multiple drafts and providing valuable inputs.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mahapatra, N. South Asian Women in the U.S. and their Experience of Domestic Violence. J Fam Viol 27, 381–390 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-012-9434-4

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-012-9434-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation