Psychological Impact of Domestic Violence on the Victim

This paper will discuss some of the common psychological impacts of domestic violence in women. There are many theories about those impacts of domestic violence including PTSD, depression, drug abuse and dissociation disorder and they have been found directly relational to victims of domestic abuse. Domestic violence is one of the most unreported crimes due to victims fear of retaliation. According The World Health Organization(WHO), one in every three women is likely to experience some form of domestic violence (WHO, 2009)  

There are several ways to define domestic violence. Most often, under the term domestic violence, people denote physical or sexual coercion; though this is a reasonable definition, domestic violence is a significantly wider term that requires more clarification. Domestic violence is a narrower term for domestic abuse – a behavior pattern which implies controlling or dominating one person who is in an intimate relationship (Karakurt, Smith, & Whiting, 2014). The history of domestic violence goes back to the beginning of Man. Ever since life began, the powerful within a society have taken advantage of those with less power. There are several types of behaviors that are coercive in nature that are used by adults as a mean to exhibit their power and control over those who are not as powerful mentally, emotionally and physically. Research has shown domestic abuse emerges from a series of behaviors based in control, insecurity, low self-esteem and domination (Haley & Stein, 2005). According to some  research the true roots of domestic violence are associated with poverty and lack of education, the research of Jewkes identified domestic abuse is a social problem and not an issue experienced only by women (Jewkes, 2002). Domestic violence comes in many forms: physical, emotional, verbal, sexual and economical. It was reported by The World Health Organization that almost seventy percent of women in developing countries, who seek medical attention, are the victims of domestic abuse. The report also revealed that twenty percent of reported cases involved rape, twenty five percent reported physical assaults and almost fifty percent reported some forms of stalking or restrictions imposed by spouses or intimate partners (WHO,2005). Emotional abuse is often not reported because it does not produce cuts, bruises, or broken bones like physical abuse, however, emotional abuse can leave deep scars on the psyche of the victim. Emotional abuse can often lead to the victims suffering from substance abuse, low self-esteem, feelings of powerlessness, isolation, alienation, anxiety and depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder.