Battered Women's Protective Strategies: Stronger Than You Know

239 Pages·2013·1.443 MB·English

by  Sherry Hamby

Battered Women’s Protective Strategies
Interpersonal Violence Series
SERIES EDITORS
Claire Renzett i, Ph.D.
Jeff rey L. Edleson, Ph.D.
Parenting by Men Who Batt er: New Directions for Assessment and Intervention
Edited by Jeff rey L. Edleson and Oliver J. Williams
Coercive Control: How Men Entrap Women in Personal Life
Evan Stark
Childhood Victimization: Violence, Crime, and Abuse in the Lives of Young People
David Finkelhor
Restorative Justice and Violence Against Women
Edited by James Ptacek
Familicidal Hearts: Th e Emotional Styles of 211 Killers
Neil Websdale
Violence in Context: Current Evidence on Risk, Protection, and Prevention
Edited by Todd I. Herrenkohl, Eugene Aisenberg, James Herbert Williams, and
Jeff rey M. Jenson
Poverty, Batt ered Women, and Work in U.S. Public Policy
Lisa D. Brush
Child Victims and Restorative Justice: A Needs-Rights Model
Tali Gal
Batt ered Women’s Protective Strategies: Stronger Th an You Know
Sherry Hamby
Battered Women’s Protective
Strategies
Stronger Than You Know
SHERRY   HAMBY
1
3

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hamby, Sherry L.
Batt ered women’s protective strategies : stronger than you know /
Sherry Hamby.
pages cm.—(Interpersonal violence series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978–0–19–987365–4 (alk. paper)
1. Abused women—United States. 2. Abused women—Services
for—United States. 3. Family violence—United States. I. Title.
HV6626.2.H358 2014
362.82ʹ920973—dc23
2013012788

1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
Th is book is dedicated to the memory of Eleanor Roehrig. When I think of
dedication I think of her, simultaneously one of the gentlest and strongest
advocates I have ever known.
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgements ix
About the Author xi
1. Introduction: A Re-Framing of Stereotypes of Batt ered Women 1
2. A Holistic Approach to the Complex Problem of Batt ering 17
3. Protective Strategies in the Context of Batt ered Women’s
True Risk Burden: Th e Multitude of Risks Batt erers Can Create 33
4. Understanding the Full Context of Violence: Financial and
Institutional Issues that Constrain Coping 49
5. Social Issues, Practical Concerns, and Personal Values that
Infl uence Coping Strategies 73
6. Immediate Situational Strategies 93
7. Protecting Children, Family, Friends, Co-Workers, and Pets 105
8. Reaching Out for Social Support and Navigating the Challenges
of Information Management 117
9. Turning to Spiritual and Religious Resources 129
10. Using Formal Services 139
11. Invisible Strategies 151
1 2. B ringing a More Holistic Approach to Services and Tools for Intervention 1 69
13. Conclusion: Recognizing Protective Strategies Can Create Progress 181
viii CONTENTS
Appendix 189
References 195
Index 215
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Perhaps the best part of writing a book is the opportunity it creates to acknowledge
all the people who have helped me. First I would like to honor the many front-line
advocates I have had the pleasure to know personally. I have learned much from them
and I never cease to amaze at the incredible energy and perseverance they bring to
this diffi cult work. I will not be able to name them all, but I would like to particularly
mention Cheryl Bushman, Suzanne Darrell, Robert Hefl in, Wanda Jackson, Gerry
Johnson, Betsy Massey, Fernando Mederos, Michelle Myers, Bobbi Outt en, Vern
Phillips, and Rose Th ompson. I’d like to thank the Ni’ Jho’shnii’ (“I will help you”)
advocates from the San Carlos Apache Reservation in Arizona, the Sortir Ensemble
et Se Respecter (“Dating with respect”) NGO founded in Lausanne, Switzerland, and
the Family Wellness Warriors Initiative at the Southcentral Foundation in Anchorage,
Alaska. Th e time I spent with all of you means a great deal to me.
I am very appreciative of Jeff rey Edleson and Claire Renzett i, the editors of this
Oxford series on Interpersonal Violence. It was their suggestion that a brief I pre-
pared might become a full-length book. Th e original brief, developed with input from
Andrea Bible, was prepared for VAWnet, the national online resource center on vio-
lence against women. I am honored by their support and encouragement. Th ey were
a delight to work with throughout the process. I also would like to thank the editorial
team at Oxford University Press: Dana Bliss, Agnes Bannigan, Nicholas Liu, Michelle
Shu, and the four anonymous reviewers of an earlier draft of the manuscript. Th e fi nal
product is stronger because of their input and careful work.
I owe an especial debt of thanks to Melissa Hurd, who not only read and copyedited
an earlier draft of the manuscript in record time but provided invaluable feedback and
a fresh perspective. Melissa, you really came through. Th anks also go to the students
who assisted me with the literature review: Janie Mejias (especially), Katie DeLucas,
Katherine Meyer, Meredith McLean, Deihlia Nye, Galina Podolsky, Aaron Salisbury,
and Hayley White. I would also like to thank the students who assisted with coding:
Yooson Esther Chi, Sarah Clark, Lauren Croasdaile, and Elisabeth Wharton. Sarah
especially was very helpful in thinking about how to use the results of the fi rst VIGOR
study to revise the instrument. My other research seminar students, Caroline Dashiell,
Elly Ferrell, Cathy Lambert, Laura Logan, Johanna McManus, Caitlin McNaughton,
and Matney Rolfe, also helped revise the VIGOR, especially doing a terrifi c job read-
ing it for language that suggested the tool is only for low-income women, which I hope
to have avoided. I would also like to thank the faculty of the Department of Psychology