Citation

Gill A. Howard J. Crim. Just. 2004; 43(5): 465-483.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, Howard League for Penal Reform, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1468-2311.2004.00343.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article examines the subjective experiences of South Asian women in the United Kingdom who have suffered domestic violence, and identifies some of the risk factors for domestic violence within this community. The study, based on in-depth interviews with 18 Asian women, describes and analyses several aspects of domestic violence in relation to South Asian women. The guiding research questions are: how do Asian women interpret their experiences of domestic violence, and to whom do they report it? This article presents data that suggest that abusive acts against Asian women arise out of a multiplicity of cultural circumstances influenced by power relations. Abusive acts are not therefore limited to a single characteristic, such as physical abuse, or to a particular relationship. Recurrent themes emerge from the women's accounts, revealing their definitions of domestic violence and showing how some continue to play down the levels of violence they experience.